A. BRUCE FRAZIER … noted trumpeter, arranger, and bandleader. His lyrical tone quality and melodic phrasing has created a demand for his music in a variety of settings.
His music career, which spans more than 40 years, is rooted in the church. The Philadelphia native served as trumpeter in residence, at the White Rock Baptist Church, in Philadelphia for thirty years. His professional engagements have included solo performances as well as, performances with orchestras, brass ensembles, and choral ensembles. He has performed at several national and local conventions, including the National Baptist Convention, USA, the North American Pastoral Musicians Association, and The Episcopal Tribunal. In a collaboration with American Baptist Churches, USA, Mr. Frazier performed on their live national telecast, Mission Advocates Commissioning and Celebration. Other televised performances include the Installation of Mayor Street of Philadelphia, and the memorial service for Dr. Ruth Wright Hayre, former president of the Board of Education for the School District of Philadelphia. Recent performances include Excerpts of Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concert directed by Roland M. Carter; performed with mass choir and jazz quartet; appearances in Chattanooga, TN, Houston, TX, Savannah, GA, Atlanta, GA, and Silver Spring, MD
Much of Mr. Frazier’s musical passion is devoted to his company, Grace Notes. Mr. Frazier leads and arranges music for two ensembles that bear the Grace Notes name. Grace Notes started as an ensemble of musicians that performed church music in multiple styles mixing classical, jazz, sacred, and other popular sounds to create their brand of music, liturgical jazz. Grace Notes, Inc. has produced two recordings of liturgical jazz; In the Midst, and That Old Time Religion: Now and Then. Both recordings feature Frazier as trumpeter and arranger.
The Grace Notes All-Star Jazz Ensemble was created to assemble senior master musicians to perform at senior citizen events to promote health and wellness through music. The senior group presented hundreds of concerts at senior citizen events throughout Philadelphia and surrounding counties. The musicians in the ensemble were featured in a major advertisement campaign of Senior Partners of Health Partners, Inc. Their images could be seen on bus wraps, billboards, magazine covers, and signs all over The Gallery, a Philadelphia center-city shopping mall.
Frazier is an advocate of the arts and an educator. Mr. Frazier serves as president of the Board of Directors of the Settlement Music School, Willow Grove Branch. He previously served two terms on the Board of Directors of the Settlement Music School, Germantown Branch. He’s also taught music at the elementary level and served as adjunct trumpet instructor at Lincoln University.
Beyond music, Frazier is a Mathematics Education Consultant. He taught mathematics for twenty-five years and served as a school administrator. He worked through Drexel University as a Mathematics Consultant to administration and staff of the Morton McMichael Elementary School. Currently, Frazier is Math Consultant to the Elkins Park Middle School of Cheltenham Township School District. He holds both a Bachelor of Science in Education and a Master of Education degree from Temple University in mathematics.
Frazier loves the outdoors, hiking, kayaking, and camping. He is a volunteer leader with Boy Scout Troop 358 of the Grace Baptist Church of Germantown.