Student Blows the Audience Away With Jerry C’s Canon Rock
Laura Lace is a gifted guitarist hailing from Riga, Latvia, whose reputation has been built steadily online over many years. Since 2008, she has been sharing her energetic and technically stunning performances on YouTube, capturing the attention of music lovers around the world. Her dedication to her craft has helped her amass over 205,000 subscribers, while also expanding her presence to TikTok, where she has reached 165,000 views and continues to grow her following across platforms.
What makes Laura especially intriguing is the air of mystery that surrounds her. Her online presence is largely dedicated to her music, occasionally accompanied by glimpses of Latvian culture, but there is very little information available about her personal life. That choice has made her artistry stand on its own. Listeners may wish to know more about the person behind the guitar, but her breathtaking performances more than compensate for that absence.
Her breakthrough moment came in 2016, when Laura uploaded a video covering Jerry C’s “Canon Rock,” a high-energy rock arrangement of Pachelbel’s Canon in D. The original piece was famously reimagined by Jerry C, a Taiwanese guitarist and composer who specializes in turning classical themes into dazzling rock showcases. With 1.52 million subscribers, Jerry C’s own YouTube presence has long been a hub for fans of these bold fusions, but Laura’s interpretation introduced the piece to a new and wider audience.
Pachelbel’s Canon is widely recognized as a wedding march, and Jerry C’s reworking of it into a rock anthem has given it a completely different identity. His version took something often heard in traditional and ceremonial contexts and flipped it into an exhilarating display of speed, precision, and energy. Many listeners even suggested it would make a fantastic alternative for a nontraditional wedding entrance, highlighting how transformative the rock arrangement could be.
As impressive as Jerry C’s “Canon Rock” has been over the years, Laura Lace’s performance managed to eclipse it in popularity. While Jerry C’s own upload attracted a respectable 2 million views, Laura’s rendition soared far beyond expectations, racking up around 149 million views. That astonishing number not only demonstrates her talent but also illustrates the viral appeal of her stage presence, eclipsing the total views of many entire channels combined.
The performance itself was captured at an annual student concert organized by Latvian music teacher Victor Evdokimov. Laura, being one of his students, was given a platform to showcase her ability alongside her peers. As the video begins, she appears onstage accompanied by two other guitarists and a drummer, setting the scene for what would become one of the most celebrated viral guitar performances of the last decade.
The arrangement begins with the instantly recognizable opening notes of Pachelbel’s Canon, played with a sense of reverence before the band launches into high gear. As the guitars and drums transform the composition into a rock powerhouse, the music takes on a new life. What feels so surprising at first quickly becomes natural, as if the piece was always destined to be performed on electric guitar with such intensity.
One of the most striking elements of Laura’s rendition is the sheer speed at which she plays. The precision and agility required to maintain clarity at such a pace is remarkable, especially for a student at that stage of her career. Viewers were quick to recognize this level of mastery, and the video has received over 886,000 likes. Many comments echo the awe of one fan who declared: “GOOD LORD, that’s an amazing performance! The shifts into minor keys and the tight tempo changes with the band were just phenomenal.”
It is rare for a single performance to strike such a chord across the internet, but Laura Lace’s Canon Rock cover managed to blend technical brilliance, youthful energy, and viral magic all at once. For many, it was their first introduction to both Laura and Jerry C’s arrangement, and it continues to inspire guitarists who dream of matching that blend of speed and musicality. The performance proves that with passion and precision, even the most traditional of melodies can be reborn for modern audiences.
