Ben Thompson is a piano player, composer, and teacher that currently lives in the Boulder/Denver area. He is a versatile musician, mixing jazz improvisation, classical music, salsa, funk, and rock to create his own musical identity. Ben has a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies which he attained in 2020 from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

During the summer of 2018, Ben played with the National Repertory Orchestra where he worked with Michael Stern, Chris Deviney, and She-e Wu. In 2020, he was selected to participate in the IASJ music conference in New York City before the conference was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
    
While being a gigging and composing musician, Ben also loves teaching music. He works with CCJA (Colorado Conservatory for the Jazz Arts), an organization that’s purpose is to let kids learn jazz from professional jazz musicians, of which he is an alumni. In addition to CCJA, he works as an accompanist at Niwot HS, as well as teaches students individually.
Sam Stech has attended the camp since its inception in 2017, and has participated in other past camps (before this one existed) with Mister Tim. He now serves as an assistant staff member and accompanist for the camp. He is a skilled singer, beatboxer, pianist, looper, and overall musician. Sam is excited to return to the a cappella camp to share those skills and  help other campers have the same awesome experience that he had. During the school year, Sam attends the Colorado School of Mines, and is working on completing on his degree in Computer Science.
Victoria Bailey holds a Master's Degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Southern California. She earned her Bachelor's Degree in Choral Music Education from the University of Colorado Boulder, where she also won the Anderson's Undergraduate Vocal Scholarship Competition in 2011. After graduating, she  held the position of Choir and Drama Director at Lyons Middle Senior High School for 6 years. Additionally, she has spent the last five summers as the music director for Center Stage Theatre Company's summer camp intensive. Ms. Bailey has a wealth of experience and talent, and loves sharing as much of this as she can with each of her students, bringing a positive energy to the process.  She has been with the camp since its inception, in 2017.
​Please consider partnering with our organization to support our mission.  Your tax-deductible donation will help us provide the following:
  • Access to small ensembles for students seeking further musical challenge
  • Uplifting and educational summer intensives for any interested student
  • Educational festivals and classroom visits for music programs in need
  • Special scholarships for students seeking additional education (college degree, private lessons, etc.)
  • Grants for public music education programs to supplement severely limited budgets
  • An affordable price for ALL of our offerings, and scholarships for students with financial need

You may use the button above to uplift students and music programs throughout the state of Colorado. They will most certainly be grateful for your support and generosity.
Ascent Vocals exists to support and strengthen music education in our state. We provide support to music educators, opportunities for their choirs, and extra-curricular activities for ANY interested student. 

We don't want a lack of funding to stop students from experiencing the joy of singing, so we make everything as affordable as possible, and provide scholarships for both schools and students when they're needed. We can't do this without the support of those who also believe in the importance of doing so.

We would LOVE to tell you more, so sign up to hear the updates, or contact us directly!