South Korean born pianist Soojung Hong joins us with a program featuring works by Franz Liszt, Nikolai Meitner, and Nikolai Kapustin for this live Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Broadcast live from the Chicago Cultural Center.
Soojung Hong was born in South Korea and graduated from Deokwon Arts High School in Seoul. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in piano performance from Ewha Woman’s University, in South Korea, and received her Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the University of Minnesota, where she studied with Alexander Braginsky on full scholarship.
Prior to moving to the United States, Ms. Hong won a number of Korean national music competitions, including the Soowon Women’s College competition, the Korean-American competition, and several national scholarship piano competitions. She also performed at the Keyboard Instrument Concert, hosted by Ewha Woman’s University, as an audition winner. She is a winner of the Thursday Musical Young Artist scholarship competition, Kenwood Symphony Orchestra concerto competition, and the University of Minnesota concerto competition, which resulted in a performance with the University Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, she placed first at the American Protégé International Competition of Romantic Music, which resulted in the concert at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. She frequently performs at many important regional concert venues in the Twin Cities, including the Bloomington Center for the Arts and the Schubert Club, performs guest recitals at college and university campuses and performs on the international stage, including the Beijing International Music Festival and the International Keyboard Institute & Festival in New York.
Dr. Hong is also very passionate about education, and has been teaching for over 15 years. She teaches students of all ages, who, under her expert guidance, successfully prepare recitals, contests and auditions. She also presents master classes including University of Northwestern – St. Paul, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and a local musical organization. She is a judge at various competitions and is a member of Music Teachers National Association & Minnesota Music Teachers Association. Soojung Hong is currently serving as a piano instructor at MacPhail Center for Music and she is founder and the Artistic Director of the PianoFun Minnesota Competition for local young pianists.
