Professor Jason Thompson joined the faculty of Indiana Wesleyan University in 2006. He teaches applied violin and viola, and is the conductor of the IWU Orchestra.

Originally from Connecticut, Jason came to Indiana University to study both violin and conducting. He studied violin with Yuval Yaron and Ilya Kaler, baroque violin with Stanley Ritchie, and conducting with David Effron. Jason then attended Bowling Green State University for a master’s degree in orchestral conducting. He studied with Emily Freeman Brown, also serving as her teaching assistant and assistant conductor of the Bowling Green Philharmonia. Jason is currently pursuing a Doctor of Music in Ensemble Direction from Indiana University’s Early Music Institute.

In other professional pursuits, Jason conducts the Guilford Town Band, a semi-professional wind ensemble that he founded in 2000. Jason is also director and founder of the Fort Wayne Baroque Soloists, a period instrument ensemble performing throughout northern Indiana. As an orchestral musician, Jason has performed with professional orchestras throughout Indiana and Ohio, and has worked with many renowned conductors including Leonard Slatkin, Larry Rachleff, Michael Stern, Joseph Silverstein, Frederick Fennell, and Joann Faletta.

Jason currently resides in Bloomington, Indiana with his wife, Emily, also a violinist and teacher, and their son John Michael. When he is not hard at work teaching, changing diapers, or finishing his doctorate, Jason is usually reading about liturgy and the worship practices of the Lutheran Church, studying theology, or watching Star Trek.