Benton Wedge

Benton Wedge, lead conductor and arranger for Cadence, is a professional viola player as well as a homeschooling Father to his two young children.

As a performer, he is a member of the Music of the Baroque, Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Elgin Symphony Orchestra. He performs frequently with Lyric Opera of Chicago and The Grant Park Symphony. He is formerly a member of the Orquestra Metropolitana de Lisboa and the Fidelio String Quartet, based in Lisbon, Portugal, where he also performed numerous solo recitals. Ben has served as principal violist for the Sarasota and Spoleto Opera Festivals, as well as the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared on Empire, The Oprah Show and Home Alone 2! He has performed live with numerous artists including Hugh Jackman, Michael Buble, Seth McFarlane, and many others.

As a composer, Ben’s music has been performed by the William Ferris Chorale, the choir of Old St. Patricks Church, 4spiel, the Covington String Quartet, and members of the Lyric Opera Orchestra.

In addition to his work with Cadence, Ben is the Artistic Director of Lakeside Artist Guild and teaches at The Lakeside Academy in Cedar Lake, Indiana. He is also the orchestra conductor at South Suburban College, in South Holland, Illinois.

Ben has received both Bachelors and Master of Music degrees from Northwestern University with Professor Peter Slowik.

Jocelyn O’Leary

Jocelyn is a classically trained musician on piano and flute with a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Xavier University.  Upon graduating from Xavier, Jocelyn received her Commission into the United States Army as an Adjutant General Officer and served for 8 years, including an apprenticeship under the Commander of the U.S. Army Band Europe.  During this time, Jocelyn married her college sweetheart, Joe, a classical violinist.  Upon separating from the military, Jocelyn and Joe moved to Chicago and began to homeschool their now six sons.  As lifelong learners and seekers of the true, the good and the beautiful, music has always been at the center of the O’Leary home.   It has been a great joy for Jocelyn to share her love and passion for creating beauty in culture through music with the Cadence musicians and families.

Sarah Estep

Sarah started studying violin at age five and orchestral playing at age eight. After graduating from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana with a Bachelors of Music Education, Sarah landed a coveted position on the Northbrook School District 28 orchestra team. There, she taught private/semi-private lessons as well as conducted the Beginning and String Orchestras. Sarah is currently teaching private violin lessons while supporting her own five children's musical education. She has a passion for nurturing the family ensemble and is happy to be part of the Cadence Youth Orchestra.