By Mark Taylor

He has been described as a violinist who redefines what it means to be a classical musician in the 21st Century. Born in Taiwan, and raised in Australia, Ray Chen started playing violin at age 4, and was accepted into Curtis Institute of Music at age 15. From there he has won multiple competitions, recorded albums, garnered glowing reviews and performed at some of the most prominent orchestras and concert halls around the world. 

Chen’s social media presence and viral videos also set him apart from other musicians. His YouTube channel has more than 200 thousand subscribers and is filled with videos pulling millions of views, introducing more and more people to the violin and the classical music world.

Most recently Chen visited SFCM to deliver some top tips to young musicians at the Conservatory, here are his Masterclass top 5 takeaways. 

You can also watch the full Masterclass below. 

• “Think about perspective whenever you’re on the stage; the performance has got to be different depending on the space. The space is also part of your instrument.” 
• “Think about how you’re going to tell a story. Think about how you react to what just happened immediately before, and also if it comes again.”
• “I give the audience what they want 80% of the time, and then 20% of the time I’ll do something that they don’t expect. That’s how you manipulate the listener and how you play a melody.”
• “Care about every note. A little bit of care will make all the difference.”
• “Always try different instruments because you can learn from them. Take your sound so that you can produce it on any instrument.”

Learn more about studying violin at SFCM.