Hi! Wesley here. I'm a collaborative cellist and educator living in the Washington D.C. region. On any given day, you'll see me playing a string quartet, rehearsing in a theatre or recording studio, performing with a singer-songwriter, or something completely different. I enjoy project-based work and lead a diversified career, so reach out if you have something in mind.

Bio below..⤵️

Cellist Wesley Hornpetrie enjoys diving into chamber music and interarts collaboration as a performer and improviser. She is most energized developing works with friends who feel the same urgency that concerts should infuse feelings of place, community, and belonging for all folks present.

A native of Oklahoma City, cellist Wesley Hornpetrie now enjoys performing, collaborating, and teaching around the Washington D.C. region. She is mostly active as a member of Virago, a mixed quartet that melds free improvisation and contemporary chamber music into a contagious headspace of out-of-the box expression. She was the inaugural cellist for Candlelight Concert Series, performing over 100 pop and classical programs in historic locations around Detroit during the 20-21 season. Additionally she is the cellist of the Kennedy String Quartet in D.C. She also plays in her chamber ensemble, Girlnoise and her new music cello quartet, Hole in the Floor. As an arts administrator, she is the founder and executive director of Michigan-based music festival, Third Place [MusicFest]

As a performer, Wesley has most recently collaborated with composers including Bryce Dessner, Annika Socolofsky, Tanner Porter, among others, and ensembles including Roomful of Teeth, JACK Quartet, and the Grand Rapids Ballet. She has been coached in chamber settings by yMusic, Harlem quartet, and International Contemporary Ensemble. Notable collaborations include performing the world premiere of Bryce Dessner’s work, Triptych (Eyes of One on Another), performing it alongside Roomful of Teeth.

She has been featured on numerous music festivals, including New Music Detroit’s Strange Beautiful Music, the Midwest Composers Symposium, Novus New Music, Inc. and GrandStand Music Festival, among others.

As an educator, she has worked with young cellists at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Sewanee Summer Music Festival String Academy, and has been the mentor with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Youth Ensembles cellists. Her students have been accepted to Interlochen Fine Arts Camp, Detroit Symphony Youth Orchestra, Michigan High School and Middle School All-States, and Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. Additionally, she serves on the Sewanee Summer Music Festival advisory board.

She holds degrees from The University of Michigan and Oklahoma City University, studying with Anthony Elliott and Tomasz Zieba. She is pursuing a DMA at the University of Maryland, studying with Dr. Eric Kutz, and has played in masterclasses For Lynn Harrell and Alisa Weilerstein.