Yoonah Kim, clarinet

Hailed by The New York Times for her “inexhaustible virtuosity”, clarinetist Yoonah Kim is the winner of the 2016 Concert Artists Guild International Competition – the first solo clarinetist to win CAG in nearly 30 years. That same year Yoonah became the first woman to win first prize both at the Vandoren Emerging Artist Competition and the 2016 George Gershwin International Competition. In 2020, she won the Gold medal at the Vienna International Competition. Yoonah enjoys a diverse career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, and educator. She believes in advocating for the clarinet by commissioning new works such as Eric Nathan’s Double Concerto for Violin and Clarinet, Texu Kim’s reimagination of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue for solo clarinet and string orchestra, and Andrew Hsu’s Erebus for clarinet and piano and Three Pieces for solo clarinet.

Yoonah has appeared in recital at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Chicago’s Dame Myra Hess series, and DC’s Washington Performing Arts series, among others. From 2016-2018, Yoonah was a member of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, where she served as an education ambassador for New York City schools. Yoonah co-founded Chime for Children, bringing interactive performances to children with limited access to music. She has appeared at chamber music festivals including Marlboro, Mainly Mozart, Bravo! Vail.

Born in Seoul and raised in British Columbia, Yoonah is currently pursuing her doctoral degree at The Juilliard School as the C.V. Starr Doctoral Fellow.