Sunwook Kim

Since winning the prestigious Leeds International Piano Competition in 2006 at the age of 18, Sunwook Kim has established a reputation as one of the finest pianists of his generation, appearing as a concerto soloist in the subscription series of some of the world’s leading orchestras, including the Berliner Philharmoniker, London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Staatskapelle Dresden, Chicago Symphony, and NHK Symphony. Alongside his career as a pianist, Kim has built long and meaningful relationships with top orchestras as a guest conductor as well as being Music Director of the Gyeonggi Philharmonic in South Korea since 2024.

As a soloist, Kim enjoys close relationships with renowned conductors including Daniel Harding, Paavo Järvi, Myung-whun Chung, Marek Janowski, Mark Elder, and Jakub Hrůša. In November 2025 he returned to the Berlin Philharmonic as soloist for its tour of South Korea under Kirill Petrenko. Other recent and upcoming highlights include an extensive tour of Europe and South Korea play-directing Beethoven concertos with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, with concerts at Lotte Concert Hall, Berlin Philharmonie, Salle Philharmonique de Liège, Halle aux Grains (Toulouse), and the Barbican (London). Other recent concerto highlights include appearances with the London Symphony Orchestra (Michael Tilson Thomas), Los Angeles Philharmonic (Matthias Pintscher), and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic (Karina Canellakis).

The 2025/26 season sees Kim continuing his role as Music Director in Gyeonggi, conducting works from Mozart and Beethoven to Strauss, Bartók, and Unsuk Chin. He made his conducting debut with the orchestra in June 2023 and was immediately announced as its next Music Director.

As a guest conductor, Sunwook Kim regularly appears with the Seoul Philharmonic, with which he has conducted wide-ranging repertoire including Strauss’ Tod und Verklärung and Der Rosenkavalier, as well as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. He has also made highly successful debuts with the Israel Philharmonic, to which he returns as conductor and soloist in April, and with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. He enjoys a close relationship with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, which he has conducted on numerous occasions and this season leads in Stravinsky, Mozart, and Beethoven. Future conducting highlights include concerts with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Enescu Philharmonic, Taipei Symphony, and Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano.

As a recitalist, Kim appears on the world’s finest stages, including Wigmore Hall, Philharmonie de Paris, Symphony Hall Osaka, and the Seoul Arts Centre, and also collaborates regularly with his life partner Clara-Jumi Kang and with Janine Jansen.

He has an extensive recording catalog including concerto discs with the Seoul Philharmonic (Deutsche Grammophon) and Staatskapelle Dresden (Accentus), both led by Myung-whun Chung. He also performed Unsuk Chin’s Piano Concerto, conducted by Sakari Oramo, on the 2023 Berliner Philharmoniker box set of works by Chin, highlighting their collaboration over the past 20 years.

Born in Seoul in 1988, Sunwook Kim completed an M.A. in conducting at the Royal Academy of Music and was made a fellow (FRAM) of the academy in 2019.