Over the last decade, Malaysia’s first professional violin maker has earned many international accolades. Now, Tan Chin Seng is mentoring a new generation of makers from his studio near Kuala Lumpur.

Hunched over his workbench, Tan Chin Seng shaves the wooden top plate of a violin, removing thin layers with slow, deliberate strokes. The work is meditative, out of the public eye. For Tan, ...