Soprano Eunsil Ra Kim, born in Seoul, Korea, began playing piano at the age of five and taking voice lessons at age eleven. She received a bachelor’s degree in voice performance at Seoul National University. While studying at Seoul National University, she was chosen as a soloist for the French Art Song Festival at The National Theatre of Korea and the American Art Song Festival at Seoul Arts Center.  Eunsil Ra continued her music studies in Italy at the Academy Jupiter in Genoa and at the National Conservatory of Music, ‘Arrigo Boito’ of Parma majoring in voice and vocal education.  While she attended the conservatory, she performed as a soloist at “Pasqua” Concert at San Giovanni Basilica with the Parma Conservatory Orchestra. While she was active as an art song and oratorio soloist in Italy, her talent and training at the keyboard led her to serve as organist at the Evangelical Methodist Church of Piacenza for six years and at the Evangelical Methodist Church of Cremona for three years.

Since coming to the United States, she has performed as a soloist with the Chicago Voice Ensemble Concert and the Scholarship Benefit Concert for Korean Young Artists at the North Shore Center for Performing Arts in Skokie. She was also a soloist of the oratorio Elijahperformed at Gospel Presbyterian Church in Schaumburg and Creationat Alliance Fellowship Church, Hoffman Estates. She served as a conductor of the Korean YWCA Choir in Chicago. Currently, she serves as the conductor of the Zion Choir and the Children’s Choir at Alliance Fellowship Church, Hoffman Estates, Illinois.

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Baritone GhiBong Kim, born in Daegu, Korea, received his Bachelor’s de­gree in Voice Performance at Seoul National University. Following this, he went to Parma, Italy to study at “Arrigo Boito” Conservatory, the same school for which Renata Tebaldi and Claudio Abbado at­tended. He graduated with the highest academic honors. He was also the finalist at Tito Schipa Voice Competition in Lecce and  Flaviano Lavo’ in Piacenza, Italy. His major teachers include Sherrill Milnes and Inci Bashar.

Mr. Kim’s first professional appearance in Italy was as Cola in Paer’s Camilla at Teatro Regio di Parma. Following this success, he was consequently engaged to sing as Belcore in Elisir d’mor, as Marcello in La Boheme, and as Rigoletto in Rigoletto with the same company. Other roles have included are (Lucia Di Lammermoor), Renato (Un Ballo In Maschera) and Valentine (Faust).

Since moving to the United States, Mr. Kim has been an active performer, not only in operas, but also as an oratorio soloist. Mendelssohn’s Oratorio Elijah is his signature oratorio role. In 2006, Mr. Kim made his Chicago debut as Conte in Le Nozze di Figaro at Chicago Chamber Opera with the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra. Other roles include Germont in La Traviata with the Elgin Opera and Morales in Carmen at the DuPage Opera Theater.

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a native of Seoul, Korea, holds a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Oberlin Conservatory and a Master of Music in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Northwestern University where she graduated as an honor and played ‘Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5, Emperor’ with NU Symphony Orchestra as a winner for the concerto competition. Her principal teachers have been Robert Shannon and Alan Chow.  As a soloist, she appeared at Sejong Cultural Center in Seoul, Korea. She studied at Yewon School and Seoul Art High School in Seoul, Korea before she moved to the States.

Jee-Eun worked as a pianist for Gianna Rolandi at Chicago Lyric Opera, Sherrill Milnes and Mignon Dunn at NU, Richard Miller at Oberlin Conservatory, Jennifer Larmore and more voice teachers in Chicago area. She served as an accompanist for the Opera Workshop and Scene at NU working with Maria Zouves, the Director of Voicexperience. She had a great opportunity to be an accompanist and coach for Voicexperience (2002-2009) in Chicago, and Orlando and Tampa, Florida. She was a faculty for Midwest Young Artist Vocal Program in Lake Forest, Illinois(’02-’04).

