Our Conductor

Ethan Lolley, an Alabama native, is an accomplished conductor, clinician, and music director. He is currently the Artistic/Music Director of The Symphony Orchestra of Northern Virginia, an orchestra that presents highly thematic, immersive, and story-driven performances that modernize the concert experience. He holds his graduate degree in music education with a conducting emphasis in instrumental and choral conducting from Auburn University. Ethan is also a proud graduate of The University of North Alabama, where he received his undergraduate degree in music education and was drum major of The Marching Pride for 3 years. He has led music ensembles as a collegiate and Drum Corps International drum major, youth and symphony orchestra conductor, and music director for children’s theatre, adult mainstage regional theatrical productions, and as a professional opera conductor. Ethan also serves as a Florida public schools music and conducting clinician, providing professional development in conducting and ensemble performance for new music teachers, as well as adjudicating bands, orchestras, and choirs for state performance assessment. In 2015, he founded Drum Major Innovations, an educational institution that offers conducting clinics, camps, and competitions for aspiring drum majors and student conductors. He currently serves as an instructor for the Macy’s Great American Marching Band, a select ensemble of the country’s top high school musicians who perform in the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
 
Ethan has performed professionally with Universal Orlando Resort, Disney Cruise Line, and The Walt Disney World Resort as an Actor’s Equity vocalist. He is currently a principal performer and professional vocalist for Walt Disney World’s longest running show on property, The Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue in Orlando, FL. He was formally the music director of the CFCArts Young Artists Orchestra in Orlando, FL as well as an associate conductor for the CFCArts Symphony Orchestra, the nation’s largest community orchestra with over 320 musicians. Ethan also served as a conducting protégé to nationally renowned Music Director Eric Jacobsen of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra. Ethan holds the distinction of resident conductor and music director for all Florida Opera premieres of composer Nathan Felix at Timucua Arts Foundation, including the World premiere of “No. 5,” an opera about Coco Chanel. Ethan is currently the Artistic Direction of Production at Encore Creativity for Older Adults, the nation’s largest choral organization, where he oversees choirs in over 10 states and 1,900 singers. At his heart, Ethan is a creative.