Natalie Darst Xia

Natalie Darst Xia is the recipient of a 2024-2025 Fulbright-Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship, and is pursuing her violin studies at École Normale de Musique de Paris-Alfred Cortot. As a four-time recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Foundation grant, she has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player in France, Switzerland, and the United States. Passionate in promoting the Franco-American cultural exchange, Natalie enjoys connecting with artists through her work as a violinist and in arts administration.

She held fellowships at the Spoleto Festival USA, Sarasota Music Festival, New York String Orchestra Seminar at Carnegie Hall, Aspen Music Festival, the Fontainebleau Schools of Music and Fine Arts, and at the Académie de Musique Riviera directed by Pierre Amoyal.A dedicated orchestral musician, she was Concertmaster of the Spoleto Festival Orchestra USA, Mannes Orchestra, and Boston University Symphony Orchestra.

As an arts administrator, Natalie serves on the Board of Trustees for the Fontainebleau Associations (USA) and spends her summers as the Assistant Program Director of the Fontainebleau Schools’ American Conservatory in the Château de Fontainebleau. She previously served as the Orchestra Personnel Management Assistant at the Spoleto Festival USA.

Natalie received a Bachelor of Music with Honors and a Master of Music from Mannes School of Music where she held the President’s Scholarship. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from Boston University. Natalie has studied with Sally Thomas (The Juilliard School), Todd Phillips (Orpheus Chamber Orchestra), Nancy Wu (Associate Concertmaster, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra), and Lucia Lin (Boston Symphony Orchestra).