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 captured international attention as the winner of the 2019 Queen Elizabeth International Violin Competition. She was soon after named a recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant and a Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Award. Her debut album Stella x Schubert was released in 2023 on Apple Music’s Platoon label to critical acclaim, garnering her the title of Young Artist of the Year at the Gramophone Awards.

A deeply passionate performer and educator, Stella brings her experience and authenticity to both the concert stage and the teaching studio. She has performed across North America, Europe, and Asia in concerto, recital, and chamber music settings, appearing as a soloist with orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. Her appearances have taken her to iconic venues such as the Vienna Musikverein, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, and Berlin Philharmonie. Also a devoted chamber musician and recitalist, Stella has recently appeared at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, the Phillips Collection, and leading festivals including Kronberg Academy, Ravinia, Music@Menlo, Perlman Music Program. She appears frequently with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center both in New York and on tour.

Stella is a member of the faculty at the annual Nume Festival and Academy in Cortona, Italy, has served as Visiting Assistant Professor of Violin at Shenandoah Conservatory and joins the faculty of the Sarasota Music Festival in 2025. Her teaching is guided by a spirit of care, curiosity, and deep respect for each student’s individuality. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Harvard University, where she was the inaugural recipient of the Robert Levin Award, and earned her doctorate from the Juilliard School. Teachers and mentors have included Donald Weilerstein, Robert Levin, Li Lin, Miriam Fried, Catherine Cho, Mihaela Martin, and Itzhak Perlman.

Stella performs on the 1720 "General Kyd" Stradivarius, generously loaned by Dr. Ryuji Ueno and Rare Violins In Consortium, Artists and Benefactors Collaborative.

Link to Bio

中文个人简历