Homegrown violin virtuoso returns to Lakeville stage
As Minnesota Public Radio’s Artist in Residence, 17-year-old violin virtuoso Chad Hoopes has been traveling the state for performances at schools and other public venues. He’ll be returning to his hometown Sunday, April 29, for a concert at the Lakeville Area Arts Center. (Photo submitted)
Chad Hoopes’ violin talents have taken him all over the world.
He’s logged visits to Italy, Norway, Switzerland and Wales, among other far-flung locales, for international competitions and guest performances with symphony orchestras.
State-side, he’s played with orchestras across the country, was featured on PBS’s “From the Top: Live at Carnegie Hall,” and contributed a violin solo to a commercial for the Cleveland Indians baseball team that went on to win an Emmy.
Not too shabby for a 17-year-old high school senior.
Now living in Cleveland, Hoopes traces the start of his musical journey to Lakeville.
The violin virtuoso who began playing at the age of 4 grew up in Lakeville, attending Oak Hills Elementary while simultaneously taking lessons from a Suzuki method instructor in Minneapolis.
“Ever since I was really young, 4 or 5, I would always tell people I wanted to be like Joshua Bell or Itzhak Perlman,” he said. “When I was 12, I decided to get more serious about it.”
For Hoopes, “getting serious” included entering the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition, where he won first prize in the Young Artists Division.
Now as Minnesota Public Radio’s Artist in Residence, Hoopes has been traveling the state recently for performances at schools and other public venues.
He’ll be returning to his hometown Sunday, April 29, for a concert at the Lakeville Area Arts Center.
It’s an opportunity he says he cherishes.
“What do I enjoy most about performing? The fact that I get to give a gift to the audience every time I take the stage,” he writes on his MPR blog. “To me nothing feels better than being on the stage. I love being able to express myself just the way I want to through music.”
Tickets for the Lakeville concert, which is being presented by the Friends of the Lakeville Area Arts Center and Minnesota Public Radio, range from $24 to $29 and go on sale April 11. They’ll be available online at www.lakevillemn.gov and in person at the arts center located at 20965 Holyoke Ave.
Andrew Miller can be reached at andrew.miller@ecm-inc.com or facebook.com/sunthisweek.
