Lauren Garcia

Lauren was born and raised in Houston, Texas. She began learning the violin at age 7 with Yalira Machado and then Joshua Bamberg. She began middle school in the highest orchestra, Chamber, under the direction of Melanie Thomson. For her 3 years in middle school she has earned placement in the Jr. High All-Region Orchestras and in 8th grade ranked 1st in the region among violins. She has also earned 3 Outstanding Performance awards for each of her solos at the Solo and Ensemble contest.

She currently goes to Klein Forest High School where she is a member of the Klein Forest Orchestra under the direction of Mamie Morlacci and Cameron Tesoro. Lauren has earned placement in the High School All-Region Symphony Orchestra and consistently places in the top 10 among violins. She is also her region’s two-time Symphony concertmaster as she has earned first chair both in her sophomore and junior years. Throughout her years in high school, she has consistently advanced to Area and even made All-State as a sophomore in 2022. She has also participated in the state UIL Solo and Ensemble Contest with her solos and advanced to state earning an OP rating as a freshman and a 1 as a sophomore. In 2022 she participated in the American Festival for the Arts (AFA) Summer Music Festival where she was concertmaster of the AFA Symphony Orchestra. Lauren is also a member of the Houston Youth Symphony for the 5th year in a row and participates in gigs for her school’s KFO quartet.