About Nick

Nick Thompson is a versatile musician and educator based out of the Washington, D.C. area. He previously held the positions of Principal Clarinet with the Youngstown, Flint, and Lima Symphony Orchestras. He has also performed frequently with various other orchestras such as the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, Richmond Symphony, Alexandria Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Toledo Symphony, Kalamazoo Symphony, Ann Arbor Symphony, Canton Symphony, Berkshire Opera Festival Orchestra and many others. He was the winner of the 2022 American Prize in Instrumental Performance within the College/University division, and won the Second Prize in the 2021 Henri Selmer Paris International Academy Competition. He performed Mozart's Clarinet Concerto with the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra in 2022, Debussy’s Premiere Rhapsodie with the George Mason University Symphony Orchestra in 2016 and was a Finalist in the 2014 Jacqueline Avent Concerto Competition. Nick is currently a clarinetist with "The President's Own" United States Marine Band and Chamber Orchestra in Washington, D.C. ​

Nick additionally performs with the Maryland Chamber Winds, and has been involved in several recording projects and world premieres with MCW. He was featured as both principal clarinet and Eb clarinet throughout the Bolcom & Friends album made with the University of Michigan Symphony Band under the direction of Michael Haithcock. He also was a member of the large-scale ensemble that made the premiere recording of John Luther Adams' Sila: The Breath of the World during the COVID pandemic, which was later nominated for a GRAMMY in 2022. Nick has performed various solo and chamber recitals throughout the United States, Austria and South Korea. He is also a founding member of the Chamber Artists of Southeast Michigan (CASM) - a chamber music group founded in 2017 that has always been about bringing the highest caliber classical musicians together in order to present intimate live concerts, offer educational and scholarship opportunities, and to commission and perform new works of music from Michigan composers and composers of diverse backgrounds. More information about CASM can be found at: http://www.casmmusic.org

In addition to being a busy performer, Nick is a passionate educator throughout the Washington, D.C. area. Several of his students have gone on to pursue undergraduate music degrees, have held principal chairs in multiple youth orchestras in the area, have been accepted to VA All-State and have received Superior rankings at Solo and Ensemble. Nick is currently teaching private lessons after school at Longfellow Middle School in Falls Church, VA. He has taught in the past at the Mason Clarinet Academy in the summer and the Potomac Arts Academy, both located at George Mason University.
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A native of Great Falls, VA, Nick is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Michigan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a Master of Music degree in Clarinet Performance and also graduated cum laude from George Mason University with a Bachelor of Music in Clarinet Performance. He has primarily studied with Chad Burrow, Dan Gilbert, Kathy Mulcahy, and Ralph Skiano. Nick has also attended the AIMS Festival in Graz, Chautauqua Institution and the Sewanee Summer Music Festival.