16-year-old violinist John Kim was born in Baltimore, Maryland and began studying the violin at the age of 5 at the Peabody Conservatory Preparatory of Johns Hopkins University. After studying there for a few years, John moved to South Korea and continued to pursue his passion for music at the Daejeon Arts Center’s Music Academy for the musically gifted and the Seoul Baroque Academy. Currently, he is a student at the Seoul Central Conservatory under the instruction of Dr. Jinjoo Jeon.

John was recently selected as the 2023 National YoungArts Competition Winner (Honorable Mention) in Classical Music/Violin. He has also been chosen to participate in the Morningside Music Bridge program on a full scholarship for the summer of 2023. In April of 2022, he made a successful solo debut, performing the entire Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with Yongin Philharmonic Orchestra at the Seongnam Arts Center Concert Hall. John is an active participant of various international and Korean competitions, where he won numerous prizes. Some of his accomplishments include winner and scholarship recipient of the 2022 Association for Music in International Schools (AMIS) Online Solo and Ensemble Festival. Furthermore, he was also awarded second prize in the 2022 American Virtuoso International Music Competition, earning an opportunity to perform in the Carnegie Hall Weill Recital Hall on June 28, 2023. The previous year, John received the Gold Prize and the Fantastic Technique Special Prize in the London Young Musician International Music Competition Series. In 2020, John won 1st prize in the 60th Korea Music Education News Competition and 3rd prize in the 52nd Nanpa National Music Competition, which are both prestigious Korean competitions. 

With his talent in violin performance, John was awarded a merit scholarship to attend the 2021 Violin Workshop and the Young Artists Instrumental Program at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI). John has been invited back to BUTI for the summer of 2022 as an ambassador, and he was given another merit scholarship to its 2022 Violin Workshop. During his time at BUTI, John studied with Klaudia Szlachta, Miguel Pérez-Espejo Cárdenas, Hsin-Lin Tsai, Shawn-Shuo Wang, and Huiying Ma. Furthermore, John was chosen to participate in masterclasses with Peter Zazofsky, Lucia Lin, and Alexander Velinzon.

Outside of music, John likes to study journalism, history, and world languages. John attends Seoul International School, where he is an active member of the student council and the school publication. John has also received several awards in Model United Nations conferences. During his free time, he enjoys cycling, hiking, and taking photos of nature.