This summer has been busy! I have been part of Downtown Holland's Street Performer Series with my husband M. Brooks, we traveled to Petoskey to play some worship music together at a church, I wrapped up summer lessons until January of 2024, and did some recording with pianist Audra Erb (YouTube Video Linked below). Be sure to follow my Instagram account @LarissaBrooksStudio for my most recent updates.

​I’ll be in the violin section with the Holland Bach Society orchestra for performances this month at three local churches.
More information about the upcoming Bach Society events can be found on our website: https://hollandbachsociety.org/
Harderwyk Ministries
Second Reformed Church, Zeeland
14th Street Christian Reformed Church

This summer I have started to teach private lessons again and pick up more performances after a break due to my recent marriage and lots of traveling. It has been wonderful to get back into performing and teaching. Below are some pictures and videos of my Summer 2022 happenings.

​P.S. I have a concert with the Vintage Parlor Orchestra on August 5th in downtown Holland at Park Theatre. Check it out and purchase tickets soon!! Here is a link: ​https://www.vpogr.com/

My friend Audra Erb and I have recently recorded a few duets. Check them out on my YouTube channel, there is an entire playlist within my channel of our duets. 😊🎶 ~Larissa

May 8, 1:00 PM Core Yoga + Classical violin Guided Meditation w/ Hamilton Health

DESCRIPTION OF CLASS: Join Scott Hamilton for “Worthy” an afternoon of accessible yoga flow and guided meditation with live violin accompaniment. Special guests Caitlin Grant leading our meditation and Larissa Fall providing accompaniment.

Stick around for giveaways provided by The Center for Physical Rehabilitation.

LOCATION: Lookout Park

PARKING: Located at Lookout Park– known for the beautiful views of the city and Grand River. Street parking available. Check out this directory for more information pertaining to parking.

WHAT TO BRING: Water bottle, outdoor shoes, small towel (if needed), and mask (before and after workout-until safely positioned 6ft apart).

SAFETY: Most of the events will be held outdoors in spacious parks + lots allowing for ample social distancing and fresh air. Proper precautions will be followed to keep everyone safe!

Head to www.grfitnessfest.com to browse all the events that are included with your Fit Fest pass!

I was able to be part of a wonderful live stream performance with the Vintage Parlor Orchestra in March 2021. Check the VPO YouTube channel and website for more info and videos.

Over the past year I have been involved in recording violin for a few tracks on Singer/Songwriter M Brooks's new album called Art from Darkness. You can stream and purchase this album on Apple Music and Spotify. I also interviewed M Brooks on my podcast. Check it out below along with two of the 5 tracks I am playing on.

Enjoy these Valentine's Themed pieces performed by Audra Erb and me. 💕🎶

Virtual violin lessons are going well! Interested in learning more? Contact me on my contact page.

I am currently teaching in-person and virtual violin lessons. Some students do a combination of both and others focus on just one method of teaching. It is been beneficial for scheduling and health reasons during this season. My students are learning so much!

Proud of them!
Larissa

As the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted many weddings during 2020 I thought it would be helpful to write a blog post addressing live classical and acoustic instrumental music at future weddings during COVID-19 and beyond. I want to help brides and wedding planners during this time and offer some hopeful ideas about creating a beautiful atmosphere during a wedding. I have been performing at weddings for over 7 years and have worked with countless brides and wedding planners to create memorable celebrations. As a violinist I contract and put together many different types of string ensembles for live wedding music. Here are some of my thoughts and tips:

Safety During Weddings: The great thing about string instruments is that they are a very low risk musical instrument and portable (easy for indoor and outdoor events and have the flexibility to move venues last minute). Violinists, violists, and cellists can wear masks when they perform and perform sitting/standing/and socially distanced. This makes these live music groups easy to work with and safe for live ceremonies. For future weddings, hiring a string quartet or soloist will look very similar to it has in the past. A string quartet or soloist can be located at the front of a church or venue, or in the back of a venue. Players will also easily be socially distanced. 

Types of Live Beautiful String Music Groups for a Wedding Ceremony:  The other great thing about stringed instruments is that they can perform a variety of genres including classical, pop, rock, folk, country, jazz, ethnic, Irish, movie soundtracks, etc. The possibilities are limitless. String instruments and classical musicians are able to adapt to any event and perform any type of music.
​
-Solo Violin
-String Duet or Trio
-String Quartet
-Violin/Piano/Guitar


Thoughts for Brides and Wedding Planners: For weddings during COVID-19 and beyond hiring live musicians will be easy and seamless. I plan to set up virtual video calls with future brides and wedding planners to discuss safety and social distancing precautions for set-up, and then discuss music selections. Working with musicians should be easy and seamless. There is planning up front, but on the big day the professional musicians will create beautiful music in a safe environment and provide the atmosphere that will set your event apart and make it special. You deserve a beautiful wedding!

​If you know of any wedding planners or future brides who you think would find this helpful, please share. : )

Sincerely,
Larissa

Enjoy this Virtual Violin Recital. So proud of all the hard work my students and their parents did and are doing to practice and grow. Great work!

