About

    Wendy Hellmann is a freelance classical bassist, pianist, and educator of bowed string instruments. Born and raised in Fairfax, Virginia, she graduated first class with honors from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with a bachelor’s degree in music performance. She studied under Iain Crawford, Sub-Principal bassist of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Wendy has studied with internationally renowned bassists Glenn Dewey of "The President's Own" US Marine Band, Jeffrey Weisner of the National Symphony Orchestra, and Thomas Martin of the London Symphony Orchestra.  She has also had the pleasure of playing in masterclasses for bass gurus Donovan Stokes, Joel Quarrington, Rinat Ibragimov, and Edgar Meyer.

     Most recently, in May 2023 Wendy successfully auditioned for the National String Symphonia of Frederick, Maryland, where she will serve as section bassist for the coming season. In July 2023, she was both a double bass and collaborative piano fellow for the inaugural year of “Mozart in the Knobs,” a two week festival based in New Albany, Indiana. Her time there was spent as a repetiteur, as well as performing in various chamber recitals and in a fully staged performance of Don Giovanni. She is currently the principal bassist of Piedmont Symphony Orchestra, located in Warrenton, VA. Wendy won a position as associate member with Civic Orchestra in Chicago, IL for the 2021-22 season. In 2017, Wendy completed a yearlong fellowship with the London-based chamber orchestra, Southbank Sinfonia. Whilst in London, she performed in weekly rush hour concerts, working with the prestigious musicians at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the Royal Opera House, concert pianists James Rhodes and Alessio Bax, jazz legend Guy Barker, and actress Patricia Hodge. As a member of Southbank Sinfonia, Wendy participated in the Anghiari Festival in idyllic Tuscany, playing in daily concerts as part of the orchestra and in chamber ensembles. In November 2017, Wendy was honored to collaborate with the musicians of the Jette Parker Young Artists Programme in a production of La Tragedie de Carmen in London's oldest venue, Wilton's Music Hall.

   Wendy has always had a flair for music education. As a teenager, she attended the Cadet Teacher Training Course, provided through the American String Teachers Association and taught by violin pedagogue Lynne Denig. Before graduating high school, Wendy had over 40 private pupils. Upon graduating university, Wendy accepted a teaching position at Music & Arts and continued to expand and develop her teaching style. Under the direction of Southbank Sinfonia, Wendy worked with the music students of Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School and Marlborough College, mentoring young composers, coaching bass ensembles, giving one-on-one lessons, and performing in side-by-side concerts.  She also performed in several family concerts at Cadogan Hall in Chelsea, and mentored children in underprivileged schools through El Sistema program, In Harmony. Wendy has also been on the faculty for George Mason University’s Ovations Summer Strings Academy, which is a week long chamber music camp for rising 7th through 12th graders.