Paul Malcolm began studying viola at the age of nine in his hometown of Wichita, Kansas. He attended Wichita State University, where he received a bachelor’s degree in music. Two weeks after graduating he was playing in the North Carolina Symphony.
Besides playing viola in the North Carolina Symphony, Malcolm has been a member of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra and the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra, where he was assistant principal viola for four years.
His teachers include Hugh Partridge, Kató Havas, Lillian Fuchs, and Heiichiro Ohyama.