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Welcome back to another episode of the PianoPod. I am your host, Yukimi-san.
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For this episode, I invited Dr. Ji-Yoon Kim, who is described as a force of nature who
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lives for that special connection with a live audience.
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I just finished interviewing her, and this quote is such a perfect description of Ji-Yoon
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as an artist. I've wanted to interview her since the get-go, and I knew of her even before
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I started the PianoPod through her YouTube channel, which we will discuss in detail during
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the show. Anyway, I got an email from her publicist during the lockdown of 2020 to see
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if Ji-Yoon can be on the PianoPod, because she just finished writing her book at the
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time. The book is called Whenever You're Ready. Oh, by the way, this book is really awesome,
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and I have read it a few times, and I highly recommend it. The book tells you about a real
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life as a pianist, and it also gets quite philosophical, like what does success look
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like to you? What do you want to bring to the world as a pianist? Anyway, finally, after
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over two years, I was able to invite her to interview, and I am excited to share this
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episode with you today.
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Now, I wanted to start a podcast show because for the longest time, I felt a huge gap between
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the classical music world and the general public, and I wanted to start this show to
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fill the gap. Ji-Yoon seemed to have the similar question or curiosity as mine, and she dedicated
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her career not only in her concert performances, but also in audience engagement by creating
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innovative concert programs, recordings, writing a book, creating a fan base on digital platforms,
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and more. So today, I want to focus on how we as classical musicians should be in touch
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with the rest of the world and connect with our audience in this modern and complicated
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world in a creative and meaningful way. So before inviting the guest of this episode,
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I want to welcome everyone who is listening to or watching the PianoPod for the first
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time. I'm a classical pianist and educator from New York City, passionate about creating
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a thriving and a meaningful community of the classical music industry through this podcast.
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Please visit yukimisongsstudio.com to find more about my work. In each episode of the
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PianoPod, I interview a guest speaker who has been breaking exciting new ground in the
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music industry. Before getting started, I want to thank everyone for tuning in today.
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Please rate the show and review it on Apple Podcasts because every rating or review will
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help people find my show. So everyone, are we ready for episode 14? All right, here we
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go, dear friends, please enjoy the show. You are listening to the PianoPod where we talk
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to the brightest minds in the industry about how they are bringing the piano into the 21st
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century. I am honored to welcome Ms. Joo Yoon Kim, described as a force of nature, who is
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an award-winning classical pianist, recording artist, art activist, author, and educator.
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She has delighted audiences globally with her sensitive artistry, impeccable technique,
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and engaging and innovative concert experiences. Her dedication to pushing the boundaries of
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traditional classical music to connect with a new audience has inspired a dedicated and
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passionate fan base, both at concert venues and on digital platforms. So, Joo Yoon, welcome
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and thanks for being here. I'm so excited to get to hear your stories today and then
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learn from you.
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Thank you for having me.
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Of course, thank you. And especially on the topic of audience engagement and how you are
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creatively engaging your fans. And I think that's one of the hardest topics right now
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in the industry, in our industry, especially with the rise of social media and digital
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platforms. But it's not just about our digital footprint or presence. It's more to do with
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how we as classical musicians can relate to and reach out to the new contemporary audience.
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Yeah. So, and I consider you as like a front runner or the model in our industry in that
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way because you've been really dedicating your career and life to audience engagement
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in many, many innovative ways. And so, Joo Yoon, I want to start by reading this quote
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from your book, Whenever You're Ready. I totally enjoy the book, by the way. And so let me
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quote, having a mission beyond just fulfilling my own life's need or self-satisfaction was
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one of the key incentives for me to keep going despite difficulties, end quote. So it is
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clear to me and I'm sure to many readers and fans that you're such a messenger. And so
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what is your mission statement in 2023 after we've been through this pandemic as a pianist
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in person? So where are you right now?
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I'm actually very grateful that you mentioned that our mission changes over time and I think
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it should. It always we have to be nimble and be able to change with the time. But I
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think it didn't change much for me. I would say I'm a classical pianist who strive for
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a unique connection. That word is very important to me, whether that is a public speaking or
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private conversation or teaching piano recording or or piano performance on stage. I believe
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that I can make a difference in the world to spread the beauty of classical music one
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person at a time.
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Wow. Thank you. That's very well said. By the way, I love the background. Are you tuning
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in from your home home studio?
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Yes. This is my place that I practice every single day. And, you know, as you I don't
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know, you can see there's nothing but piano that even the couch doesn't even serve as
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a couch. So for me, it's an empty space that simplify my environment. Just emphasizing
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the important thing, which is a piano only thing in this space really helps me to focusing
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on my life.
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Wow. And with the beautiful paintings and photos in the background, what an inspiring
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space. Now, what's the secret to finding out your own mission in life?
