About

Bethany Thompson is a cellist and educator who relishes using music to connect with people—whether through performance or teaching. She earned her doctorate in cello performance from the University of North Carolina Greensboro, where she also conducted research on the benefits of music for youth in detention.

She currently directs string programs in the Florida Juvenile Justice system, bringing music instruction and ensemble experiences to youth in residential detention. Before her work in Florida, Bethany founded and directed Chatham Strings, a string program for teens in custody in North Carolina. Her students have performed in universities, performance and community venues, and at statewide juvenile justice events. Her research on this work has been published in the String Research Journal.

In addition to her work in juvenile justice, Bethany also directs a string program for foster-involved children at New Life Village.

In addition to traditional venues such as orchestral (Lakeland Symphony, Greensboro Symphony, NC Chamber Orchestra, Greensboro Opera) and chamber work (SHU Strings piano trio, DiPiazza-Uhler duo, TAW piano trio, KLIEO clarinet trio, Sitkovetsky and Friends Chamber Music Series), she has been a regular performer in a pediatric ward and performed in juvenile and adult prisons.

Bethany is also known for her interactive solo cello programs for retirement communities. These performances—over 350 given in four states—feature classical, fiddle, popular, Irish, and Broadway repertoire woven together with storytelling.

Bethany's international experience includes four years in the Philippines, where she taught cello, double bass, and music theory at a college in Manila. She has also taught and recorded in Hong Kong and Australia.

Her principal teachers included Marie-Aline Cadieux, Yumi Kendall, and Alexander Ezerman.

To view Bethany’s full Curriculum Vitae, please click below.