View Profile Page

Profile

Praised by Alicia de Larrocha for her artistry, Dr. Youn-hee (Yuni) Kim received the remark: “To Youn-hee: with or without competitions, you will be a fantastic artist!” This endorsement highlights her distinguished musical sensitivity and artistry. The Peninsula Review of the Carmel International Competition praised her performance at the winners’ concert, particularly highlighting her interpretation of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Études-Tableaux, Op. 39 No. 6 in A minor as “the best performance among any performers, live or recorded."

Born in Seoul, South Korea, and immigrating to the United States in 1998, Dr. Kim has garnered numerous accolades, including first prize at the 2000 Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, third prize at the Carmel International Piano Competition, and two-time grand prizes in the Music Associates Performance Award Competition in California. She was also the inaugural recipient of the Alicia de Larrocha Scholarship. In South Korea, she won first prize in the National Music Competition and third prize in the Samik Concours.

Dr. Kim holds degrees from California State University, Fullerton, the Manhattan School of Music, and Stony Brook University (SUNY), where she studied on full-tuition scholarships. Her principal teachers include Alfons Kontarsky, Christina Dahl, Gilbert Kalish, Eduardo Delgado, Philip Kawin, Young-joo Hong, and Gahng-soon Lee. She has also worked in masterclasses and coachings with distinguished artists including Alicia de Larrocha, Martha Argerich, Garry Graffman, Ilana Vered, Igor Kipnis, Louis Lortie, Natalia Troull, Seymour Bernstein, Enrique Graf, and Oxana Yablonskaya.

Her performances have taken her to international stages both as a soloist and with orchestras such as the New York Symphony Orchestra, the International Chamber Ensemble of Roma, L'Orchestra di Perugia in Italy, the Muenster Orchestra in Germany, and the Gangnam Symphony and Incheon Symphony Orchestra in South Korea.

As a recording artist, producer, and founder of Lyrica Records, Dr. Kim curates and leads recording projects that bring newly rediscovered and underrepresented repertoire to light. Her releases include a critically noted album dedicated to Florence Price, featuring newly rediscovered piano works such as Scenes in Tin Can Alley (Suite), Cotton Dance, Fantasie Nègre in E minor, and Summer Moon. She has also released selections from Nikolai Kapustin’s Eight Concert Etudes, Op. 40, reflecting her commitment to expanding the piano repertoire through both rediscovered and modern works.

Since 2012, she has been a faculty member at the John J. Cali School of Music at Montclair State University and its Extension Division. Dr. Kim also serves on the committee for the Music Educators Association of New Jersey Annual Piano Competition and is a member of the Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honor Society.

Further information, including recordings and projects, can be found at: www.Yuniquepiano.com

Specialization

Piano Performance
Collabolative Piano
Aural Skills

Links

Montclair State University does not endorse the views or opinions expressed in a faculty member's webpage or website. Consistent with the principles of academic freedom, the content provided is that of the author and does not express the opinions or views of Montclair State University.

• Official Website
• Cali School of Music Keyboard Faculty
• Professor Kim's Recordings