Violin with Lauren P.

Lauren Pierce is one of those generational instrumentalists with not only the technique necessary to excel on her instrument, but with a flair and presentation that amazes everyone who watches her musically navigate on the double bass. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Lauren began her musical studies at the age of seven on piano and voice. Later, she was introduced to the Double Bass and soon began lessons with the late Douglas Sommer, section bassist for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. She continued her studies at the University of South Carolina under the tutelage of Dr. Craig Butterfield. During her studies at USC, Lauren was given the Presser Scholar Award, named a Magellan Scholar, and in 2010, performed a concerto with the University of South Carolina Symphony as the winner of that years USC Concerto Competition. After graduating from USC, Lauren moved to Denton, Texas to study with Jeffrey Bradetich and work as his Teaching Fellow. As a Teaching Fellow, she was in charge of maintaining a studio of college-aged double bassists and often running master classes for the full double bass studio at UNT. During this period, Lauren competed in the American String Teachers Association Competition and the International Society of Bassists Competition. In 2016, she was named a Pirastro Strings Artist, sponsored by the largest bowed string company in the world, Pirastro Strings. Her popularity through performance videos on YouTube is unparalleled in the classical music world. She is regarded as a "musical innovator" (http://doublebassblog.org/2016/05/musical-innovators-edition-no-5.html) through her performing and teaching, and is famous for playing works for instruments other than the double bass with ease and virtuosity, including Czardas by Vittorio Monti, Zigeunerweisen by Pablo Sarasate, and Victor Herbert's Cello Concerto no. 2. Below are links to a few of her videos: Czardas by Vittorio Monti: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xnDHHFJMnU Victor Herbert's 2nd Cello Concerto, Movement 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_fD21n1O3g Zigeunerweisen by Pablo Sarasate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Av5jV_lSsI Concert Duo for Bass and Violin, Movement 1 by Edgar Meyer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oooODdg7fac Lauren has worked in many different genres and artistic mediums. She has worked as a section member for many orchestras, including the South Carolina Philharmonic, the Austin Symphony, the Austin Lyric Opera, and the Laredo Philharmonic. Lauren appeared as a soloist in the 2011 film "Luz," by Los Angeles filmmaker Ellie Ann Fenton. She has recorded as a soloist on multiple albums, including singer-songwriter Collin Hauser's debut album "Collin Hauser" with Grammy-award winning recording engineer Tim Kimsey, Fall River Footman's Mullen Road, and R&B artist Mikaela Kahn's Milk And Honey. While studying at USC, she played in Bert Ligon's Jazz Strings Quartet and at UNT, she performed in the world-famous UNT Lab Bands. Lauren brings an impressive performance repertoire to the table, exceptional for the double bass, where she takes many a risk playing works designed for more versatile and manageable smaller instruments. Most critics find her flair and presentation almost magical. Her music has been featured many times on sites such as Classic FM, MusicOff, Discover Double Bass, Jason Heath's Double Bass Blog, Patternroot, and more. Lauren is a frequent clinician at several workshops, including the Bradetich Summer Bass Camps, the Austin Bass Workshop, and Bassmania at Columbus State University. She resides in Austin, Texas with her partner, exceptional bassist Daniel Parr, who is current playing with the world famous Quebe Sisters.