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I think, you know, first, we all have to believe that we all have our own unique reason why
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we exist in this universe. I think we all have to start from that belief. It may or
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may not anything to do with your jobs. So from that belief, I think it's important to
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know ourselves. What do I like? What what are the things that makes my heart pumping?
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What is my tendencies, preferences, personalities? What is important to me? What are the things
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that I do gain energy by doing not draining? What makes me in the status of flow? Feel
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like I lose time and time doesn't even exist. Then I will turn that into what I enjoy the
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most into what I can do well, collecting necessary skills and trainings and perspectives that
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I think we devote ourselves to improve ourselves in anything. We are more invested in that.
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Not only we get better, but also we our enjoyment grows. So the next step would be then ask,
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how can you help one person in this world? Not thousands, but that one person with that
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very thing that you love and you're trying to be better. And I think that is your mission
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that finding who you are, then then in connection with others, then to contribute to the world
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in the way who you are.
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Wow, thank you. Because I think at one point, you know, you practice so much as a pianist
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and you get stuck, right? And you feel like what are the all these hours of practice?
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Where am I going to from where I am? Yeah, I think we have to remember there's a reason
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why you love playing piano. And I often were so bombarded with environments of a competitiveness
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of our other things that you forget that and then focusing on other thing. But if you really
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listen to yourself, the very thing is music, if that very thing is piano, then you can
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uncover the layering out and then try to be in tune with yourself.
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I think discovering that secret such an early, you know, stage in your life, especially your
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career, I think that's a big plus. I mean, it's a lot of journaling and a lot of maybe
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for some, it's a lot of therapy to do.
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Yeah. So also you mentioned in the book that you feel deeply connected with your listeners
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in the very moment of sharing music. And at one point you realize that you wanted a concert
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to be a shared experience, not a passive participation in a traditional, you know, you'll come out
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and bowed in and go backstage. But when did you start realizing the love of how creatively
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you want to engage with your audience?
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I think when you mentioned and people actually even don't know me, what I do would think
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that I go through such a crazy thing. But I think at the end, I'm just trying to get
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to core of what I do. It may be just talking about the music, but not about in the history
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and perspective, but actually what it means to me emotionally. And I might say, you know,
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I feel like I'm swimming in a pond. There's nobody, but I hear this nature. It's peaceful
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and quiet. And that might set one piece that I'm about to play. I'm not talking about when
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Schumann born in the 18 something something. And I think what I realized is that I grew
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up in a very unrealistic setting, which is surrounded by pianist, surrounded by classical
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musician. My audience were professors and students who memorize all the Beethoven sonatas
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by opus number and they know. But then when I went into the real, real actual audience,
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they don't even care. They don't know anything about it. And then when I play certain pieces
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and in my head, I was thinking, I made that mistake or make memory mistake there. Oh,
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I could have done that technically better. That doesn't make any sense to them. More
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important that I realized is they want to connect with me. And I often thought about
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my grandma who has no interest in classical music. She actually really into this classical
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Korean song that is called trot. If I was thinking, if I were playing a piece of music
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for grandma, I would not start grandma Beethoven born in 18 something. And then we'll talk
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about grandma. I play this piece like, oh my gosh, I love it because you know, you know,
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that I will really come into a compassionate and kind but loving way that I want to so
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share this piece of music with my grandma that may not care. But then she also, I believe
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that want to connect with me. So then in that place of loving and friendly gesture made
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a huge difference to the real audience. And I, I taste that in the outside of academia.
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You know, of course, when we prepare for the degree recitals, we go out to the retirement
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center or some other settings that play. And every time I play some other settings, I feel
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like audience are different. Like, is this a real or is this that get a good grade in
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academia is a real, you know, I got really confused because at the end, I have to come
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out of this unrealistic laboratory setting to real world. But then that transition was
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so huge for me in my mind that I have to change the my world. Unfortunately, the world I live
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in in, you know, peer pianist or musicians or even my teachers would not change. But
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I have to come down from this pedestal of classical music, but come down to the real
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people and not from the person who knows, but from the person that enjoyed it so much
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and can't wait to share in a meaningful way. And then when I tried to that little bit little,
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then I saw the connection amplify in the degree that I can even measure in any way. And I
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think at the end, they helped me to be a better pianist, better messenger, and people actually
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get it. I mean, it's not like I'm not selling something that is not sellable. I am selling
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the most sellable content, Chopin, Rachmaninoff. They will die. They will love it. But they
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just don't know how to get to it. But we know. So I have to find a way to connect it that
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that's for them. Right. I totally understand the part of they don't know how to get there
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because I live in a big city in New York City. And I teach students who are not really the
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musical connoisseur, right? They're just, you know, doing this. Most of them are doing
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it for hobby, seriously, but hobby and then, but they live so close to Carnegie Hall, for
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example, but they hardly go there because they don't know what to listen to. They don't
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know where to start. What's the story behind it? And I think our generation is, you know,
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sometimes find the classical not sometimes all the time classical music is boring or
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for that something for grandma's not for me. And but then when I bring my friends who's
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not musician come to my living room and like, sit and ask them to sit down, like I'm working
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on this piece, you know, I want to play for you. And this this means something this heartache,
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you know, I don't know what was Brahms was thinking, but this I feel and then I play
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it and they're like, what is this? Like, I never heard anything like that. I mean, they're
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the one who listen to pop music, you know, everywhere they go. But then they get it immediately.
