Wesley Thompson received her bachelor’s degree in Double Bass performance with Music Education certification at the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University and her Master’s Degree in Music Education at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania.  Along with conducting the BSYO String Orchestra, Ms. Thompson is the orchestra director at Clarksville Elementary School in Howard County, and maintains a substantial private double bass studio in the Baltimore area. Before joining the BSYO, Ms. Thompson conducted the Harford String Orchestra. In addition to teaching full time during the school year, Ms. Thompson is also the Executive Director of Bass Works, an internationally renowned intensive summer program for bassists aged 5 and beyond.  A lifetime member and Executive Board member of the International Society of Bassists, she organizes the young bassist division of the ISB’s biannual conference and currently serves as the organization’s secretary.

Ms. Thompson frequently acts as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator in the Greater Baltimore area. She has acted as an orchestra assessment judge in Calvert, Fredrick, Cecil, and Howard Counties, and has served as the guest conductor for the Anne Arundel, Carroll, Calvert, and Cecil All County orchestras. Ms. Thompson has also served as a solo and ensemble adjudicator in Howard County at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.

Outside of the music world, Ms. Thompson loves to pursue her three favorite hobbies – yoga, baking for her friends and family, and spending time with her rescue dog Banjo.