James Kim

Biography supplied for the 2024 competition.

Hailed as a “miracle” by Harris Goldsmith of New York Concert Review and praised for possessing “admirable purity of tone and accuracy” by James Oestreich of The New York Times, James Kim has appeared as soloist with orchestras such as Boston Symphony and Royal Philharmonic, working with conductors David Zinman, Michael Sanderling, Alexander Shelley, and Keith Lockhart, onstage at Carnegie Stern Auditorium, Boston Symphony Hall, Jordan Hall, and Metropolitan Museum of Art. He has given solo recitals at Carnegie Weill Hall, Seoul Arts Center IBK Hall, Greene Space, and Kumho Art Hall. His performances have been broadcasted on radio stations NPR and WQXR.
He has worked with numerous orchestras in his native Korea, concertizing at Lotte Concert Hall—where he is the first soloist in its history—Tongyeong Concert Hall, Daegu Concert House, Seoul Arts Center, and DITTO Festival. In 2021, Sony Classical released his album Death and Offering presenting Shinuh Lee’s works dedicated to him.
He is a recipient of Salon de Virtuosi’s Sony Career Grant and a top prizewinner of Isang Yun and David Popper International Cello Competitions. From 2016 to 2021, he performed on a Matteo Goffriller cello from Venice ca. 1715, generously loaned by Samsung Cultural Foundation and Stradivari Society® of Chicago, Illinois.