Bio

Connor Wooley (b. 2001) is a composer, educator, and performer based out of Fort Wayne, Indiana. He has been prolific in his works for solo, chamber, strings, and wind ensemble. Wooley has been commissioned by numerous performers and ensembles in the Midwest region, with works being performed at professional development conferences and symposia such as the Indiana Music Educators Association (IMEA) and the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) conferences. He has worked with and collaborated with performers and groups at the student, community, collegiate, and professional level.

An alumnus of an unsupported music program in Northeast Indiana, Wooley seeks to provide performers of all ages an opportunity to experience quality music that is exciting and enjoyable to perform. He enjoys being able to work with students to help them find their own connections within his music. Collaboration between the composer and the performers is something about which he is deeply passionate.

Connor’s compositional career launched very early in 2022 when he was selected as a winner of Purdue Fort Wayne's Concerto, Aria & Composition Competition with his work for symphony orchestra The Call. This work was premiered at the orchestra's concert on February 14th, 2023. In that same year, he was commissioned for his solo percussion work Collision, and wrote a Concertino for Brass Ensemble, both of which premiered in the Spring of 2023.

In the following summer, Connor wrote his premier work for wind ensemble, Iron Horse, which premiered on April 5th, 2024, at the 2024 College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) North Central Division conference by the Purdue University Fort Wayne Wind Ensemble. This work was also chosen as a winner of the 2024 National Band Association’s Young Composer/Conductor Mentor Project hosted by The United States Air Force Band.

Connor has also written a work for clarinet choir, Wind like Water, which premiered on January 12th, 2024, at the 2024 Indiana Music Educators Association (IMEA) conference by the Purdue University Fort Wayne Clarinet Ensemble.

Just recently, Connor’s work for string orchestra and harp, Evocation, was selected as a winner of the 2023 Concerto, Aria & Composition Competition. This work was premiered on February 14th, 2024, by the Purdue University Fort Wayne Orchestra.

In addition to a prolific composer, Connor is also an active performer and educator. During the school year, he works with hundreds of music students in the Fort Wayne area through during-the-day instruction as well as private lessons. During the summers, he works with multiple marching bands in Northeast Indiana.

With plans to attend graduate school in composition, Connor continues to write for new and exciting ensembles and performers, pushing the limits of his compositional abilities.

Connor currently teaches in Fort Wayne Community Schools, as well as at the Pearl Street Arts Center as a private instructor teaching trumpet and composition. You can find him writing, performing, preparing for graduate applications, or if he’s lucky, outside enjoying God’s creation.