New York Youth Symphony Appoints Andrew Jinhong Kim As Its New Music Director for the 2023/2024 Season.
New York, NY – The New York Youth Symphony (NYYS) is pleased to announce the appointment of Andrew Jinhong Kim as Music Director of the orchestra beginning in the 2023-2024 season. The position is currently held by Michael Repper, who will complete his tenure at the end of this season after six years. Mr. Kim is joining an illustrious roster of prior NYYS Music Directors, including Leonard Slatkin, David Alan Miller, Ryan McAdams, Joshua Gersen, and Miguel Harth-Bedoya.
“The position of Music Director for our orchestra is very important within our organization,” explained NYYS Board President Bill Kapell. “The preparation, rehearsal and inspiration that these musicians need to play three times every season at Carnegie Hall takes a lot of dedication, and we truly believe that Andrew is the perfect person for the job.”
The NYYS Music Director Search Committee, chaired by Slade Mills, also co-Chair of the NYYS Board, conducted an international search. More than 85 candidates were reviewed and vetted by the Committee and NYYS staff. Live auditions held in October with the orchestra allowed for the students’ opinions to be heard as well.
Shauna Quill, Executive Director of the NYYS, said that “Andrew embodies everything that the NYYS stands for – the goals of inspiring and educating the next generation of musical citizens are ones that he truly takes to heart. Andrew is a conductor dedicated to passionate and joyful collaboration. Having had his life transformed by music, he strives to create and share extraordinary musical moments with others and to cultivate a vibrant musical community wherever he goes. We look forward to working with him in the years ahead.”
“Working with passionate young musicians is one of the most meaningful aspects of my life,” said Mr. Kim, “so I’m thrilled and honored to be joining the distinguished NYYS family. I am immensely looking forward to creating a memorable journey from the first rehearsal to the concert and to engaging the community with the love of music and pursuit of excellence that everyone in the organization shares.”
Currently Mr. Kim is a James Sample Fellow of Orchestral Conducting at the University of Minnesota, studying with Mark Russell Smith. At UMN he serves as Assistant Conductor of the University Symphony Orchestra and the Opera Theatre, and his recent performances include Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Symphony No. 5 and Giacomo Puccini’s Il Tabarro. He brings his passion for education to his role as co-Director of the University’s Campus Orchestra program, which helps nearly 200 non-major students every semester to stay engaged with music during their studies and beyond.
In the 2021-2022 season Mr. Kim was Assistant Conductor of the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra (DSSO) and Conductor of the Duluth Superior Symphony Youth Orchestra. In this joint role he appeared in pops and subscription concerts throughout the season with DSSO and led the top ensemble of its youth orchestra program.
Beyond Minnesota, Mr. Kim is mentored by international artist and educator Miguel Harth-Bedoya and has been serving as his Teaching Assistant at the Conducting Institute since 2020. In this role Mr. Kim teaches classes on aural skills, keyboard skills and other topics in addition to helping with curricular planning and preparation.
Mr. Kim has worked with professional orchestras in the U.S. and beyond, including Südwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstant in Germany, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, among others. He was an Associate Conductor at the conductors’ workshop at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, and he appeared in performances at the PRISMA Festival in Powell River, Canada and the Wintergreen Festival in Virginia.
Mr. Kim received his master’s degree at Ithaca College under the mentorship of Octavio Mas-Arocas. In addition to assisting the IC Symphony and Chamber Orchestras he worked with the IC Siinfonietta and the Contemporary Ensemble and enjoyed frequent collaborations with Andrew’s friends for recital performances and composition premieres.
Before Ithaca Mr. Kim studied Music and English Literature at Swarthmore College and was mentored by Andrew Hauze and Joseph Gregorio in orchestral and choral conducting, respectively. Liberal arts education strongly shaped Andrew’s life, and he values interdisciplinary thinking in programming and helping audiences to discover personal connections to music.
Andrew’s other teachers include Matthew Caretti, Gary Gress, Vadim Serebryany and Richard Rotz.In master classes and festivals he has been taught by renowned artists and pedagogues such as Maestro Harth-Bedoya, Johannes Schlaefli, Cristian Macelanu, Jeffrey Meyer and Jerry Blackstone. Mr. Kim is deeply grateful for all the excellent guidance and mentorship he has received thus far in his life as a musician.