This Saturday at 8 p.m., the Christopher Cohan Center will come alive with the sounds of David Kim, celebrated solo violinist, when he joins the San Luis Obispo Symphony in its final concert of the season.
Kim will perform Piotr Ilyitch Tchaikovsky’s “Violin Concerto in D Major” as part of an evening of classical music, also including Sergei Prokofiev’s “Romeo and Juliet Suite.”
Kim was born in Carbondale, Illinois, began his violin studies at age three and eventually worked his way up to the esteemed position of Philadelphia Orchestra concertmaster in 1999.
Although he started his studies at age 3, he delved deeper into more serious study of the instrument at age 8 and studied under Dorothy DeLay.
He further pursued his love of music later in life and enrolled at the Juilliard School, where he eventually graduated with his bachelor’s and master’s degrees.
According to Kim’s biography on the Concordia Players Web site, “In 1986 he was the only American violinist to win a prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow.”
Kim has performed with orchestras as far away as Capetown, South Africa, Poland, Korea and in the United States with the Dallas and Pittsburgh Symphonies, among others.
He has been highlighted in various television programs, on radio programs, specifically National Public Radio and even in Newsweek magazine.
Kim has been very active in keeping music in schools, specifically in Rhode Island. His brainchild, the Kingston Chamber Music Festival, has greatly benefited from his efforts since he founded it in 1989 at the University of Rhode Island. He also holds the positions of artistic director and special guest artist for the festival.
The university showed its appreciation for his hard work in 2001 when he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Arts degree there.
Kim’s efforts also extend to elementary schools. The annual Kingston Chamber Music Festival provides an opportunity each year for him to travel around speaking and performing at young children’s schools to instill and keep a love of music alive in their hearts. This program has reached over 10,000 students in Rhode Island alone.
From 1991 to 1996, Kim was part of the Diaz Trio, which traveled to multiple continents in its performance heyday.
In a review on Feb. 5 by Kelly Jane Torrance from Brainwash Online Magazine of “Music From the Inside Out,” a documentary highlighting Kim’s own Philadelphia Orchestra, Torrance wrote of Kim: “It’s rare to see someone so well-adjusted; he must make a wonderful concertmaster.”
Tickets are on sale now at the Christopher Cohan Performance Center Box Office, with different prices for every section. Tickets for stage-side seats are $24, front orchestra seats are $47, rear orchestra seats are $40, dress circle seats are $57, balcony seats are $42 and gallery seats are $17 each. In the gallery section, $25 will buy two tickets and entry to a wine reception.