By Hugh Robertson

The life of a concert soloist can be a lonesome one.

Endless hours of rehearsal, moving from concert hall to concert hall, three shows here, one night only there – if it’s Tuesday, this must be Belgium. Of course it is exciting, too, and the opportunity to travel the world playing music is one that most of us would jump at. But as with so many elite performers, from musicians to athletes, the dedication required can be exhausting.

As one of the world’s most in-demand violinists for more than 15 years, Ray Chen knows a thing or two about the itinerant life of the soloist. Since announcing himself to the world with wins in major violin competitions as a teenager, the Australian has been a regular fixture at all the world’s great concert halls. But not satisfied with the traditional model of the soloist, Chen has also worked hard to build a profile based on accessibility and community, in particular through his social media channels, through which hundreds of thousands of followers who hang on his every note.

“People often ask me why I do all these other things,” says Chen. “Why can’t I just focus on the stage – walk on, play, walk off? And I worked out the perfect analogy: music is the juice, composers are the juice makers, and I am the straw. I’m not a juice maker, but I can be the best straw that I can possibly be.

“When I realised that, this light went on in my mind and I realised it doesn't really matter what the straw is made of. Performances are one type of straw, but so are videos on YouTube or on social media. So are creating communities online, so something like Play with Ray or working with the Sydney Symphony. These are all different ways of getting the juice to the people.

“I remember feeling immense relief after I figured that out. And it made things so simple: my measurement for success is how much I can positively impact. That’s all it is. And it all makes sense now.”

One of the things Chen is most passionate about is dispelling the mystique of the genius soloist. Classical music is an artform that loves to keep its inner workings hidden; the final product demands such precision, such high-level artistry, that presenting anything less than that to the public risks the mask slipping forever. But that too comes with an extraordinary amount of pressure, and young musicians have been known to crack under the weight of expectation.

Then a few years ago, the thought occurred to Chen – what if he could make a virtue of the process, rather than the result? What if he could make practice and rehearsal a communal activity, rather than a solo pursuit? And what if he could bring that sense of community, and that joy of playing music with friends, to the great concert halls of the world?

“I just wanted to connect the world a little bit more, to make something that was fun,” says Chen, his enthusiasm bursting through even on screen. “That’s what the core of Play with Ray is, it's to find ways to really enhance your own motivation through connecting with people, through fun and this community.”

“I was really thinking about how you don't see something until it's at the end, right? The performance, the recording, the whatever it is. And then the process in the middle is obscured. So Play with Ray, I thought this would be fun if we had more people involved and started practicing towards something, to give people a goal, and something they could dream towards.”

After a months-long process that saw close to 500 entries coming from 55 countries, that dream will become a reality for three young violinists: Przemysław (Przemek) Prucnal, a 21 year-old from Poland, Anna Sing, a 21 year-old from Melbourne, and Yongren Yuto Lim from Singapore, who is just 11 years old!

These three performers will perform Bach’s Concerto in D minor for Two Violins with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, with each violinist featuring in one movement alongside Chen. Then Chen will treat the audience to a display of the breadth of his artistry, performing pieces by composers as diverse as Samuel Barber and Astor Piazzolla, as well as a couple of his favourite showpieces.

But not only will these young musicians get to perform at the Sydney Opera House with Ray Chen and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, but they will spend a whole week soaking up everything Sydney has to offer – all part of Chen’s desire to build a community, not just run a competition, and to replicate some of the unforgettable experiences that he had as a young musician.

“There will be masterclasses, there will be workshops, but we'll also go to the zoo,” he says with a laugh. “We'll invite you to all these cool places in Sydney. And there's this community-like feeling that happens, and we make something of a special event.”

“When I was eight years old, I got invited to go to Nagano in Japan for the Winter Olympics – and it was the coolest experience. It was the first time that I was traveling for the violin. It was through Suzuki Method, they invited like 500 kids from all over the world. But to me, it was special.

“I loved it, and through that I met all these people, and I’m still in touch with the host family that I stayed with with my mom. It changed my life.”

And Chen isn’t stopping at just one competition, either – he’s out to change the world.

“It's a bit further off and perhaps more a nebulous dream, but I want to make the world a better place, to have a positive impact. It's a wheel, isn't it? You have to push, and then hope that other people will also push. I just want to continue giving, to keep pushing that wheel. It's my turn now – I’ve got to do it! I can’t just sit here and do nothing!”