Andra Dārzin (viola) performs as a soloist and chamber musician across Europe, Australia, Asia, North and South America. Born to Latvian parents in Australia, she initially studied in Adelaide. As a Churchill Fellowship and DAAD scholarship recipient, she eventually came to Berlin, where she completed her studies with distinction under Wolfram Christ in 1989, earning her concert diploma. After serving as the principal violist in the Philharmonic State Orchestra Hamburg from 1993 to 2004, she was appointed as a professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Stuttgart. She has premiered numerous works, including the Viola Concerto dedicated to her by Latvian composer Maija Einfelde. Her solo CDs have received high praise from critics. The CD "America," featuring her performance of the solo viola part in Feldman's "Rothko Chapel" with the SWR Vocal Ensemble, was awarded the Prize of the German Record Critics in 2014.