Leslie Whelan

Leslie Whelan teaches cello at Austin College and throughout north Texas. In addition to performing with the Sherman Symphony Orchestra, she serves as Education Director of the SSO, where she focuses on creating ways for the Symphony to connect with young musicians in the Texoma region. Leslie and her family moved to Sherman, TX in 2014 after spending several years in Virginia, where she performed with the Fairfax Symphony, Ash Lawn Opera, Roanoke Symphony, Richmond Symphony, and Opera on the James. While based in Charlottesville, VA, Leslie managed a private cello studio and taught for the Boyd Tinsley scholarship program and Charlottesville Waldorf School. Leslie was also an instructor at Longwood University, teaching Music Appreciation and String Techniques.
Leslie received a BM from Ithaca College and MM from the University of Maryland, College Park. She has completed Suzuki Teacher Training courses with Tanya Carey, Beth Cantrell, Pamela Devenport, Carey Beth Hockett, and Carol Tarr. Her past instructors include Evelyn Elsing, Uri Vardi, Elizabeth Simkin, Heidi Hoffman, Nicola Heinrich, and Suzanne Smith.