Wes Smith

Wesley G. Smith is an accomplished choral director, arts administrator, and music educator based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Wes is currently the Director of Music Programs with Arts+ (formerly Community School of the Arts) and serves as the Interim Artistic Director of the Charlotte Youth Choir (formerly the Charlotte Children’s Choir). In his role as Director of Music Programs, Wes manages various music outreach programs across the Charlotte region in collaboration with a faculty of over 40 music instructors. He has served in a variety of choral conducting and teaching roles, directing singers of all ages.

Prior to moving to Charlotte, Wes taught middle and high school choral music as the Upper Academy Choral Director and Music Department Chair at Grand Center Arts Academy in St. Louis, Missouri. He has also served as the Director of the Asbury Children's Choir at Broad Street United Methodist Church in Cleveland, Tennessee.

Wes has frequently been invited as a guest conductor, lecturer, and clinician for schools, churches, and collegiate ensembles. He has studied voice with Heather Patterson, James Frost, and James Burns, and collaborative piano with Perry Mears. Wes has also studied extensively in singer’s diction, having studied phonetics and linguistics for over ten different languages. His publications include articles in The Chorister, published by Choristers Guild, as well as choral reviews published in the Choral Journal and The Chorister. Wes holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Music Education from Lee University where he studied choral conducting with Cameron LaBarr.