A native of Taiwan, Joyce Chen is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Music (Historical Musicology) and the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Humanities. Under the guidance of Wendy Heller, Joyce is currently working on her dissertation, “Musica Experientia/Experimentum: Acoustics, Aesthetics, and Artisanal Knowledge in Seventeenth-Century Europe,” which explores the intersection between science, music, and aesthetics involving instrument making, sensory experience, and the development of theoretical mathematics. For this project, Joyce has spent a total 6 months (from August 2020 – Summer 2021) working as an apprentice at Zuckermann Harpsichords International—the last harpsichord manufacturing factory in the United States— in Stonington, Connecticut. In addition, she is finishing building her first harpsichord from a Troubadour Virginal Kit.  

Prior to coming to Princeton, Joyce had a full-time performing career as a keyboard player (harpsichord, organ, and piano). Joyce is a recipient of the 2018 Individual Artist Fellowship from the Delaware Division of the Arts. In May 2019, Joyce was a featured solo performer of the Emerging Artist Showcase by Early Music America at the Bloomington Early Music Festival. Joyce holds a D.M.A. degree in Harpsichord Performance from Stony Brook University and a B.S.M.E. from UC Berkeley. She has studied harpsichord with Charlene Brendler, Arthur Haas, and Davitt Moroney. She has an online following at her YouTube channel, where she uploads a weekly video of solo and/or chamber music performances, or tutorials relating to harpsichord constructions. https://www.youtube.com/c/JoyceChenMusic