Stella Chen

Praised for her “silken grace” and “brilliant command” (The Strad), American violinist Stella Chen first gained international recognition as the winner of the 2019 Queen Elizabeth International Violin Competition. In 2023, she was awarded the Gramophone Young Artist of the Year Award for her critically acclaimed debut album Stella x Schubert.

Chen begins her busy 26/27 season with her return to the Chicago Symphony at the Ravinia Festival with the Tchaikovsky Concerto conducted by Earl Lee. She then returns to Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw with the Antwerp Symphony and Marc Albrecht before making her Taiwan concerto debut with the National Symphony of Taiwan and opening the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields’ London season with the Beethoven Concerto.

Further orchestral engagements this season include her returns to the Minnesota Orchestra and North Carolina Symphony as well as debuts with the Bournemouth, Detroit, Utah, Oregon, Ft Worth, and Kansas City Symphonies, the Danish Philharmonic, and the Sarasota Orchestra. Chamber music and recital highlights include appearances at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Dresden Music Festival, Rockport Festival, Cliburn Concerts in Ft Worth, and two national tours with Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Chen also continues her association with NUME Festival in Italy, where she has been on artist faculty since 2023. 

Chen has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, New Japan Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Baltimore Symphony, Belgian National Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and the Orchestra of St. Luke's, among others. Recital appearances include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Suntory Hall, La Jolla Music Society, and Chamber Music San Francisco. Chen appears frequently with Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center as well as with her own trio with violist Matthew Lipman and cellist Brannon Cho. 

Following her all-Schubert debut album, Chen’s most recent recording features the Beethoven and Barber violin concerti with Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields led by Jean-Jacques Kantorow. Both recordings were produced, and the latter is dedicated to the late Adam Abeshouse. Chen records exclusively for Apple’s Platoon. 

A dedicated and sought-after teacher, Chen is on faculty at The Juilliard School and the Shenendoah Conservatory and has appeared as a guest in masterclasses and residencies at conservatories around the world, including San Francisco Conservatory, Sarasota Music Festival, and Tianjin Juilliard.

A California native, Chen is the inaugural recipient of the Robert Levin Award from Harvard University, where she was mentored and inspired by Robert Levin. Her teachers and mentors have included Donald Weilerstein, Itzhak Perlman, Miriam Fried, Li Lin, and Catherine Cho. She received her doctorate from the Juilliard School.

Chen performs on the “General Kyd” 1720 Stradivarius, generously on loan from Dr. Ryuji Ueno and Rare Violins In Consortium, Artists and Benefactors Collaborative.

2027-27 season / 451 words. Not to be altered without permission.