Violin with Shaunessy R.

Shaunessy began playing the violin when she was seven years old and has been studying under Ronald Neal, founder of the Dallas Chamber Orchestra and former student of Ivan Galamian. When in Germany, she studies under Dr. Peter Gries, the director of the Musikacademie in Kassel. At age 11, Shaunessy made her solo debut when performing with the Dallas Chamber Orchestra. Shaunessy has done solo and chamber master classes with Ralph Fielding (Lynn University), Julia Bushkova (University of North Texas), and Arkady Fomin (Dallas Symphony Orchestra). She played in the New Conservatory of Dallas for six years and was the Associate Concertmaster of its top orchestra which performed at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas. Ms. R attended the North Texas School of Irish Music for two years and has recorded a CD with them. She has been with the Dallas Millennial Orchestra since 2013 and participated in the orchestra tour and CD recordings across the U.S. In the past five years, Shaunessy has attended the Music in the Mountains summer program in Durango, Colorado and the acclaimed Meadowmount School of Music in upstate New York. She has also been a top prize winner at the Dallas Symphonic Festival, Texas MTNA Competition, and Collin County Young Artist Competition. In addition, Shaunessy is the founder of Brighter Future for Kids music program, a community outreach for underprivileged kids for which she provides free instruments, teaches them weekly lessons and organizes recitals for them in the McKinney, TX area. She created a website to provide students with a guide to become a successful violinist. Besides classical music, Shaunessy also likes to explore other genres like Jazz, Pop, and Irish fiddling.