Sunwook Kim
About this Artist
Sunwook Kim came to international recognition when he won the prestigious Leeds International Piano Competition in 2006, at age 18, becoming the competition’s youngest winner in 40 years as well as its first Asian winner. Since then, he has established a reputation as one of the finest pianists of his generation, appearing as a concerto soloist in the subscription series of some of the world’s leading orchestras, including the Berliner Philharmoniker, London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Staatskapelle Dresden, Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Berlin Radio Symphony, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Finnish Radio Symphony, Philharmonia Orchestra, London Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Orchestra of Wales, Radio-France Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Hallé Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony, and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra for his BBC Proms debut in summer 2014.
In the 2024/25 season, Kim continues as Music Director of the Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra, conducting works from Mozart and Beethoven to Strauss, Bartók, and Unsuk Chin. Kim will also make his conducting debuts with the Iceland Symphony, Armenian National Philharmonic, and Israel Philharmonic. Recent conducting highlights include the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, KBS Symphony, Macao Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony, Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra, Georges Enescu Philharmonic, and Filharmonia Śląska (Poland).
Play-directing from the piano, upcoming highlights include an extensive tour of Europe and South Korea with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. As soloist, Kim will also return to the subscription season of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and as part of the Seoul Festival curated by Unsuk Chin. Further recent concerto highlights include collaborations with the London Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony, and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic.
In recital, Kim will collaborate with violinist Janine Jansen in a European tour with a Brahms and Schumann program.
Sunwook Kim’s debut recital disc was released on the Accentus label in October 2015, featuring Beethoven’s “Waldstein” and “Hammerklavier” sonatas. A CD featuring Unsuk Chin’s Piano Concerto (2014) attracted outstanding reviews and awards from BBC Music Magazine and International Classical Music Awards. In 2023, the Berliner Philharmoniker released a box of recordings of works by Unsuk Chin, highlighting their collaboration over 20 years.
Born in Seoul in 1988, Sunwook Kim completed an MA in conducting at the Royal Academy of Music and was subsequently made a fellow (FRAM) of the academy in 2019. Besides Leeds, honors include first prize at the 2004 Ettlingen International Piano Competition (Germany) and the 2005 Clara Haskil International Piano Competition (Switzerland).