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You know, so I believe that just they need a better context. And we need to give that
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context as a musician. And I think that context is not that like fancy thing. It doesn't have
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to be. But it's really talking about the core message that we feel as a musician and just
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talking but then actually practicing the delivery of it so that you don't really get into the
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boring lecture recital. More really like coming from the empathetic mind to to share. And
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I think if you do that, people genuinely connect with that music, and then they become a fan
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of classical music. And once they become a fan, then they can go explore chamber music,
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other whatever the avant garde of classical music. But first of most, we need to get them
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into this corner first. And by doing it is more about really nothing fancy, but openly
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talking about why you love this. Now, your way is sounds like a two ways. So it's not
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just you giving them this performance, but also sounds like you're also receiving something
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from them. So by engaging with your audiences, how did they change your life or perspectives?
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I think every performance is actually changed my life in a small or big way that I cannot
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measure. But I know every performance tremendously difficult. And after every performance, I
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gain something. I'm stronger. And, you know, all the students will say, I practiced so
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much and I did never make that mistake, but in front of someone so and so I made a this
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mistake and that mistake and you know what that imperfection, but yet alive, feeling
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alive or also all of your senses are like heightened. That's why we do this music life
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music supposed to be connected through souls to souls. And in that space, and I believe
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that music completes the circle when we play and share life. And I think that's why every
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time whenever I perform, it's difficult, but that's that's the function of the music that
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I give but then I receive and you know, the most beautiful concert or the most I would
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not say perfect, but the most rewarding concerts. It's not last mistake concerts, but then the
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concerts that I felt the most engaged with the music with myself in the music and inevitably
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with audience receive as well. And I think always I feel that I do something completely
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unimaginable in the concert if I'm open to it, if I'm open for the color to be more different
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or in this way, if I try even harder for certain section to be closed differently, if I experiment
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on stage, then because I am different on stage, the music response differently. And in that
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very moment, I gained something that I can't measure in words. So I remember the very first
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concert in the graduate in undergraduate study that I play Chopin fantasy or certain parts
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of that show, Schumann fantasy story. And that part moved me and I felt like, Oh my
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gosh, so beautiful. Wow. You know, like, it's me but not me. That environment, that piano,
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that people, that hall, everything gave me that another layer of life, another dimension
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of life, which I become a fuel for my life. So I think that it's complete circle, but
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people thank me all the time. I really appreciate what you do. I loved your concert that, you
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know, all of those compliments are wonderful. And I'm, I believe truly appreciate their
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feedback. But at the end of the day, I gained the most.
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Wow, that's very beautiful. So you're an award winning pianist, recording artist, author,
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educator, YouTuber, public speaker, and podcaster. And did I miss anything? I mean, we're going
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to talk more about your career later. But you know, honestly, I'm curious to know about
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your YouTube channel, because you know, I have my YouTube channel with this podcast
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too. So your YouTube channel, like, it's like a lifestyle channel as a concert pianist and
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very entertaining. And you have over 3000 subscribers. So when did you decide to start
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engaging with your audience on YouTube? And what motivated you to do this?
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I think, you know, at some point, I think in 2019 or 18, everybody's talking about
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you should do the YouTube. I don't know, they still talk about it because I'm already in
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the YouTube world. I don't hear it anymore. But everybody was talking about you got to
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start YouTube, YouTube, you know, but in back in my mind, like, maybe but not for me, you
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know, in front of camera, like, I've, I definitely had that fear of conflicts within me that
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I didn't want to be in front of a camera. Definitely, there's a challenge that it's
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against my personality. Actually, podcast fits me better. It's just like talking about,
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you know, intimate conversation or writing fits me better. But then camera or something
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about it was very challenging. But then I was thinking in my head, because it's so challenging,
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because I felt the conflicts, I had to face it, at least at first. So I tried to think
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right before pandemic, four or five months, be prior to like quarantine started, I was
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actually in New York and thought, maybe I record something on my camera, I mean, my
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phone and see how it feels like. So I did it. And then surprisingly, I found out that
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I can just talk to the camera like a friend. So then I realized, okay, that's better than
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I thought, I will try a little bit more. But then pandemic hits. And by the time that pandemic
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hit, I already produced maybe 10 or 15 videos that I already have cameras and kind of knew
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how to edit and everything. And by that point, everybody had to transition into digital world.