I have decided to bring you a live stream concert experience on Wednesday, April 22nd at 7pm EST. I will be offering this experience live across multiple platforms including Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook. Please join me! We are living in an unprecedented time where many in the world and most American's are required to stay home. All non-essential businesses and events have been cancelled due to the COVID-19 virus. I hope to bring you some joy and peaceful live music during these very different circumstances. I am so thankful for technology and the ability to connect with you.

Instagram: @larissa.fall
YouTube: https://youtu.be/xk7cAjULJXo
Facebook: *Facebook is available only for my personal contacts

Please find the program below.

If you'd like to leave a tip at the end of the concert you can do so via Venmo or PayPal. Venmo @Larissa-Fall, PayPal www.paypal.me/LFall

I look forward to bringing you music!

For those of you with children or those of you who would like to learn and create as you listen to this performance, I have compiled the following activity booklet that may be printed and completed during this performance. Link to the PDF below. Enjoy!! : )

Sincerely,
Larissa

My first professional concertmaster experience occurred on February 9th, 2020 at the Listening Room in Grand Rapids with the Vintage Parlor Orchestra! Enjoy some photos.

Larissa

In November of 2019, I was a featured soloist with the Vintage Parlor Orchestra at Creston Brewery. I performed Vivaldi's Autumn with the orchestra. Enjoy these pictures from this memorable event.

Larissa

This summer only, $50 off a solo violin live event. Doesn't have to be a wedding. For booking/inquiries, contact larissa.

: )

What a year it's been! Scrolled through Instagram to reminisce on 2018. Excited for continued adventures in 2019!! Check out my Instagram account for more musical updates. @larissa.fall

ArtPrize 10 : September 19 - October 7, 2018

ArtPrize has been an energizing part of my life for the past few years. The city of Grand Rapids comes more alive, people seem more connected, the community is engaged, conversations about art are sparked, and new connections are made. This year the Grand Rapids Symphony had four entries in ArtPrize, and it was fun to be involved in such a huge community-wide endeavor. I took some photographs, you are welcome to scroll through the slideshow in this post to see some of my experiences.

No matter what my opinions seem to be about some of the artwork in the city over the years, I can't stop but think about how engaging this festival has been for the community.

Art spurs thoughts. Art can be a statement. Art can speak in ways the news and words cannot. Art is powerful.

After a decade of ArtPrize competitions, the city of Grand Rapids will see changes in the coming years. Rather than an annual city-wide competition open to anyone, "Project 1 by ArtPrize" will commence.

What is ArtPrize?
Since 2008 ArtPrize was an open, independently organized international art competition taking place in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  More than five hundred thousand dollars in prizes were awarded each year, which included a $200,000 prize awarded entirely by public vote and another $200,000 prize awarded by a jury of art experts.

Starting next year, 2019, ArtPrize will now alternate years with "Project 1 by ArtPrize". This new spin on the annual competition is meant to engage a single artist or small group of artists to present a citywide public art project. Learn more at project1byartprize.org.

It will be interesting to see how this affects the community of Grand Rapids as a whole. The city has grown since 2008. I look forward to next year and the changes to come.

Linked below are my previous posts on ArtPrize 8 from 2016:

ArtPrize 8 Pt. 1
ArtPrize 8 Pt. 2

Keep creating.
Larissa

When I slow down to reflect on this past year, this past month, these past few days even - I am blown away by how many exciting adventures I have been involved in! Being a young-professional working in the creative sector, a musician, and a teacher is so busy - but SO exciting!! I honestly can't imagine my life without music. It is such a blessing to be able to live life every day creating and/or supporting something that I feel so passionate about. I am thankful I can hear so I can experience a subject matter that can help us express our souls and feelings. Where words fail, music truly does seem to speak. If for some reason I couldn't hear, the people I've met through being involved in music and the connections I have created working in the arts are also incomparable. I just wanted to write this all down. It is fun documenting my adventures on this blog. Looking back through my feed, I have seen so much growth in my own life. Re-living some of my own experiences is a nice reminder. I am so grateful. Sometimes I can't believe how much I have been involved in, how much I have learned, and how many hurdles that at first seemed daunting I was able to overcome.

Speaking of hurdles, one of my students this week was a bit discouraged at learning a daunting piece of music. I encouraged them to continue moving forward. They thought they couldn't play a certain piece, they said it was impossible, "it's too hard!" But one note at a time we walked through the piece together. I would demonstrate one finger at a time and have the student mimic me. It was a slow process, but guess what my student was able to do? They played the entire piece. They had said it would be impossible. It wasn't. That's a bit like a lot of our lives, isn't it? We have goals, we have dreams, we can feel so overwhelmed by situations we think are stressful. But one note at a time, one step at a time - we can learn. We can keep putting one foot in front of the other, and one day we will look back and realize we have accomplished more than we ever could have thought was possible. How encouraging, how exciting, how refreshing. That's what I've been reflecting on tonight.

I hope you are able to reflect and appreciate your own individual accomplishments and life this week. Count your blessings, I bet you've got more than you could imagine. I sure do. You're important. Don't forget it. You are capable of amazing things!

Larissa