Together we work with players of all levels, from students to professionals, and from all genres, from Cajun & Creole to Classical.
Our shop is in downtown Lafayette, LA, and we serve musicians throughout the region, including Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, New Orleans and Alexandria.
Anya is a violin maker, restorer and player with more than 25 years of lutherie experience. She opened Sola Violins in 2014, recognizing the need for a professional violin shop in the heart of Lafayette, LA, one of the country’s most musical regions. Her interest in lutherie grew out of a passion for music, design and craft. She was trained at Indiana University’s violin making program before opening a home-based repair shop in 2002.
Anya is committed to best quality work and continues to hone her skills with regular attendance at the Oberlin Restoration workshop and the Violin Society of America’s annual conventions. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the VSA and chairs its Membership & Marketing committee. Outside of Sola Violins, Anya is a 3x Grammy nominated fiddle player with Cajun bands Bonsoir Catin and the Magnolia Sisters.
Chris began his lifelong obsession with the violin at age 4, when his parents rented him a 1/16 size violin and he started taking lessons. His interest in violin making developed after being awarded a Folklife Apprenticeship Grant to study with Anya in 2008, when he built his first violin. Chris has been at Sola Violins since 2016, handling customer repairs and maintaining Sola’s instrument inventory, and continues to refine his skills at the Oberlin Restoration workshop and as a member of The VSA.
He’s a Grammy-nominated musician, founding member of Feufollet and current fiddle player with the Pine Leaf Boys and the Lafayette Rhythm Devils. He’s also the archivist at the Center for Louisiana Studies Archive, where he leads efforts to digitize historic field recordings. He spends every spare moment building violins in his home shop.
A native of Natchitoches, LA, Emily began playing the violin in middle school and continued studying music in college, majoring in Music Education at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She joined Sola Violins while still a student in 2018, and now oversees our rental program - from maintaining rental accounts to keeping the rental instruments in top shape with cleaning, repairs and setups.
Emily is also the friendly voice most likely to answer your phone call, and she serves as a liaison for teachers and music schools throughout Louisiana. Emily has been a violinist with the UL Lafayette Symphony Orchestra since 2016, teaches violin lessons and plays private events in her spare time.
Davis is our “bow guy.” Originally from Shippensburg, PA, he started playing cello in his 4th grade school program and never gave it up! Always the kid to help with changing strings and instrument setups in class, Davis pursued his interest in lutherie at The Chimney’s Violin Shop as their last apprentice.
He gained experience working on bows at JR Judd Violins and at Learning Trade Secrets, and he joined Sola Violins in 2023. Davis also quality controls our cello inventory, and plays cello in the UL Lafayette Symphony Orchestra.
Richard joined the Sola Violins team in 2019, after a 25-year career in journalism. He oversees inventory, communications and finances at Sola and works with school programs to manage purchase orders.
He’s the mastermind behind the scenes who keeps us organized and on the up & up. Richard is also an avid musician who plays guitar, fiddle and banjo. Yes, banjo. Also a great country singer!
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