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And by that time, I was already doing it. And so for me, was not transition, but something
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like, oh, my gosh, I'm already in it. And I was like, a step ahead of others. And then
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that's where I felt that the power of digital world that I could connect with people that
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I can never connect in Peru, Malaysia, that people actually unrealistic to come to my
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concert in person, but then there were real connection that I could make in online world
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in a meaningful way. So then I started to look at the world differently, like, okay,
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the pandemic happens and the world is going to end. What am I going to do as a performing
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artist or pianist? What does that mean? But then I found hope, you know, digital world,
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that I could still connect through music through, you know, in the different platform. And it
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required me to be resilient a lot more. And I did like weekly live streaming concerts.
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I think I was the most active during pandemic in the digital world than any, you know, right
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now I'm a little more struggling because of the time and everything. But I think at the
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moment I really felt the power of digital world that I think is at this point for everyone,
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but especially for musicians existing in a digital world, it's not an option anymore,
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but must.
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I agree with you. Yes, totally. So to my listeners, I want to officially introduce Ji-Yoon Kim
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by let me just read a little brief bio. So Ji-Yoon began studying the piano when she
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was four and her love of music propelled her through her undergraduate studies and piano
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performance in her native Korea. After moving to the United States, she received her master
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of music and doctor of music arts in piano performance with distinction from one of the
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most prestigious music schools in the United States, the Indiana University Jacob School
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of Music. Ji-Yoon has shared her fresh perspective on classical piano performance with audiences
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at venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York City, Chamber Music Society in San Francisco,
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and the Stradivari Society in Chicago. During the pandemic lockdown in 2020, she wrote and
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published her first book, Whenever You're Ready, offering readers a personal glimpse
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into her life as a concert pianist. The self-help book in a concert style structure shares
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wisdom and insights gained from Ji-Yoon's musical experience. Ji-Yoon currently resides
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in San Diego where she happily practices her piano daily and maintains a studio full of
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dedicated piano students and surfs each morning at sunrise. Wow, you are also a surfer among
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many other things. Is there anything you cannot do? Tell me a little bit about being a surfer.
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I'm curious. Well, I don't think there's not many classical musician surfers.
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Yeah, I've never heard, yes. Because that's so against of our disciplined
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mind in many ways because in surfing you have to let go so much. I want to drill so much
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in surfing. I want to get the trainer and get the perfect form and how to do surf. But
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then in surfing, you just have to wait for nature to give you waves and you have to ride
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that wave when nature gives you and respond to it's almost like a jazz. You have to always
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improvise and you have to play like a child. But in my mind, I want to practice surfing
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to be better. So there's a really complex within me, which is helpful for me to be doing
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so totally different thing with a piano what I do. And in piano, easily I can stay in the
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day home for days, days without even foot outside. I'll be happily being in indoor.
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But surfing, you have to be nature. You have to, you know, then you realize that life is
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about connecting with nature really brings some you to certain place that nothing else
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can take you. It's like walking nature or hiking and surfing is the same thing when
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you're in the in the in the middle of ocean in five six six o'clock in the morning, you
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see pelicans catching fish for the breakfast or dolphins swim by and you kind of feel like,
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you know, everything is fine. Wow, you're living the life. This episode is presented
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in collaboration with our good friends at Forte, a free alternative to zoom purpose
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00:27:06,120
built for music teachers. I am happy to announce that Forte will always be free for music teachers,
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00:27:11,840
no strings attached. That's right. Forte offers features optimized for classical music
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lessons, including audio quality far superior to existing platforms and allowing you to
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hear every nuance of your students instrument. Their colleagues at the Royal College of Music
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Aspen Music Festival, Curtis Institute and Berklee College of Music have even used Forte
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00:27:34,960
in their own programs. Forte's mission is to radically expand access to high quality
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music education worldwide. Forte always puts teachers and their students first. This means
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you can use Forte with your own students for free forever. And Forte will soon introduce
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paid features allowing you to connect with new students around the world. Sign up for
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00:27:58,320
free today at ForteLessons.com or click the link in the description. Well, you mentioned
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that you in the bio, you know, you started your musical journey at Forte. So how do you
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discover a love for piano? You know, I think I'm very thankful for my parents to put me
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in this piano Institute when I was four years old, but my parents was not a tiger mom or
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never really pushed me to do anything. They're actually very busy to their business. And
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it was my responsibility to go to Institute every single day. And they never really told
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me to do anything. But I remember my first lesson, which was like five finger pen or
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whatever. I don't know. I remember what was it, but I can just assume what that was. It
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would be C major something. Oh, up and down. But then my teacher play accompaniment part,
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you know, but at that moment, I feel like I'm a concert pianist already. I was so in
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love with the rush of sound coming out of this black and white keys. Although I was
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simply moving my key, you know, up and down, but I felt that the power of the instrument
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that gave me and I fell in love with it instantly. And I think my parents not pushing me, but
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I was really drawn into music and I was happy musical kid always want to sing. Hell, I think
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I knew right there and then I would be musician. You know, sometimes I feel like I chose piano,
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but I often believe the instrument chooses you. So piano chose me, flute choose someone
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else trumpet chooses some someone else. So piano suits me and I, you know, I am very
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biased, but I still believe piano is the queen of the instrument. You know, it can be independent
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interdependent solo chamber concerto intimate yet powerful. There's no other instrument
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can imitate orchestra yet most intimate sound that you can create. So, I mean, it's a chameleon
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of the instrument and I'm so grateful that piano happened to choose me. So what was your
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training like since then you had intensive training, I'm sure in South Korea, I think
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you're from Busan. Yeah, yeah. Tell me just briefly about your training. What was it like?
