Diyang Mei

Diyang Mei is a classical violist who made history in 2022 by becoming the first-ever Chinese musician appointed as 1st Principal Viola of the Berlin Philharmonic. In 2026 he appeared on Backyard of the Village: Orchestral Works by Xiaogang Ye. Born in Hunan, China, in 1994, he began studying the violin at five, encouraged by his grandfather's love of music. At 10, following the advice of his teacher Shaowu Wang, he switched to the viola and continued his studies with Wang at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing until 2014. During those years, he watched a television documentary about Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic, an experience that inspired him with the ambition to one day join the orchestra. His early competition successes included first prize at the International Viola and Cello Competition in Villa de Llanes, Spain, in 2008. Four years later, he won both the IVC Young Artist Competition in Rochester and the International Johannes Brahms Viola Competition in Austria. In 2014, he moved to Germany to study with Hariolf Schlichtig at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich. Further prizes followed, including first place at the International Max Rostal Music Competition and the Kulturkreis Gasteig Musikpreis in 2015, and at the Markneukirchen International Instrumental Competition for Viola in 2017. His most significant competition success came in 2018, when he won first prize, the Audience Prize, and several special prizes at the ARD International Music Competition. His first solo recording appeared in 2019, built around the chaconne and passacaglia forms and featuring works by Biber, Britten, and Ligeti. That same year, he was appointed principal viola of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and began further studies with Nobuko Imai at the Kronberg Academy. In 2022, CAvi-music released his second album, Viola à l'École de Paris, featuring works by Tcherepnin, Harsani, Tansman, and Mihalovici. His recording work continued in 2024 with two solo releases: a Mozart programme featuring the Viola Concerto and Sinfonia Concertante with the Berliner Barock Solisten on Sony Classical, and viola concertos by York Bowen and William Walton with the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie under Brett Dean for SWR Music. Mei holds a guest professorship at Berlin's Hanns Eisler School of Music and performs on an Antonio Mariani viola made in Pesaro around 1646, on loan. In February 2024, he recorded the Xiaogang Ye music with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Released by Signum Classics in April 2026, the album features four works by the Chinese composer, with the violist appearing alongside cellist Guy Johnston. ~ Prince Iwundu