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In this episode, host Laurel Thomsen shares a recent live interview with fiddler, vocalist, and recording artist Tania Elizabeth. Formerly a founding member of Canada's The Duhks, Tania now tours full time with the Avett Brothers as well as in a duo ...
I’m very excited to have a new online course available, this time all about vibrato! I’ve spend the last two months planning, video recording, editing, and finally, as I flew back and forth across the US for my Fall tour of New England, every chance ...
Welcome to Part 2 of a series of interviews featuring fiddlers from Canada! This episode shares an interview with fiddle champion, educator, and recording artist Patti Kusturok. We talk about Patti's latest project, "365 Days of Fiddle Tunes" ...
Yet again a new school year is in full swing and with practice questions floating around my studio, I thought I’d take some time to add on to a blog post I wrote about the topic last year. If you’ve read that post you’ll notice that some sections are ...
Welcome to Part 1 of a series of interviews featuring fiddlers from Canada! Canadian fiddle music is a strong tradition and pulls from a wide variety of cultural heritages. This first episode shares an interview with dynamic fiddler, composer, and ...
It was such an honor and pleasure to open for The Wailin' Jennys over the weekend up in Grass Valley. The audience was so supportive (and thunderous!) and the Jennys were so kind and put on a very inspiring show. Above is one of our songs from the ...
I received an email from a Violin Geek Podcast fan recently about improving the set up and hardware on a relatively inexpensive student instrument and thought others might have similar ...
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.”