Viola

Singapore born and UK based violist Chian Lim, studied viola performance at the Royal College of Music, London, where he was a prize-winning student.

An active chamber musician, Chian has participated in various prestigious chamber music festivals in the UK, Europe, Singapore, and the USA. He has also broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and has performed at Wigmore Hall on numerous occasions.

He was Principal Viola with Glyndebourne Tour Orchestra and has played Guest Principal Viola with London Mozart Players, Royal Ballet Sinfonia and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. With the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, he has recorded and performed worldwide at some of the most prestigious concert halls in the world with esteemed musicians such as Murray Perahia, Joshua Bell and Gil Shaham. He was a member of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra from 2014 to 2024 and was a Board Director between 2016 and 2019.

In addition to his chamber music and orchestral commitments, Chian regularly plays for film soundtracks and recordings with pop artists, most notably Radiohead.

As an educator, he regularly conducts viola and chamber music masterclasses for conservatoires and universities in the UK, USA and Singapore, and is one the tutors for The National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. He is an alumnus of the MA Music Education: Instrumental and Vocal Teaching programme at the University of York and is currently undertaking PhD studies exploring the relationship between orchestral musicians’ work environment and health outcomes under the supervision of Dr Naomi Norton and Dr Mimi O’Neill.