Demetrios Charles Pappas, an accomplished pianist and conductor who has excelled as the music director for legendary singer-songwriter Smokey Robinson since 2008, paved his career path when he was just five years old. Raised in Boston, he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, Charles, a hardworking musician and educator who guided him toward piano lessons at that young age. Grateful for the advice, mentorship, and example of his father, it was a passion that developed and grew stronger with every year, and ultimately led him to study music performance at Keene State College and taking coursework at Berklee College of Music. After two years of college, he hit the road, relocating to Atlantic City and playing with several pop bands and building his abilities as a player—he performed at hotel lounges for five years and went on international tours with different bands.

Continuing as a professional musician and boosting his reputation in the industry, Mr. Pappas developed a specialty for creating musical arrangements for live performances and running rehearsals to help prepare his band members for upcoming shows. Between 1990 and 1996, he found success as the music director at the Showboat Hotel, one of the most prestigious venues in Atlantic City, and subsequently served as music director for Nell Carter from 1997 to 1999. In 2001, he joined The Funk Brothers on the “Standing in the Shadows of Motown” tour, lending his skills as a keyboardist, backup vocalist, and rehearsal pianist for three years, and also being involved in the accompanying documentary of the same name. He has additionally played in the pit orchestra for the Broadway show “Mamma Mia!,” obtained three record deals with Naxos Records, and recorded three albums of jazz versions of Broadway shows, which included some of his original compositions.

As music director for Robinson, Mr. Pappas has performed several times on “The Tonight Show” and at The White House in 2015. When Robinson received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for “Popular Song in 2016,” he conducted the performance. In the midst of this working relationship that has now spanned more than a decade, he has remained active as music director and conductor with Bertram Music Co., Mr. Robinson’s publishing company. Over the course of his career, he has worked with such acclaimed artists as Aretha Franklin, Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Billy Preston, Daryl Hall, Bobby Caldwell, and Blood, Sweat, and Tears, among several others, and performed at such iconic venues as Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, The Roundhouse in London, The Greek Theatre, Royal Albert Hall, and the Hollywood Bowl.

A longtime civic advocate, he has contributed as a donor to the Deborah Hospital Foundation, New Hampshire Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, United Service Organizations Inc., and Tunnel to Towers Foundation. He is also a dedicated member of the Local 802 Musicians Health Fund. Looking toward the future, Mr. Pappas strives to work on more compositions and play for more artists; he also wants to keep working and touring as long as he is physically able to. Mr. Pappas, who attributes his success to playing the piano in lounges and clubs throughout the Atlantic City casino scene, sees himself mentoring young musicians and helping hone their skills.