Addie Dunn, a 12-year-old violinist from Kamas, has the opportunity of a lifetime this spring: a two-week tour in Italy with scheduled performances in historic venues and cathedrals.Dunn first picked up a violin when she was 3 years old. “I tell people that if I had started playing violin any later, I probably would have quit just because it’s hard when you’re not very good,” Dunn said. “But since I was so young, I hardly remember not playing violin. It’s just been my life. It’s something I do, and now that I’ve gotten better, it gives me a will to actually do it.”While very little, she joined Debbie Moench’s studio in Salt Lake City. When Moench retired, Dunn experimented with a few other teachers before sticking with Corine Hart and joining Rocky Mountain Strings, a performing group of around 50 students from different studios.Addie Dunn began playing the violin when she was 3. Credit: Courtesy of Janelle DunnFounded in 1997 by Moench and Ramona Stirling, Rocky Mountain Strings has participated in multiple overseas tours with its students, including Germany, Argentina and Poland. In March and April 2025, the group will head to Italy, and Dunn hopes to fundraise enough money to make the trip.“It helps prepare us,” Dunn said about her concerts with Rocky Mountain Strings. “About a month ago, we had a performance at a church for this fundraiser they were doing.”Dunn and a couple of the girls from Rocky Mountain Strings performed at the Kamas market together, added Janelle Dunn, Addie’s mom. “She did it once by herself, and they asked her to come back, and she brought two of her friends the other times. She’ll be performing on Nov. 30 at the Kamas Christmas market there, too.”During her recent performances, Dunn has left open her empty violin case with a sign asking for donations to fund her trip to Italy. Her mom has also been accepting donations through Venmo (@Janelle-Dunn-1) and asks that any donations include the subject line “Italy.”“She’s been selling things on Poshmark, she’s had bake sales, she’s had several performances,” Janelle Dunn said. “She performs for free and just asks for donations when she performs. She also went knocking on doors and played her violin and asked for donations that way, too.”In total, Dunn needs to raise $5,000. Her mom says she’s about halfway to her goal and that she’s confident the family will be able to raise the funds to send Dunn to Italy.“We’re super happy for her. It’s amazing,” Dunn’s mom said. “I remember thinking when she first started, because there were other kids in her studio that were older and at the level that she is now, I just thought when she started, I have no idea how it’s possible to go from her playing at age three and a half, which she still sounded good, but to go from that to playing these difficult Vivaldi pieces and to sound better than if I was listening to a CD. It’s incredible. It’s impressive.”Dunn, who is home-schooled, said she has other interests outside of violin, like playing volleyball and tennis, but that violin is by far her biggest hobby. She practices for at least 45 minutes every day and sometimes takes multiple lessons in a week, driving all the way to Salt Lake City to meet with her instructor.“It’s definitely hard, and now I have that knowledge of how far I can go and so I also have something to look forward to,” Dunn said. “It’s really fun also, just hearing myself and making progress, and I have great friends who play violin. Just all of it is really great.”The post 12-year-old violinist from Kamas to tour Italy in the spring appeared first on Park Record.