Romanian violist Mihai Cocea discovered the expressive voice of the viola at thirteen and refined his artistry under Paul Silverthorne at the Royal Academy of Music in London and Lawrence Power in Zurich, supported by a Swiss Confederation scholarship. As a soloist, he has appeared with the Brussels Philharmonic, NOVA Rossia, The Moscow Soloists, and the St. Andrews Symphony Orchestra, performing at venues such as Tonhalle Zurich, Wigmore Hall, Flagey, and the Bucharest Atheneum. A devoted chamber musician, he has collaborated with artists including Daishin Kashimoto, Alexander Sitkovetsky, Liisa Randalu, and David Cohen, and has been artist in residence at Chile’s Huilo Huilo Festival since 2019. A laureate of international competitions, Mihai earned third prize at the Watson Forbes Competition and was a Yuri Bashmet Competition finalist. He has been the viola leader of Brussels Philharmonic since 2017, he was awarded the “Associate” title from the Royal Academy of Music in 2020 and has since 2023 been a professor at the Maastricht Conservatory.