Hyung-ki Joo

A smart, dashing performer with an industry buzz created as much by his charismatic presence as by his work at the keyboard. Billboard 

Hyung-ki Joo has devoted his creative energy to making classical music accessible for audiences of all ages and backgrounds and has explored ways to present concerts that fit into the 21st century. On stage, Hyung-ki Joo enraptures audiences with his jovial and contagious stage presence as well as his energetic, brilliantly virtuosic performance. He takes on various musical roles and develops special projects that present him as pianist, orchestra leader, communicator, arranger, and composer. As a soloist, he has performed with renowned orchestras such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, the Wiener Symphoniker or the Sinfonia Varsovia.

Recent highlights include concerts with the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra as well as his work as curator of the opening of the 2023 Vienna Festival, his appearance at the podium of the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, and his collaboration with Tarmo Peltokoski at the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra. Together with Tarmo Peltokoski, Hyung-ki Joo also performed Rachmaninoff’s Paganini Variations as a piano duo. In the summer of 2025, he took part in the opening programme of the new Busan Concert Hall in Korea and appeared at the Salzburg Festival alongside the celebrated soprano Asmik Grigorian. At the start of the 2025/26 season, Hyung-ki Joo and Asmik Grigorian continue their collaboration with a song recital at La Scala in Milan. In addition, the duo presents their jointly conceived show A Diva is Born in Riga and Vilnius, and later in the year once again at the Vienna State Opera. Solo recitals will also take Hyung-ki Joo to Switzerland, Norway, and Singapore. To close the season, he will premiere a new programme exploring the history of the piano concerto in collaboration with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn under Dirk Kaftan.

His affinity for song repertoire led to performances with singers such as Sunhae Im, Dame Felicity Lott, Valentina Nafornița, Julian Prégardien, and Pretty Yende. Similarly, his love for chamber music has shaped Hyung-ki Joo’s musical career, leading to collaborations with artists including Renaud Capucon, Martin Fröst, Janine Jansen, Mischa Maisky, Julian Rachlin, Belcea Quartet as well as members of the Alban Berg Quartet and the Quatur Ébène. Besides performing as a pianist and chamber musician, Hyung-ki Joo has also collaborated with many artists outside of the conventional classical music world such as Billy Joel or the jazz pianist Stefano Bollani. He has also appeared in several films, including Pianomania, Breaking Beethoven and Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Classical Music.

With his duo Igudesman & Joo, they ignited the internet with their inventive and hilarious videos combining classical music, comedy, and pop culture, and through their performances with major orchestras and iconic classical musicians, they not only brought laughter into concert halls worldwide, but also helped open the door to more adventurous and imaginative approaches to classical programming. Committed to nurturing young talent, he loves to work regularly with students, youth orchestras, and ensembles such as the Norwegian National Youth Orchestra, the Luxembourg Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Youth Orchestra of Tonhalle Düsseldorf. A passionate communicator, Hyung-ki Joo works to inspire the next generation of musicians. In his Beyond the Practice Room workshops, he places focus on the joy of making music and encourages participants to explore fresh directions beyond “conventional” performance. He is the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Manhattan School of Music, serves as a mentor at the Yehudi Menuhin School and is currently the Artistic Director of the Menuhin Competition for young violinists.

As a composer, Hyung-ki Joo’s works have been performed by orchestras, ensembles, and soloists such as the New York Philharmonic, Tonhalle Orchestra Zürich, Komische Oper Berlin Ensemble, Oslo Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Meta4, Emanuel Ax, Tine Thing Helseth, Daniel Hope, and Yuja Wang, and recorded by artists such as Shani Diluka and the Ahn Piano Trio. His music is published by Universal Edition and Modern Works. Ever inventive, Hyung-ki Joo continues to bridge boundaries between art forms, transforming the way audiences experience classical music, and he is Ambassador to the Sir Peter Ustinov Foundation- a charitable organisation dedicated to creating better living conditions for children and young people worldwide through access to education and creativity.

2025/26 season

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If Puccini and Lady Gaga had created a show together, it might have looked something like “A Diva is Born.”
“A Diva is Born” is not simply a concert – it’s an emotional rollercoaster that reimagines tradition.
One stage. One diva. One pianist. Endless emotions. Expect the unexpected – laughter, tears, applause, perhaps even a few boos. These are songs, just louder. Think opera, think pop – think popera.

Haydn is a composer who is often taken for granted. Although his name is historically among the greatest, he stands in the shadow of Mozart and Beethoven—two composers who greatly admired Haydn and were influenced by him. Haydn was a pioneer, a rule-breaker, a prankster, and a refined punk. His music is full of wit and inventiveness, and many of his works are infused with humor, surprises, and theatrical elements.

In this programme, Hyung-ki Joo has taken Haydn’s original music and applied his own love of theatre and humour to Haydn’s original musical intentions, in order to enrich and amplify the experience for today’s audience. The concert begins, in a sense, backwards—with the final movement of Haydn’s Symphony No. 60, “Il Distratto,” which means “The Distracted One.” The music starts in Haydn’s typically cheerful manner, but hardly has it begun before there are several distractions to deal with. Will the orchestra manage to maintain its focus and get off to a good start?