About Shawn Prudhomme
Shawn Prudhomme is a violinist and violist from the foothills of Northern California. He began violin lessons at age 10, very quickly showing a great aptitude for the instrument. At age 14 he began taking viola lessons in addition to violin, and has performed solo, chamber, and orchestral concerts on both instruments ever since. After high school and a number of years exploring various academic possibilities alongside music in community college, he attended the University of the Pacific to study with Igor Veligan, and graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor of Music in strings performance. While attending university and since graduation, Shawn has performed regularly in the Gold Country Foothills region with InConcert Sierra, the UOP Symphony Orchestra (1st violin), the Apollo Orchestra (acting principal viola in 2015-2016), the Veridian Symphony, and other regional groups. He was also the lead violist for the Camerata Capistrano Baroque Ensemble at Sacramento State University in 2014-2015.
Shawn also performs in other music styles, including traditional Irish & Scottish music and Jazz, and occasionally performs around the country with Stockton/Sacramento area bands Current Personae, The Hebrew Project, Wild Branches, and The Gatekeepers.
Shawn has been teaching violin and viola since 2006. He focuses on not only teaching the instrument, but also teaching the student – learning a musical instrument builds many important life skills, and he challenges each of his students not just to become a better violinist or violist, but a better musician, and a better person overall. He has a friendly, engaging teaching style and works to find the best way to teach each student depending on their strengths and weaknesses and different learning styles. Learning and playing music should be a joy, and one of the best ways to enjoy it is for each person to play the music they like the most with other people, which Shawn highly encourages his students to do in whatever way possible.