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Was it really intense? I think any aging country, especially Korea, very competitive, no matter
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what you do is competitive. So, but I was actually competitiveness free until I think
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it's, you know, second grade of middle school, because I was just going to institute doing
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my thing, like, I didn't I didn't I didn't practice it, but I was not aware of it. But
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then one day, I think my teacher or my mom told me, you need to go to art high school
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to in order to major in piano. So like, okay, but in order to do that, you have to audition
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our high school, then you have to change teacher to more serious, then you really have to commit
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and like, okay, I guess I commit. And then I did not realize what that commitment meant.
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But that commitment meant that I have to survive in the if I make just simple, like wrong notes
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in the Chopin etude, you are going to place low ranking in every piano exam in our art
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high school, everyone plays similar pieces. And then you can direct comparison of so and
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so plays faster, so and so plays more cleanly, you know, so like, that was my environment
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art high school that was very competitive and perfection is required polished performance.
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And I guess in that setting, I try really not to be bombarded with that comparison to
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each other. Because at that time, I was really having a difficult time personal life and
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my my parents divorcing. So I could not afford myself to be in that mindset, but really survive
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on my own personal life, which was blessing in disguise at the end, because I just piano
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was oasis for me not a place that I have to win. So then afterwards, I went in Korea,
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National University is also much cheaper. So I only had a two choice, either going to
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Busan or going to Seoul University, which is the best school in Korea. But I failed
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to getting into Seoul University. And I thought I my career as a pianist is crashed. Definitely
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that's a failure, you know, there's no other way around it. I didn't get in. But later,
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I realized that staying in Busan, which is my hometown, it's not that exciting. I went
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to university from my home, my own home, you know, nothing exciting. But then I was in
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the full scholarship. So I did not pay any money on undergrad studies. And I feel like
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I gained that perspective, I hibernated, hibernate and prepare myself for the bigger world, extended
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studies afterwards. And I could pace myself in non competitive environment. Again, if
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I think I went to Seoul University, then 20 piano major, whoever that were, they're very
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competitive. Again, I would really maybe burn out, who knows. But you know, as you know,
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the study in classical music goes for a long time. By the time you go undergraduate, you're
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already playing piano 16 years already of your life, right? In 20s, you're already been
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playing 16 years. But then beyond that is life just starting even education barely started.
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But then everybody quit after undergrad even because I'm done with this. You know what
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I mean? Yeah, I feel like I gained that energy I actually regenerated during my undergrad,
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just to rethink what I love and do I want this and at the same time, I was just taking
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my time, which is not it's a luxurious thing that I thought it was not fun. You know, at
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that time, I did not like it. Why I'm in Busan still, you know, I've been here for my life,
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but I'm still here, you know, but I'm very thankful now.
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Then that probably I don't know, staying there led you to maybe have the energy to think
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about coming to the United States, no? You know, I always knew that I have to go outside
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of Korea. Obviously, classical music is Western music and I need to learn something from outside
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of Korea. So I always thought of it, but I in my head, I thought either going to Germany
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or USA, but I wasn't sure in my undergrad, but I just knew that I would go somewhere
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outside. And so before making that decision, I lived in Germany for two months, and I lived
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in about a month in America, actually exchange students in undergrad and South Carolina and
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all places. So I tasted before I make decisions. And from that taste of life in Germany and
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USA, I've learned that in Germany, I could tell that, oh, well, Schubert must be walking
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on the street or, you know, Beethoven was lived in, you know, all of that was such a
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so close to the tradition, yet I was foreigner. For the first time, I felt that I am Asian.
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What is Asian? I was like, Yoon, what is Asian? But I felt that I'm Asian every single day,
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which I realized that I can get over that. Hopefully this is better now in Europe and
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in Germany. But at the time, I really felt that for the first time ever in my life that
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I am not June, but I'm Asian. And some that I decided also German was so difficult. I
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cannot even fake German. And I decided, okay, USA is the way to go. And then I Yahoo, you
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know, search at that time, what is the best university in America? And there's Juilliard
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and Indiana University in Midwest and then USC in West Coast. So I auditioned all three
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and I actually got in all but I chose to go to Indiana. Indiana is a wonderful school.
