About

Raised in a musical family in rural Virginia, Luke was offered the opportunity to experience music in a rare way. From a young age, even amidst his early refusal to join in on the family jam sessions, Luke began to dip his toe into the world of music, taking viola, mandolin, and drum lessons. In high school, Luke took a detour from music, focusing heavily on his interest in theater. While he had some success regionally, performing alongside the likes of Elizabeth Franz and Christopher Lloyd, the pandemic left him alone at home searching for something to engage his curiosity. He found this with his Grandpa’s old Martin and his family’s rickety upright piano, spending many hours developing his understanding of music theory and his proficiency on the instruments. Despite his stubborn refusal to take piano lessons and his difficulty reading music, Luke managed to land a music scholarship at Queens University of Charlotte.

At Queens University, Luke began to study classical piano, classical and jazz guitar, and most importantly, composition. Under the tutelage of Dr. Zach Zubow, Luke’s grasp of composition advanced quickly, and he began to take his interest in the discipline beyond the university. In the summer of 2023, Luke attended St. Mary’s Composition Intensive in South Bend, Indiana where he got the opportunity to study with Zae Munn, Joshua Marquez, Sky Macklay, and James Romig. 

In 2024, Luke attended the Alba Music Festival Composition Program, the Vienna Contemporary Composers Festival, the Texas New Music Festival, and the São Paulo Contemporary Composers Festival, studying with such composers as Aaron Jay Kernis, Carl Schimmel, Mika Pelo, Rob Smith, and Anthony R. Green. At these festivals, he had premieres by the SOLI Chamber Ensemble, Ensemble PHACE, the Texas New Music Ensemble, and GRUPU.