Hello everyone from sunny Southern California!  My name is Kev Thompson.  I'm pretty dang stoked that I found this site!  I first started playing the viola at age 8.  Sadly being a Navy brat I stopped when I was 12 due to my father getting orders to a new duty station. 

As a Navy psychologist, I advise people to make sure they are doing things to feed their "souls".  Knowing I should take my own advice, I decided to take up playing the viola again.  This past February I purchased a 16" Cecilio CVA-400.  However, I was getting pretty mean shoulder and neck strains.  A month later I purchased a 15" CVA-500 viola, hoping it would do the trick.  I was impressed at how much I remembered (reading the notes and intonation).  Sadly, I was still getting neck and shoulder pains.  Two weeks ago, I purchased a 4/4 Cecilio CVN-300 violin in hopes that the smaller size would help out. 

To my surprise, it has not given me any pains.  But... wow... it's SO much different than the viola.  Now I'm trying to get used to the strings, notes , etc.  I still SUCK, but man... I do love the feeling I get when I put bow to string.  I'm schuper duper jazzed on the decision I made (even at age 39).

Best wishes to you all and hope to interact with you all!

-Kev