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Everybody wants to go there. Yeah. And how was the experience at Indiana University?
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It was like a really straightforward, all glorious. Yes. Wow, that's great. Very fancy
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way. It is a fantasy world that because of that reason, it has pros and cons because
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you are detached from the real world again. It was really special place. Bloomington is
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special place in the middle of nowhere. Indiana is the one of the best school in the field.
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Then there's best music, you know, library and the teachers all over the world, you know,
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Prassler, Stocker, George Sheppard and all of the great pedagogues there. And then everybody
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is talking about classical music. The four different concert hall has at least two or
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three different concert grand Steinway to choose from. I can nerd out about Beethoven's
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Sonata with the friends for all night long and doesn't feel anything different about
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it and all about classical music, classical music environment, even for the people who
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live locally very into opera and whatever. So I didn't want to wake up from that dream.
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I did not realize that was a dream and fantasy and well, I did it for a while, but I'm glad
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that I sense that world even for time period. Yeah, yeah, that's, that's great. Hey friends
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and listeners. The piano part is in its third season. Thanks to all of you for watching
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or listening to every episode since the launch in 2020. I started this show with a simple
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question I have had in mind for quite some time, which is how can we as classical pianists
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00:38:21,520
and music educators present the beautiful tradition of classical music to the 21st century
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00:38:27,360
audience in a fun, contemporary and engaging way? It's been an incredible journey for
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00:38:32,020
the last three years and I love what I do through this podcast, providing a platform
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00:38:39,120
for pianists and educators to think and discuss freely without any judgment about how we can
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00:38:45,160
keep the classical music industry thriving and relevant in this constantly and rapidly
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00:38:50,680
changing world. Now more than ever, I need your financial support so that I can continue
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00:38:56,940
my work by bringing you highly valuable content bi-weekly by interviewing ground breakers
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00:39:03,360
in the industry. Your support will go directly to all the costs of the piano pod, such as
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00:39:09,600
yearly subscription to the podcasting platform, software I use for high quality recording
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00:39:16,280
sessions and tech gears, as well as all the hours I spend researching and audio video
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00:39:22,320
editing. You can make one time donation or monthly pledge by clicking the PayPal link
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00:39:29,640
in the show notes or go to the piano pods website at the piano pod.com. As a thank you,
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00:39:35,160
you will receive the piano pods fun logo sticker in the mail. So please support my show today
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and don't forget to subscribe to my channel, continue listening and tell your friends and
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00:39:47,500
colleagues about the piano pod. Let's continue with this episode. Tell us about what you
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experienced after you graduated from Indiana University. Was it all glorious? Like all
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00:39:58,240
the job lined up and gigs lined up and then with the red carpet? Is that what it is?
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I wish I thought I never actually thought about it, which is a very naive thinking.
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But I didn't even think that is naive because my teacher even didn't mention it. My teacher
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was all about how to make this Chopin better, how to phrase Bach better, all of those things.
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00:40:19,400
And we never talked about the world beyond my study. And I'm thankful for that to live
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00:40:26,320
in the fantasy world so that I can really be my own artist in that time and dive deep
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00:40:33,400
into the music. But yet I was so detached and I thought maybe at some point that something
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will work out. I am doctor, but then when I get the certificate of Dr. Kim, only thing
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00:40:46,560
different was that people can call me doctor. But then same morning, the same sun goes up
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00:40:53,360
and yesterday, today it's the same. Nothing changed. I knock on my door, do you know this
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00:41:00,440
tour to the world? You know, the job application for it, you know, after I became a doctor,
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00:41:08,440
I thought maybe professor is very secure track, you know, and I really thought that that's
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00:41:13,920
what I wanted or that's what I should pursue and that's safe. And maybe that was a dream
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00:41:21,240
of my mom. I don't know. So I pursued without thinking much. But then rejection after rejection,
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00:41:29,520
I was like, I felt so small that just with my resume, like, I study so much. But then
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00:41:35,720
that becomes just one line. She got her doctorate degree in Indiana University. That's it. That's
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00:41:41,960
it. Like, what I did so much. I'm more diverse person than just one line. But how could I
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share that, you know, but then I pursue and pursue. I don't know how long I think it was
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00:41:53,020
after that I actually went back to school to study piano pedagogy and master's degree.
