Danbi Um — Violin
Praised by The Strad as an “utterly dazzling” artist and described by New York Classical Review as performing with “a marvelous show of superb technique” and “mesmerizing grace,” Danbi Um captivates audiences with her virtuosity, distinctive sound, and interpretive sensitivity. A Silver Medalist at the Menuhin International Violin Competition and winner of the 2018 Salon de Virtuosi Career Grant, she is recognized for her artistry across concertos, solo recitals, and chamber collaborations.
Celebrated by Strings Magazine for her “virtuoso interpretations that evoke the grace and depth of a musical Golden Age,” Um’s recent and upcoming engagements include performances with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia at the Kimmel Center, the Ridgewood Symphony, and her Washington, D.C. recital debut at the Phillips Collection. She also returns to major festivals including the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Saratoga Performing Arts Center, North Shore Chamber Music Festival, and La Musica Festival in Sarasota.
An avid chamber musician, Um is a frequent guest of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, with whom she tours nationally and internationally. She has also appeared with leading series such as Chamber Music San Francisco, the Society of Four Arts in Palm Beach, and the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth. Her collaborators include Anthony Marwood, Vadim Gluzman, Pamela Frank, Cho-Liang Lin, Paul Neubauer, Frans Helmerson, David Finckel, David Shifrin, Wu Han, and Gilbert Kalish.
Um’s debut recording, Much Ado: Romantic Violin Masterworks, was released worldwide by Avie Records in fall 2023 to critical acclaim. Her second album, also with Avie, will be released in February 2025.
She made her New York recital debut at Lincoln Center in 2018, presented by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and was a prizewinner of the 2014 Music Academy of the West Competition, after which she performed Walton’s Violin Concerto with the Festival Orchestra under Joshua Weilerstein. Other concerto appearances include the Israel Symphony, Auckland Philharmonic, Vermont Symphony, and Dartmouth Symphony. Additional highlights include performances at venues such as Wigmore Hall, the Kennedy Center, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Chicago’s Harris Theater, and the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.
Born in Seoul in 1990, Um began violin studies at the age of three. She moved to the United States in 2000 to study at the Curtis Institute of Music, where she earned her bachelor’s degree, followed by an Artist Diploma from Indiana University. Her principal teachers include Shmuel Ashkenasi, Joseph Silverstein, Jaime Laredo, and Hagai Shaham. A laureate of Astral Artists’ National Auditions, she performs on the 1683 “ex-Petschek” Nicolo Amati violin, generously on loan from a private collection.