Patrick Thomas, horn soloist

Patrick Thomas was born into a musical family. His parents, David and Phyllis Thomas, met while singing in the Dallas Opera. Patrick’s grandmother, Virginia Thomas, attended the Westminster Choir College where she had the opportunity to join the choruses of the Philadelphia Orchestra and New York Philharmonic for performances of Beethoven Symphony No. 9 with the likes of Eugene Ormandy and Arturo Toscanini.

Patrick began his music education at a young age. Early activities included church bell choir, piano lessons with mom, and ear training with dad. In 6th grade, Patrick started playing the horn. His excellent middle school band directors, Katie Zier, Mark Biggs and Kristi Celone, were paramount to his early success.

Throughout middle school and high school, Patrick was extremely fortunate to have Karen Houghton as his primary horn teacher. Besides his parents, Mrs. Houghton is the single most influential person in Patrick’s musical career. She illuminated the wonderful world of horn playing in so many ways - teaching transposition, orchestral and solo repertoire, attending International Horn Symposiums, and always pushing for excellence – to name a few.

After high school, Patrick continued his education at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Additionally, he attended the Aspen Music Festival, Monteux School and Music Festival, American Horn Quartet Seminar, and Summer Brass Institute. His most influential horn instructors during this time include Mark Houghton, Eli Epstein, Julie Landsman, David Wakefield, and Phil Munds.

An active performer, Patrick joined the Abilene Philharmonic as 2nd horn in 2008. Since then, he has enjoyed learning alongside Jeffrey Powers, Principal horn of the Abilene Philharmonic. Patrick is also a regular performer with the Waco Symphony, Amarillo Symphony, and West Texas Symphony in Midland-Odessa.

Patrick joined the faculty at Abilene Christian and Angelo State Universities as Adjunct Professor of Horn in 2023.

In addition to the horn, he enjoys playing piano, composing, audio engineering and soccer. Finally, Patrick would like to thank and acknowledge Jake Martin, Dr. John Irish, Dr. Allen Teel and Dr. Trent Shuey for all their faith and support.