Violist Youming Chen (pronounced YO-ming) was appointed by Music Director Riccardo Muti to join the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during its 125th season. Previously, Chen served as the associate principal viola of the Kansas City Symphony and was a member of the Grant Park Music Festival. Recently, he founded Audire Music with CSO violinist Rong-Yan Tang. Audire Music performs string quartet masterworks in the Chicago area and Live on WFMT. As a chamber musician, he performs with the International Chamber Artists. He has participated in Pacific Music, Aspen Music, Prussia Cove and Music@Menlo festivals. He received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Michigan, a Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
He is the current custodian of his Michael Alban viola, made in 1711. Former custodians include Michael Nowak, David Schwartz, Myra Kestenbaum and Alvin Dinkin.
