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I had the pleasure of meeting with the Skype team over the past few months and helping Alpha test their new Skype Professional Accounts - basically, everything we love about Skype along with the integration of PayPal and Calendar apps, note taking, ...
Darker days can lead to darker thoughts. It’s usually this time of year that I start to see more of my students struggling with negative thoughts about their playing and progress and I wear the hat of the cheer leader and therapist a bit more often ...
One of the students enjoying my [online bowing course](https://www.laurelthomsen.com/Online Courses/) emailed me some questions about martelé recently. The technique was clear, but it’s application ...
The relationship between music teacher and student is a connection which goes far beyond the notes and often lasts years, if not a lifetime. It can not be replicated by watching a video or reading a book, although video courses, YouTube videos, and ...
Today, any budding violinist can type “learn violin” into Google or YouTube and come back with countless hours of videos, blogs, and courses, many free or for a nominal cost. At the same time, in most every interview, a professional player will talk ...
I fell in love with this Spanish carol from the mid-1800s when I was searching for traditional holiday music for Monterey's annual "Christmas in the Adobes" event.
After teaching it to a few of my violin students who were interested ...
Please email me at laurel@laurelthomsen.com if you have a violin, viola, fiddle, music biz, or practice related question you’d like answered in the blog or on a podcast, have a story or insight to share, or if you’d like to inquire about violin, viola, or fiddle lessons with me, in-person or online via Skype, FaceTime, or Zoom.
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Laurel ThomsenViolin, Viola, Vocals
Performance, Instruction, Recording
Based in Santa Cruz, California
"After the Fire" - released January 21, 2022!
Each song portrays a facet of the journey from setback to reclaimed hope - finding faith in the possibility of LOVE in “Make Me Come Alive,” HOME in “Beale Street,” COMMUNITY in “Together Again” and “Money Shouldn’t Talk That Strong,” and one’s own STRENGTH and FORTITUDE in “If A Wave” and “Hey, It’ll Be OK.”