Stella Chen
Gramophone Young Artist of the Year

The combination of her gleaming tone and staggering technique makes for music that commands attention at every moment… there’s no shortage of chills-engendering playing on this auspicious debut

- Textura Reviews

Read Textura Review of Stella x Schubert

My love for Schubert blossomed unexpectedly during a performance analysis class with Robert Levin, a brilliant musician I knew as the phenom who completed Mozart’s Requiem for his undergraduate thesis. Known as he is for his encyclopedic knowledge of Mozart, Levin surprised me when he revealed that his favorite piece was Schubert’s G major Quartet, D.887. He spoke about the music in a way that brought tears to my eyes, despite having never heard the piece myself. Thus began my deep and unwavering love affair with Schubert. For me, no composer conceives of more beautiful melodies than Schubert’s, in large part due to his extraordinary ability to translate vulnerability into music. Exposed, devastatingly fragile, almost otherworldly, his music teeters precariously on the brink of life and death. Rightfully wide-eyed but inevitably futile attempts to reproduce or quantify the magic of Schubert have preoccupied performers and scholars for the last two centuries. Having approached his music from both of those perspectives myself, I can only say: Schubert transports us to another world.

I asked to start playing the violin after being captivated by the sheer beauty of its tone; the endless search for that shiver-inducing sound is still the reason I reach for the violin every day, and nothing inspires me more than Schubert’s music to continue that aural adventure. Working on this project has been a gift. There is no better music to remind us to appreciate the most delicate and fragile beauty in the world.

Biography

Her graceful, singing line, gleaming tone, and breathtaking use of pianissimo made the Tully Hall crowd sit bolt upright.

- Musical America

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. Her critically acclaimed debut album Stella x Schubert, released in 2023 on Apple Music’s Platoon label, earned her the Young Artist of the Year title at the Gramophone Awards.

Chen has performed across North America, Europe, and Asia in concerto, recital, and chamber music settings. She recently made debuts with the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and the Orchestra of St. Luke's. Her performances have taken her to some of the world’s most iconic venues, including the Vienna Musikverein, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, and Berlin Philharmonie. She appears frequently with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, both in New York and on tour.

Highlights of Chen’s 2025–26 season include concerto debuts with the Vancouver Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, and Antwerp Symphony orchestras, and an American tour with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, including a performance at Carnegie Hall. She appears in recital and chamber music performances at La Jolla Music Society, Chamber Music San Francisco, and leads a residency at San Francisco Conservatory.

A dedicated chamber musician, Chen has been featured at festivals including the Kronberg Academy, Moritzburg Festival, Ravinia, Seattle Chamber Music Society, Perlman Music Program, Music@Menlo, Bridgehampton, Rockport, and Sarasota Music Festival, where she returned as faculty in 2025.

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, where she was recently appointed to the College and Pre-College Division Faculty. She also serves as Visiting Assistant Professor at the Shenandoah Conservatory and is on the faculty of the Nume Festival and Academy in Cortona, Italy.

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

Link to Bio

中文个人简历