Wesley Thompson earned his M.M. in Trombone Performance as well as a Professional Performer’s Certificate from Penn State in 2015 and 2016 respectively.and this summer earned his D.M.A. fromt the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami.
Wesley can be heard the recording “American Dreamers: Voices of Hope, Music of Freedom” by the John Daversa Big Band Featuring DACA Artists which was recently awarded 3 Grammy Awards. The CD was spearheaded by John Daversa, multi-Grammy-nominee, jazz trumpeter, arranger, and Chair of the Studio Music and Jazz at the Frost School of Music. This recording is much more than just another musical CD; it’s a project that gives a voice to young, undocumented people known as “Dreamers” who, through no fault of their own, were brought to the United States as children. As many of these young people grew up they were instilled with the very same American values and culture yet now find themselves at the center of an impassioned immigration debate in which they and their families face immense uncertainty. In 2012 the Dreamers were afforded temporary status as part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) which allowed nearly 800,000 young people, brought the US by undocumented parents to remain in the only country many of them knew and could call home. In 2017 DACA was rescinded leaving the futures of thousands of young Americans unclear.
As a grandchild of Italian immigrants, father, and educator, Daversa empathized with the plight and struggle of the many people affected by the cessation of DACA. “That’s why the plight of the dreamers had a visceral effect on him. ‘I wanted to provide an opportunity for Dreamers to share their stories through music,’ says Daversa. ‘You don’t need polemics or a bullhorn to make yourself heard. The young people I worked with are just amazing, and I want this project to reach a wide audience, so that others could be touched, as I have, by their abundant courage and hope.’” Daversa began the project by selecting a team of professional musicians in Miami, Los Angeles, and New York to serve as the big band on the record. It was always his goal to include as many Dreamers as possible and by the completion of the project Daversa, and his production team led by Kabir Sehgal and Doug Davis, along with the help of numerous non-profit immigration organizations (including United We Dream, FWD.us, and National Immigration Forum) had found 53 Dreamers in 17 States from 17 different countries across the world including Beliz, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Canada, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Senegal, Singapore, South Korea, and Venezuela.
In the end this project is more about starting a discussion about immigration policy than winning awards. This project has not only raised awareness about the struggles of Dreamers but was also awarded 3 Grammy Awards for each of the 3 categories it was nominated. Daversa himself was awarded two Grammys, one for Best Instrumental Arrangement for Stars and Stripes Forever and another for Best Improvised Jazz Solo on Don’t Fence Me In. The album was then awarded its final Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.
Dr. Wesley Thompson
When John first asked me if I wanted to be part of this project I was very humbled to have been and incredibly excited for what this project had in store. At this point John had not even finished writing and arranging the music but was sharing what he was working on and his excitement with us up until we began recording. The band was made up of many local musicians, several were my colleagues at the Frost School of Music, as well as musicians from Los Angeles and New York City. After 4 days in the studio the album was nearly finished recording. The remainder of the recording took place as John flew across the country meeting Dreamers, including and featuring them on the album. I was very glad that I had spent some time in college doubling on the tuba as I was asked to overdub tuba parts on two of charts, Deportee and Stars and Stripes Forever.