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By that time, people thought I was crazy to go back to school. But it was a genuine curiosity
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00:42:04,200
of how I could teach better because I wanted to teach four years old as well as the most
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00:42:10,920
advanced shopping pieces. But I could do that advanced pieces, but I had no idea how to
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00:42:17,480
start four years old. That gap was so much and it bothered me so much. So in the meantime,
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00:42:22,680
when I'm figuring out my life, let me get to learn about this gap because I wanted to
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00:42:29,080
be better teacher. So in the meantime, I was applying everywhere. I'm hoping that maybe
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00:42:34,560
this degree will help me to get to another job. Like, what else do you need? I get that
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00:42:40,400
you stop and then another degree in pedagogy. I'm like, I'm a dynamo in terms of degree
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00:42:47,680
can go. But then still, no, you know, and then the final rejection that I got was so
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00:42:52,600
close. I was a final three. And that by that point, I was thinking like, I got this, I've
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00:42:59,440
got it. They should want me like I have the one for you, you know, but then I still didn't
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00:43:07,280
get it. And that was hard. No, that was hard to take at that time. It was in San Diego,
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00:43:13,680
you know, one of the university and that time though, because the no was so close, but did
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still know was no at the end. And I was started to think, wait a second, do I want to be a
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professor? I don't want to be in some foreign land, start from that letter up for what,
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you know, and I started to really question my motivation of becoming a professor. And
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00:43:37,120
then more I searched for it, then I actually like the financial security comes with it,
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00:43:43,800
not the job itself. I really like the idea of it. But I really would hate to teach piano
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one for every year. I would hate to write it emails after emails, a committee, you know,
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00:43:55,000
committee members and all of those job follows that like suffocating is not actually academia,
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00:44:01,760
although I was there, academia all my life, but I hate it. I hate that structure. So then
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I like, you know, I am gonna close the door completely, not just adjunct to hoping that
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00:44:15,720
I get into some lecture position, none of that, I'm just gonna know, would that be
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okay? And I thought, you know, it sounds fairly miserable for me for my, my personality to
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00:44:31,440
stuck in a somewhere just for what, you know, so from then, then I was started to think,
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okay, now I'm still jobless, still like nothing. And from there, I started my own business
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00:44:44,680
of teaching studio from the knowledge that I gained from pedagogy classes and all things.
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And I took it as a very serious business. And I, I opened Dr. Kim piano Academy in the
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thinking that I'm only going to take five students because I want to do something else
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too. But I started very legit business model and policies and everything. And that was
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one channel. But then in my mind, I want to now devote myself as a pianist. How can I
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do that? And that's one of the way I thought as a first step, one of the first step is
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that I want to create an album, I wanted to always wanted to have an album, but how one
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starts album is that the Deutsche Grammophon is have to contact me, they're supposed to
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00:45:30,720
contact me, but they didn't, you know, like, I want to start, I want to make album, I have
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idea I wanted to create an album that collection of all my dear friends that one of the dear
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00:45:44,800
dearest to my heart, so that I could play every concert, it's encore always like among
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00:45:51,400
all of my studies, those pieces always come weaving into my life come and go. So I maybe
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12 pieces of those and I want to collect it and I called it as a 10 more minutes because
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it's it's it's represent for me the longing, longing for not 10 years 10 days, but 10 more
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00:46:11,280
minutes. And with this pieces that I always wanted to long for more. And so I wanted to
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present this idea to the world. And that was also mind boggling idea like, you know, I'm
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00:46:22,960
not starving to death, but why I'm asking for money for others to you know, so it was
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00:46:28,720
very uncomfortable, I was really uncomfortable place to ask for money for my album. But I
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00:46:36,160
decided I am an artist that I'm contributing building with what I can do to create this
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00:46:42,200
is not for me, but to create a beauty into the world. And people donate to art, they
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00:46:48,280
can donate to the symphony, or this organization, they can contribute to my project too. So
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00:46:54,520
I was kind of like started to like mentally train myself and started to talk about talk
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00:47:00,600
to the world that I have this idea, it would be wonderful if you can be part of it, join
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00:47:05,900
me, you know, join me to experience this process. And I did that through Kickstarter that was
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$30,000 pledge. And that felt like a lot of money, you know, and who could do that and
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00:47:19,120
and I even talking to my friends was difficult, like, I like, oh, you know, I have a song
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00:47:23,400
project, but I don't know if you can do it, you know, I was very shy about it. But the
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00:47:27,280
more and more I talk about it, and I feel like it's okay, you know, you don't have
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00:47:34,240
to even even just give me like a go for it, you're doing great. That is enough to then
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00:47:40,320
it became successful. It's miracle itself. I mean, there's there's many miracles. But
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00:47:46,040
none of those are that kind of miracle that because I do my best, but I I'm not in control
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00:47:52,500
over that outcome. But the outcome was successful. So I'm thankful. But I made that move. I was
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00:47:57,920
vulnerable in front of people that wanted and they're the interesting thing was that
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00:48:06,960
people donate even a dollar for this album felt like it's their project. It became everybody's
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00:48:13,920
project project. And it it felt like this is becoming a playground with so many people
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00:48:18,920
together. I shared that Oh, now I'm New York to recording this re project. Wish me luck.