As a collaborative artist, she has played many concerts with Chicago Voice Ensemble in Chicago, Wisconsin, and Detroit. She played for the summer benefit chamber music concert for Salvation Army where she has previously played several concerts with talented singers. She participated Appreciation Concert (dedicated to President Truman & Korean war veteras) in Kansas City Music Hall in 2010.  Jee-Eun currently lives in Chicagoland and is active as a piano teacher in North Shore area where she has been teaching since 2002.  She enjoys holding spring recitals and Christmas recitals every year. She also serves as a pianist in United Korean Presbyterian Church in Chicago where she enjoys improvising music. Recently Jee-Eun is playing various chamber concerts with her colleagues and freelancing in Chicago area.

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Korean-born pianist Sojung Lee Hong has appeared as an active soloist, collaborative pianist, teacher, and church musician since her appointment in Judson University's music faculty, a Christian liberal arts institution in the Chicago area. In the past decade, notable public appearances range from a solo recital at Seoul Arts Center, a sacred music concert tour in South Korea, to a piano duo recital in New Jersey to a chamber music recital in Mexico. In addition to her international appearances, she has given over a hundred chamber music recitals with a various range of repertoire at performing art centers, universities, public libraries, and senior residences in the Chicago area. She has given lecture recitals at conferences such as the College Music Society International Conference (2011), the College Music Society Regional Conference (2011), and the Conferences of Illinois State Music Teachers Association (2006, 2009). In her home country, she has taught as a guest artist at the Summer Piano Workshop of Suwon Women’s College and at the Eum-youn Summer Piano Academy since 2007. As Director of the Performance Certificate in Music program at Judson University, she organizes the annual scholarship benefit concert and raises funds to support talented students’ education. For the Chicago community, she has helped to organize the Seoul National University Alumni benefit concerts, the Sejong Cultural Society benefit concerts and the Sejong Music Competition, and the charity concerts for Global Children Foundation and Food for the Hungry International.

Hong holds a bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Seoul National University (magna cum laude) and a doctoral degree in piano performance and literature from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her piano teacher at UIUC was Ian Hobson, and the chamber music coaches were Peter Schaffer (violin) and Suren Bagratuni (cello). She also pursued accompanying as her minor under the tutelage of Eric Dalheim. During her doctoral studies, she won the first prize at the Irene Tintner International Piano Competition and was subsequently invited to perform with the Germania Orchestra in Michigan. She has performed concertos with Valley Civic Orchestra, North Shore Philharmonic Orchestra, Judson University Community Orchestra, and Elgin Community College Civic Orchestra. Currently, she is Associate Professor at Judson University and Music Director at West Alliance Church, IL. Her teaching areas at Judson University include applied lessons, class piano, piano literature, pedagogy, and history & practice of worship music.

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Our Saviors Evangelical Free Church
300 S. Schoenbeck Rd., Wheeling, IL 60090

(On Schoenbeck Rd between Dundee & Hintz)
(Across the Indian Trail Library)

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축사

고국의 신인 음악인을 발굴하여 전문 음악인으로 성장할 수 있는 기회를 주기 위해 제5회 미래를 여는 음악회가 개최되는 것을 진심으로 축하합니다.
금번 음악회는 “사랑의 기쁨”이라는 주제로 즐겁고 낭만적인 음악을 연주하여, 시카고의 5월 저녁 우리들의 마음을 부드럽게 해주고, 삶의 풍요로움을 더해줄 것으로 기대합니다.

시카고에 계시는 한인동포 여러분께서 미래를 여는 음악회에 관심을 기울여주시고, 공연 관람을 통해 사랑의 의미를 되새기는 뜻깊은 시간을 가지시기를 바랍니다.
이번 공연의 성공을 기원하며, 공연 준비를 위해 수고해주신 저드슨대학의 이소정 교수님을 비롯한 관계자들께 감사드립니다.

주시카고 대한민국 총영사
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