Violinist Shannon Thomas is an acclaimed performer and educator known for her compelling artistry and passion for nurturing young musicians. A 2025 Fulbright Scholars finalist, she currently serves as Professor of Violin at Florida State University and directs the Gabriel Del Orbe Violin Program in the Dominican Republic.

Praised for her “expressive, dynamic playing”, Thomas has appeared throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia with recent performances including appearances at the Kennedy Center, Garth Newell, Steinmetz Hall, Bolivia’s Centro Sinfónico, and the Banff Centre. She is a member of the Rothko Trio and regularly performs with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra and IRIS Collective. She has recorded for Blue Griffin Records, celebrating music of Lera Auerbach, Ellen Zwilich, and Jennifer Higdon; an upcoming recording with the Rothko Trio will feature works by Pulitzer Prize-winner Kevin Puts, Libby Larsen, Joan Tower, and Latin Grammy nominee Miguel del Águila.

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Committed to a holistic, student-centered philosophy, Thomas mentors young musicians with a focus on artistic growth and personal development. In the summers, she teaches at Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival and Hilton Head Chamber Music Institute. Her students have been recognized as prizewinners and finalists in national competitions such as MTNA and Sphinx, and are frequently admitted to top music programs across the country. Shannon has presented educational sessions and masterclasses at the National ASTA conference, Florida Music Educators Association annual conference, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Luby Violin Symposium. In addition, she has served as an adjudicator and clinician for the Seattle Young Artists Music Festival Association, the Music Teachers National Association, and regional All-State orchestral auditions. Invested in expanding access to music through education, Thomas is co-founder of MusicBridges Tallahassee, a nonprofit empowering youth through music and diversity. Her previous teaching appointments include the Kinhaven Music School, University of Southern Mississippi, Interlochen Arts Camp, and Innsbrook Summer Music Academy, where she also served as Education Director. 

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She earned a Doctorate of Musical Arts at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she was Paul Kantor’s teaching assistant; she also holds degrees from Yale and Vanderbilt Universities. She also pursued graduate work at Arizona State University, where she was the first student to be accepted into the Artist Diploma program.  She studied chamber music with Peter Salaff, Merry Peckham, George Sopkin, Christopher von Baeyer, Laurie Smukler, and members of the Juilliard, Blair, Toyko, St. Lawrence, and Cavani String Quartets. Her principal teachers have included Paul Kantor, Cornelia Heard, Jonathan Swartz, Robert Lipsett, and Ani Kavafian. She lives in Tallahassee, Florida, with her husband, violinist Frank Trem, and their morkie named Puccini. Visit shannonthomasviolin.com or follow on Instagram: @shannonthomasviolin & @ThomasVioliNOLES.