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00:48:23,960
Oh, I just you know, now I'm doing you know, cover the photography, you know, they were
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00:48:30,800
there every step of this album, and they become like faithful lifelong fans. And then, you
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00:48:37,160
know, in the similar timeframe, about that time, one of my friend came to Carnegie Hall,
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and went to Mitsuko Chida's concert and gave me this postcard and asked Mitsuko Chida and
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say, Can you write it? Why not? on top of the postcard? And he said, Why not? And then
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00:48:52,880
it's like, Yes, please write right now for my friend with pianist. And so she gave me
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00:48:58,520
that postcard signed by Mitsuko Chida and saying why not. And until that time, Carnegie
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Hall is something like so far away. When you know, like, everybody's like, Oh, when are
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00:49:07,880
you going to play Carnegie Hall? Ha ha ha. Like, you know, it's more like a joke. It's,
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it'll be nice. But then it's so far, you know, why? How? Or do I even need it? You know,
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00:49:23,080
I justify myself. And then when I look at that postcard, I felt like, Why not? Yeah,
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00:49:29,680
why not? I mean, it's, it's not like I've done worse, you know, it's another concert.
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But how? I was genuinely curious. So I called the next morning at Carnegie Hall booking
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office and I called nine o'clock when they just opened the office. And I called and then
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someone get up and get the phone like immediately just like a New Yorker, you know, and they
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said, Hello, and Carnegie Hall booking office. And I said, You know, you don't know me, but
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I am classical pianist. I'm just wondering, how can one play in Carnegie Hall? And when
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I said that words, I felt like how ridiculous in my sound at the same time, how many calls
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00:50:09,560
this person gets a day, you know, all of those above. And then he was talking about long
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00:50:14,200
list of things that what you need, you need a presenter, you need the credentials that
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00:50:18,620
you need to like, you know, lullah, whatever that was, it was like long 10 minutes of she
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00:50:24,560
told me what what what I might need it. And then I hang up. And when I hang up and looking
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00:50:30,840
at the wall and thinking like, at the very moment, I felt that there's some light turn
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00:50:39,960
on. Oh, this is not fantasy. So steps. If I follow the steps, I play Carnegie Hill,
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00:50:45,400
just like that. Right. It's not a just like in lullaland. So then I was thinking, like,
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00:50:50,280
what was the steps that she mentioned? Like, what I what I need? And I made a phone call,
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00:50:57,080
whatever that I needed. And, you know, to make a long story short, I was in the Carnegie
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00:51:04,440
Hall debut concert with the people who donated so much in more minutes Kickstarter project
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00:51:10,800
from Indiana from San Diego from San Francisco, they wanted to fly. Oh, my goodness. Carnegie
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00:51:16,600
Hall. I have no connection in New York. I don't know anybody. But it was sold out with
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00:51:23,320
the people wanted to be there. And then in the backstage, I could hear the chatter noise.
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00:51:30,360
And I knew that became sold out on the day I knew. And I felt like, who am I to deserve
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00:51:38,320
this love? Who deserve this? And it felt like it's not my life. It's for them. It's for
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00:51:46,040
them. I need to give 1000% to give back what they gave me. And when I went on onto the
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00:51:52,120
stage, as always, there's a microphone, no program, people are very confused. What is
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00:51:59,000
she's gonna play? And then I get onto the stage and on the microphone and said, welcome
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00:52:07,720
to my dream. And that moment was dreamlike, but it was reality. But it felt like a dream.
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00:52:17,640
And that's how I feel like my life has been. Yes, I made a phone call. Yes, I put the idea
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00:52:23,400
into the world about Kickstarter, my album. But then when I did that, there's another
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00:52:30,960
force carried me, then I go and I go. But the first step was always me. The first vulnerable,
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00:52:38,040
courageous move was always me. But then when I did, vulnerable, open myself, expose myself,
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00:52:46,280
there are people that carried me. And that that's a magic. That's the part that I can't
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00:52:51,560
do it on my own. Beautiful. What a beautiful story. And you're coming to New York again.
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00:52:56,720
Yes, right. Yes. Yeah, that's great. We're gonna talk more about it later. But that's
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00:53:04,040
so amazing. Yes, maybe I'm I need to get a ticket and come and see you. Thanks for listening
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00:53:09,640
to part one of this episode with Dr. G. Yoon Kim. As briefly mentioned during the show,
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G Yoon is performing at Carnegie Hall in June 2023. The tickets are available and selling
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00:53:21,040
quickly. So grab your seats now on Carnegie Hall's website, which I listed in the show
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notes. Tune in next Tuesday, March 21 at 8pm Eastern for the second half of this fun episode
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00:53:32,400
with G Yoon. Please don't forget to rate and review my show wherever you listen to your
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podcast.
