Lyda Chen

Lyda Chen is a Geneva-born violist. She initially studied violin with Ayla Erduran at the Geneva Conservatory and with Lin Yao Ji at Beijing’s Central Conservatory. After completing a law degree at the University of Geneva, she turned to the viola and developed her chamber-music work, including studies with Gábor Takács.

Her collaborations with Martha Argerich led to appearances at festivals including Verbier, La Roque d’Anthéron, Salzburg and Progetto Argerich in Lugano. She has performed at the Teatro Colón, Salle Pleyel, the Salzburg Mozarteum and Shanghai Grand Theatre, and as a soloist at Zurich’s Tonhalle. Her activities also include orchestral collaborations and viola and chamber-music masterclasses in Europe, China and Latin America. In 2019 she founded Arch Music Academy, promoting a multidisciplinary approach to music-making. Recordings from the Lugano Festival include chamber works by Beethoven, Dvořák, Schumann, Fauré, Franck and Shostakovich. She appears on Da Vinci’s Las Estaciones del Ángel alongside Martha Argerich, Enrico Fagone and other collaborators.