Maker of Violins, Violas and 'Cellos
Musicians Who Play Thurmond Knight's Instruments
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Richard Lohmann, Concertmaster of the Omaha Symphony Orchestra, plays a violin made by Thurmond in 1998. Mr. Lohmann is a member of the faculty of the Eastern Music Festival, where he is an Assistant Principal with the Eastern Philharmonic Orchestra, and a member of the Eastern Chamber Players. Since being appointed Omaha's Concertmaster in 1985, he has appeared as soloist with the orchestra on many occasions. Modeled on Fritz Kreisler's 1733 Guarneri del Gesu', Mr. Lohmann's violin is dedicated to Thurmond's grandfather, Luther Leonidas Knight. |
Elizabeth Brockway,
violinist from Council Bluffs, Iowa, is presently studying violin with Rick Lohmann,
concertmaster of the Omaha Symphony. Elizabeth won the 1998 Iowa State High School Music
Contest in the top division. She was awarded a perfect score (the only one),
"Best-in-Center" award, and "Best Instrumentalist." For the contest
Elizabeth played her violin made by Thurmond in March 1998, named the "Belle,"
dedicated to the memory of his grandmother, Katie Belle Geiger. In late August, 2000
Elizabeth began as a freshman at Snow College in Utah, and at auditions which took place
on August 25, she won assistant concertmaster with the college symphony orchestra and
chamber orchestra. |
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Tom
Penrose, cellist
from Springfield, Illinois, plays in several chamber groups. In May, 2000 he purchased the Strad model cello, "Lucille,"
dedicated to Thurmond's Aunt Lucille Depamphilis. The cello was made in 1996 and
played-in by Thurmond for 4 years. Click here for more pictures of "Lucille" |
| Dave and Cindy Poplawski own three of Thurmond's violins, Alyssa, Emma and Mona. Dave plays fiddle in the style of Cape Breton fiddlers. He spends several weeks each year basking in fiddle music and celebrations at the Cape Breton Music Festival which involves many of the world's finest musicians. When not fiddling around, he is a busy urologist working out of Central Vermont Hospital in Berlin, Vermont. He presently lives in his Lake Willoughby home with wife Cindy, who is also a fiddle player. Cindy plays Alyssa, the first violin Thurmond made back in 1989, dedicated to Alyssa Elaine LaFrance. |
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Amy Cowell is pictured performing in her senior recital at conservatory in Laramie, Wyoming. In 1995 Amy purchased Thurmond's first cello, dedicated to his son Elliot. The cello is modeled after Stradivarius and was constructed with wood cut from the forests around Mittenwald, Bavaria in 1954. Thurmond obtained the pattern for this cello from his master teacher, Karl Roy, who directed Thurmond through its construction. |
