Classical Music Connections

Speakers

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  Christine Lee

  A Paris Fulbright Fellow recipient, Christine Lee has been noted by the New York Times as a “clear delight.” 

  Bio
  

  Christine Lee

  A Paris Fulbright Fellow recipient, Christine Lee has been noted by the New York Times as a “clear delight.” 

  An avid chamber musician and creative, Christine pursues a wide range of musical projects. Most recently, Christine joins the faculty of the University of Washington School of Music as Artist-in-Residence and has been featured on Seattle’s Classical King FM radio. As soloist, Christine most recently performed with Christian Baldini and the Camellia Symphony. A keen supporter of new music, Christine is part of L’arc Trio, who commissioned a brand-new work entitled “Ominous Machine” by the trail-blazing composer Vivian Fung, and looks forward to performing its world premiere at San Francisco Conservatory Bowes Hall in November 2023. Inspired by rich musical traditions and history, Christine was inspired to pursue studies in Paris and was selected as a Fulbright Fellow, where she studied with the renowned French cellist Michel Strauss. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s from the Juilliard School and her teachers include Bonnie Hampton and Richard Aaron.

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  Sol Im

  Sol Im began her violin studies at age 5 and made her solo debut at Benaroya Hall with Cascade Youth Symphony at age 16. 

  Bio
  

  Sol Im

  Sol Im began her violin studies at age 5 and made her solo debut at Benaroya Hall with Cascade Youth Symphony at age 16. 

  She performed as a soloist with the University of Washington Symphony where she received a degree in Violin Performance. She has served as Concertmaster of UW Symphony and local ensembles such as Thalia Symphony, Cascade Symphony and has also appeared on King FM radio. Her professional works include those with Seattle Symphony, Seattle Opera, and is a current member of the first violin section in the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra. She regularly works with Seattle's leading recording orchestra, Seattle Music Inc., where she plays for recording tracks such as movies, TV shows, commercials, theme parks and video games. She is an avid performer and chamber musician in the Northwest and has performed both solo and chamber works in masterclasses with world-renowned musicians such as Gil Shaham, William Preucil, and Philip Setzer of the Emerson String Quartet.

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  Alexander Grimes

  Alexander Grimes is the principal viola of the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra and a resident artist at the Archipelago Collective Chamber Music Festival on San Juan Island.
  

  Bio
  

  Alexander Grimes

  Alexander Grimes is the principal viola of the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra and a resident artist at the Archipelago Collective Chamber Music Festival on San Juan Island.
  

  After graduating from Vanderbilt University under the instruction of Kathryn Plummer he attended New England Conservatory where he studied with acclaimed soloist Dmitri Murrath. A native of Long Island, New York, Alex has performed internationally. His most recent solo appearances have included recitals at The Huberman Project in Tel Aviv, Israel, and at the Accademia Perosi in Biella, Italy. In July 2022 he performed with renowned soloists James Ehnes, Augustine Hadelich, and Noah Bendix-Balgley at the Seattle Chamber Music Society.

  Besides playing the viola, Alex loves to compose music for film and other forms of media. He has recently earned a Masters of Film Scoring at the Berklee College of Music.

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  Jung-Eun Kim

  Jung-Eun Kim is quickly becoming a sought-after pianist both as a soloist, chamber musician, and collaborative artist. 

  Bio
  

  Jung-Eun Kim

  Jung-Eun Kim is quickly becoming a sought-after pianist both as a soloist, chamber musician, and collaborative artist. 

  An Osher Foundation Scholar, Jung-Eun is currently completing an Artist Diploma in Piano Performance at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she also received double Master’s degrees in solo piano and chamber music with Yoshikazu Nagai and Jon Nakamatsu. She frequently concertizes in both the Bay Area and beyond. A native of South Korea, she made her solo debut with the Changwon Philharmonic Orchestra at age 11. Since then, she has won several prizes both in the United States and South Korea including the Wideman International Piano Competition and Beethoven Piano Competition in Seoul. Jung-Eun has also been featured on numerous national radio engagements including From the Top, Hawaii Public Radio, and WUSF National Public Radio. As part of the Winners’ Concert at the Chautauqua Music Festival, she performed a solo recital of works from Bach to Rachmaninoff. In the Fall of 2019, she made her San Francisco debut as a winner of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Concerto Competition, performing Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with conductor Edwin Outwater. Equally captivating as a chamber musician, Jung-Eun and her San Francisco-based L’arc Trio received an InterMusic SF grant, which allowed them to commission a brand-new work titled “Ominous Machine” by Berkeley-based composer Vivian Fung. She and her piano trio, winner of the Barbara Fritz Chamber Award, pursues projects that combine new works and classic pillars of the piano trio repertoire into creative, modern programs. During her studies in the Chamber Music Program at SFCM, Jung-Eun performed alongside artists such as Tessa Lark, Norman Fischer, Ian Swensen, Jean-Michel Fonteneau and David McCarroll. In her free time, Jung-Eun enjoys traveling, exploring new cuisines and reading music with friends.