Have You Heard?

"Lie in Our Graves" by Dave Matthews Band

"Past the Falls" by Dispatch

"Adagio for Strings" by Samuel Barber

"There There" by Radiohead

"Free" by Donavon Frankenrieter

"Ragoo" by Kings of Leon

"Shower the People" by James Taylor

"Beautiful Day" by U2

"Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis" by Vaughn Williams

"Daniella" by John Butler Trio

Q: How long have you been playing the violin and what first sparked your interest in music?

A: I have been playing violin since I was five (almost 16 years). What first sparked my interest was hearing my friend's brother play; I remember saying to my mom, "I want do that!"

Q: How often do you perform and what are the magnitudes of your performances?

A: I perform for various occasions all the time -- at school I have orchestra and chamber concerts, repertoire class performances, recitals and occasional random events. Aside from that, I perform in churches, at weddings, in restaurants and at different functions both in Richmond and at home in Philadelphia. The magnitude of my performances ranges from small recitals for small groups of people to background music at places like the Jefferson Hotel and soloing at President Ayers' Inauguration last year for more than 3,000 people.

Q: How do you pursue your interests in music on campus?

A: Because I am a music major, I am constantly involved in music on campus. I am in the orchestra and a string quartet, both of which have rehearsals regularly, and I also do a lot of private practicing. Sometimes I will get to play with other groups as well such as Schola or the Women's Chorale. I hope to expand a little bit more and play in a jazz or bluegrass group sometime.

Also, aside from playing in my own things, I like to go to whatever concerts are available on campus. The Modlin Center and CAB get a lot of great artists to come in and perform, some of whom I don't even know until I hear them. It's always fun to discover new things.

Q: What has been your most exciting performance thus far?

A: My most exciting performance so far was definitely soloing at President Ayers' Inauguration last spring. I had never played for so many people at such an important function before! I felt very honored.

Q: Who are some of your favorite musicians and have you been particularly influenced by any of them?

A: As a classically trained musician, a lot of my role models are classical violinists, like Hilary Hahn and Joshua Bell. But many of my favorite musicians play other genres of music, like Mark O'Connor, Edgar Meyer and Bela Fleck, who play more bluegrass, alternative rock bands like Dave Matthews Band and Dispatch, jazz and blues musicians, R&B, classic rock. I could go on for too long about my favorite musicians! The breadth of talent in the music world is astounding.

Q: Do you plan on pursuing the violin after college? If so, in what ways?

A: I have thought about pursuing a career as a professional violinist after college, but am currently planning on just continuing to play for fun. I hope to find other musicians and groups to play with who will continue to push me to higher levels of music-making.

Q:strong> Where are you performing in the near future?

A: I am actually playing at the Jefferson Hotel tomorrow afternoon (Feb. 19) for a state function, and later in the semester will have my Junior Recital here on campus, in addition to other campus concerts.

Q: Are you involved with music in any other ways? (i.e., sing, play another instrument, etc.)

A: I like to mess around on guitar and piano but definitely need more work to get any good at them, and I would love to be able to sing well one day.

Contact staff writer Jessie Murray at jessie.murray@richmond.edu