Dr. Jaeyoon Kim, a native of Seoul, Korea, earned his Doctor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance at the University of South Carolina, where he was the recipient of the Carroll Taussig Opera Fellowship. Dr. Kim holds two master’s degrees, one in Choral Conducting from USC and a second in Vocal Performance from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. He also earned an Artist Diploma in Vocal Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he apprenticed with Lyric Opera Cleveland and was chosen to participate in the prestigious Cleveland Art Song Festival.

Dr. Kim has been praised for his performances in lyric tenor repertoire. His operatic credits include the principal tenor roles in The Tales of Hoffmann, La Bohème, Gianni Schicchi, Così fan tutte, Don Pasquale, The Merry Widow, The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Magic Flute, The Consul, L’elisir d’amore, Amahl and the Night Visitors, Monsieur Choufleuri and many others in the United States, South Korea, Italy and Austria. As an active oratorio soloist, Dr. Kim has also performed in Messiah, Elijah, Creation, St. Paul, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Mozart’s Requiem andCoronation Mass, Rossini’s Stabat Mater, Verdi’s Requiem, Britten’s War Requiem and many others. Equally comfortable in the genre of art songs, he has presented art song recitals with his wife and concert pianist, Dr. Seung-Ah Kim. In 2016, they released a CD, “Romantic Art Songs,” featuring art songs by Donizetti, Bellini, Turina, Liszt, Duparc, Rachmaninoff and Tosti.Dr. Kim is an Associate Professor at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where he coordinates vocal studies and directs the Pembroke Singers. At UNCP, he has directed large choral works including Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Dvořák’s Te Deum, Haydn’s Missa in Tempore Belli and many others. Dr. Kim is also the Music Director at Hay Street United Methodist Church in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Dr. Seung Ah Kim, a native of Pusan, Korea, received her doctorate in piano performance at the University of South Carolina. She holds two master’s degrees in piano performance, one from Yonsei University in Korea and the other from The Cleveland Institute of Music. While studying at CIM, she was awarded the Arthur Loesser Memorial Award in Piano, recognizing her outstanding achievement. She also received a prize at the prestigious Darius Milhaud Performance Competition. At USC, Dr. Kim was applauded for her performance of Flights of Passage by Claude Baker, which was the South Carolina premiere at the Southern Exposure Concert. She was also on the piano faculty at the USC Community Music Program and served as the official pianist for the Concerto Competition at the Southeastern Piano Festival and Summer Conservatory at USC.

Dr. Kim is a faculty member at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where she teaches individual and class piano, accompanies UNCP choirs, and plays for faculty and guest artist recital series. In addition to her vigorous solo performances, she has actively performed as a collaborating artist. Recent accompanied recitals at UNCP include the tuba recital of world-famous player, Øystein Baadsvik, the duo-recital of New York City Opera singers soprano Anna Vikre and bass Rod Nelman, Dr. Terry Everson’s trumpet recital, and Michele Gingras’s clarinet recital.With her husband and tenor, Dr. Jaeyoon Kim, Dr. Kim has presented art song recitals at various concerts in Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and South Korea. She was chosen to play for the prestigious accompanying masterclasses of Warren Jones and Dalton Baldwin. She is also the organist at Hay Street United Methodist Church in Fayetteville, North Carolina.