Stephen King

Violist Stephen King is a chamber musician and creative who performed with the Australian String Quartet from 2012-21. Prior to this, he was a member of the Australian Chamber Orchestra from 2003. Stephen has always been passionate about new Australian music and recording it, projects with First Nations artists, innovative cross-artform collaborations and founding and building the ACO Emerging Artists program and ACO Collective.

Growing up in Canberra, Stephen studied the violin but as an architecture student fell for the darker world of the viola. From 1997 Stephen was violist of the Coolidge String Quartet in Washington D.C. He holds a Doctorate in Chamber Music, having worked closely with the Emerson and Guarneri Quartets. Stephen was also the Associate Principal Viola of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and member of the Boston Modern Orchestra Project while on the faculty of NEC Prep Division in Boston.

Stephen is currently Lecturer in Viola and Chamber Music at the Elder Conservatorium of Music, Adelaide University and teaches for the Open Music Academy. He is principal viola of the Australian Romantic and Classical Orchestra and violist of Ironwood ensemble. He has been a regular guest principal of the TSO, CSO and plays with the Auckland Philharmonia and AWO. In any spare moments Stephen designs and makes sculpted timber furniture and art.