Laura De St. Croix
Viola
Praised for her warm and beautiful sound, violist Laura De St. Croix-Vicic brings enthusiasm and elegance to her performances. She has played with acclaimed ensembles such as the Louisville Orchestra, Louisville Ballet, Chattanooga Symphony, Lexington Philharmonic, Orchestra Kentucky, Quad City Symphony, Lubbock Symphony and was a tenured member of the Duluth-Superior Symphony for six years. As a soloist, in 2019, she premiered Kentucky composer Rachel Grimes' folk opera, The Way Forth, as solo violist in the featured small ensemble along with Teddy Abrams and the Louisville Orchestra. She performed Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante at the University of Minnesota with conductor, Dr. Jeffrey Specht as well as Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 with her violist husband, Evan Vicic and the Kentuckiana Viola Choir.
As a chamber musician who has performed across the United States and Canada, Laura De St. Croix is the founding violist of NouLou Chamber Players, established in 2016. Ms. De St. Croix has participated in festivals such as the Derby City Chamber Music Festival, Violins of Hope Louisville, Big Ears Music Festival, Witching Hour Festival, the Castleman Quartet Program, Lyricafest, Niagara International Chamber Music Festival, Madeline Island Chamber Music, Chamber Music Midwest, and Northern Lights Chamber Music Festival. She served as assistant faculty and counselor at Stringwood Chamber Music Festival where she worked closely with the Artaria String Quartet. In 2014, Ms. De St. Croix was the Assistant Dean at the Castleman Quartet Program and Assistant to the Artistic Director at Green Lake Chamber Music Festival.
As an educator, she has taught students of all ages for over a decade and has coached students of the Louisville Youth Orchestra, Louisville Academy of Music, Virginia Chance School, Montessori School of Louisville, Westport Middle School, Louisville Male High School, and Youth Performing Arts School.
Laura is on several recordings spanning many genres including Rachel Grimes' The Way Forth; Scott Carney’s song/music video The Holy Fire; a self-titled solo album Jake Shears; and Reina Del Cid's album The Cooling.
Ms. De St. Croix holds degrees in viola performance from Texas Tech University (BM) and the University of Minnesota (MM and DMA-ABD). Her most influential teachers and mentors include violists, Alice Preves, Renee Skerik, Korey Konkol; violinists/violists Jeanne DeDominick, Laura Bossert; and cellist Terry King. She has played in masterclasses for members of Arianna, Artaria, Concord, Emerson, Juilliard, Pacifica, Parker and Takács String Quartets, as well as the Minnesota and St. Paul Chamber Orchestras.