Introduction: Lydia Byard Mercer began teaching violin, viola, and fiddle lessons over ten years at the age of 15. Since then, she has maintained a thriving studio of of students ranging from 4 year olds to 84 year olds. Her focus is on helping her students find a deep love and understanding of music. She teaches out of her home studio in North East, PA.
Lydia became the youngest U.S. national Scottish fiddle champion at 16 years old. Her love of Scottish folk music lead her to record her solo album of original and traditional Scottish music, entitled “A Peculiar Sense of Humor.”
She has gone on to create an active performing and teaching career as a violinist, violist, and fiddler. Lydia has been a featured performer at venues across the US and Scotland, including the Strathspe Away Festive in Kingussie, Scotland, the Edinboro Highland Games, the Ohio Scottish games, the Joe Luckey recital series, as a finalist in the Neil Gow International Tune Writing Competition, and as a soloist with the Greenville Symphony.
Along with her national title, other honors include the Allegheny Mountain Fiddling Champion, Baldwin Wallace University Concerto competition winner, and Ohio Scottish Games Fiddle Champion. Lydia was also a member of the winning quartet in the Macauley chamber music competition.
Lydia holds a BM in Violin Performance from Baldwin Wallace Conservatory and an MM in Viola Performance from the University of Louisville.
Teaching has been and continues to be an integral and meaningful part of Lydia’s life. She has maintained a private studio of violin, viola, and fiddle students since she was in highschool, and has taught clinics and masterclasses in group settings including the Bonnie Loch Fiddle Clinic in Lakewood, NY and the Heart of the Arts Folk Festival in Titusville, PA, and has been a guest lecturer on the Scottish fiddle at Edinboro University.
