Byeol Kim

Steinway Artist Byeol Kim (also known as Saetbyeol Kim) has earned a reputation for her “ingeniously colorful imagination with stage charisma” (Agata Nowakowska), remarking “hushed performances as an operatic singer on the piano” (Cleveland Classical). A Winner of the 2019 Astral National Auditions, her creative artistry not only shines through her performances, but is also reflected in her visual arts projects; this led her to earn the Creative Digital Challenge Award by The Music Academy of the West in 2020.

She is a top prizewinner of Cleveland, Paderewski, Dallas, Louisiana, San Antonio, New Orleans, and Washington International Piano competitions. Recent performances include Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Cleveland Orchestra under Maestro Jahja Ling. She has performed around the world including Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Teatro Civico in Italy, Flagey in Belgium, Petit Palau Hall in Spain, Paderewski Pomeranian Philharmonic Concert Hall in Poland, Koerner Hall in Toronto, Mozart Hall in South Korea, Merkin Concert Hall, and Kodak Hall. Other recent appearances with orchestra include the Paderewski Pomeranian Philharmonic in Poland, Pohang Philharmonic Orchestra in Korea, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Dallas Chamber Symphony, and Rapides Symphony Orchestra. Also a sought after chamber musician, she performed with the Escher String Quartet in 2021, and was invited as a Cambridge Piano Trio to La Jolla Music Society, has performed with Cho–Liang Lin, Jian Wang, Yura Lee, Paul Neubauer, Lyubov Petrova, and the Rolston String quartet. She has also worked with pianists Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, Marc-André Hamelin, and Emanuel Ax.

Passionate about expanding the scope of classical music, she seeks to communicate with a larger audience in society. In her U.S. debut, she performed female American composer, Amy Beach’s, piano concerto with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and was acclaimed to “impress with energy and freshness” (The Women’s Philharmonic Advocacy). Since then, she has been advocating diversity and social issues through her programs, where her creative artistry not only shines through her performances, but is also reflected through her projects; recording her insightful repertoire “the mid-length fantasies and literature,” conducting Mozart Piano Concertos from the piano, and also visual art projects. Her artistic vision is recognized as a leader of the new generation, winning the Creative Digital Challenge Award by The Music Academy of the West in 2020.

Dr. Kim received her Artist Diploma as the first candidate ever to be accepted by Jon Kimura Parker at Rice University and holds a Doctorate degree from Northwestern University. She visits colleges and music festivals as a guest artist, including The University of Toronto and The Amalfi Coast Music & Art Festival. She teaches at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL.

Byeol Kim is a Steinway Artist