Background
Laurence picked the viola after a school assembly when he was in the fourth grade. He's been in love ever since.
Groomed as a classical player, Laurence toured internationally with the Long Island Youth Orchestra playing music on every continent save Antarctica by the age of 19. Attending Skidmore College in 1995, he was ready for a break from orchestras. Influenced by several close friends, he listened to albums and bootlegs of nearly any music he could get his hands and ears on. During this time, he discovered he could electrify his viola and bought his first wah pedal. Everything opened up.
Laurence moved to Burlington, VT after college and continued to experiment with his own sound. While there he played in a singer/songwriter project with guitar, sitar and tabla. Simultaneously, he was working as a middle school string teacher as well as in a local string shop.
In 2001, Laurence moved to Somerville, MA. A friend took him to an open mic night where he was introduced to many local singer/songwriters. These would become some of his best friends and most frequent collaborators. From 2003 to the close of 2010 Laurence toured with the Ryan Montbleau Band covering the United States, USVI and parts of Canada. They averaged 200 shows per year, playing venues from dive bars and coffee shops to festivals and old theaters. Amidst their ambitious touring, the band recorded three studio albums during this time. In 2010 they were recruited to both open for and back Martin Sexton for his entire Sugarcoating tour, playing beautiful venues and notable festivals such as The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and Bonnaroo, as well as opening several shows for the Dave Matthews Band.
Laurence shifted his life from the road back to Somerville, MA in early 2011. Currently, he plays with local acts Spotted Tiger, Brothers McCann, Danielle Miraglia & The Glory Junkies, Thank God For Science, The Blue Ribbons and more. You can find him most nights gigging around Boston.
