Profile
Clara Jumi KANG(Germany / Korea)
1st Prizewinner of the 4th SIMC Violin Section
Born in Germany under a musical family, Clara-Jumi Kang started violin at the age of three. Only one year later, she enrolled at Mannheim Musikhochschule as the youngest student ever accepted to study under Valery Gradov. She went on to study with Zakhar Bron at Lübeck Musikhochschule.
At the age of six, she was the cover of german magazine ‘Die Zeit’ writing a main article defining her as ‘Wunderkind’.
By then, she had already given her debut with Hamburg Symphony at the age of five. Just turning seven, she got accepted at the Juilliard School with full scholarship to study under Dorothy Delay.
At such young age, Clara had already performed with orchestras such as Leipzig Gewandthaus, Hamburg Symphony, Kiel Philharmonie, Nice Philharmonie, Atlanta Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic, KBS Orchestra, Korean Chamber Ensemble.
At age nine, she recorded the Beethoven Triple Concerto and a solo recital program for CD label ‘TELDEC’.
Having gone through a tragic finger accident at age eleven and not being able to play violin at all for a few years, Clara went on to study Bachelor and Master degree at age sixteen with Nam-Yun Kim at the Korean National University of Arts.
During that period, she won top prizes at Major International Violin Competition such as Tibor Varga Violin Competition in 2007, 1st Prize at Seoul Violin Competition in 2009, 2nd Prize at Hannover Violin Competition in 2009, 1st prize at Sendai International Music Competition in 2010, and then captured 1st prize at the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis in 2010 with additional five special prizes.
Clara has established herself as a Soloist, regularly invited to perform with orchestras such as Dresden Kapellsolisten, New Jersey Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Santa Fe Symphony, Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra, Nagoya Philharmonic, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra, Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra, Kanazawa Orchestra, Taipei National Symphony, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra as well as with all the leading Korean Orchestras such as Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, KBS Orchestra, Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra and Suwon Philharmonic Orchestra.
Clara released her first Solo Album for DECCA ‘Modern Solo’ in 2011 including works such as Ernst Last Rose, Schubert Erl König, and Ysaye Solo Sonatas.
Highlights of 2011/12 season included numerous concerts with orchestras and recitals in USA, recital at Carnegie Hall (Stern Auditorium), recital tour in Korea as well as appearances throughout Asia.
2013/14 season concerts include Tour in Korea with Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra/Myung-Whun Chung, Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra/Santory Hall, KBS Symphony Orchestra/Yoel Levi, Taipei Symphony/Gilbert Varga among other appearances throughout USA, Europe and Asia.
A very devoted Chamber Musician, Clara collaborates with musicians such as Kyung-Wha Chung, Myung-Wha Chung, Jian Wang, Gautier Capucon, Cho Liang Lin, Maxim Rysanov, Paul Neubauer and is a regular Artist at Great Mountains Music Festival.
In 2012, Clara was selected one of the 100 ‘Future’s most promising, influential people for Korea’ by Korean major newspaper Dong-A Times and also received the 2012 Daewon Music Award for her outstanding concert achievements internationally.
Since 2011, Clara lives in Munich and continues studying at the München Musikhochschule with Christoph Poppen.
Clara-Jumi currently plays on the ‘ex-Gingold’ Stradivarius 1683 generously on loan from the Indianapolis Violin Competition and from year 2014, she will play on Guarnerius del Gesú ‘ex-Moeller’ 1725, kindly to be loaned by Samsung Music Foundation Korea.