Irene Kim has devoted over 25 years to providing tailored instruction to students around the world emphasizing problem solving, self awareness, and thoughtful practice. Her ideas and methods on piano performance and practice have reached global audiences in Italy, Singapore, Malaysia and through Tonebase's online platform as well as at Peabody Institute, Michigan State University, Interlochen Arts Academy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles College of Music, and Moorpark College. She is a Steinway & Sons Education Partner.
Irene a critically acclaimed prize-winner of international competitions, has performed across the globe in Europe, Asia, North America, and Australasia appearing in venues such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Hollywood Bowl, the Kennedy Center, and the Library of Congress. She is known for her powerful and authoritative performances, which include the rare feat of performing Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto without a conductor. She has appeared as soloist and chamber musician in festivals such as LA Phil's Noon to Midnight, Banff Centre for the Arts Festival, Gijón International Piano Festival, Piano Festival Northwest, American Liszt Society Conferences, and Coachella Festival.
As a genre-defying musician of curiosity, Irene collaborates extensively with composers, dancers, and other performing artists. Currently, Irene is working with Danny Elfman, Marco Beltrami, and John Powell to premiere new chamber works written for her and Sandy Cameron, violinist and Holly Sedillos, soprano. Irene has performed with dancers such as Tiler Peck and Roman Mejia of NYC Ballet. She tours internationally on both piano and harpsichord with violinist Benjamin Hoffman as co-founder of Brightfeather and plays keys alongside Danny Elfman for his legendary live shows. As music director for musical theater, she has led ensembles in NYC, DC, Baltimore, and Tallahassee. Her additional training as a conductor and piano technician informs her performance practice and instruction.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, she began musical studies at age three with her soprano mother. By age five, she was accepted into the distinguished and influential studio of Dr. Ick-Choo and Hae-Young Moon, where her formative training was established. At age eight, she made her orchestral debut with the Young Musicians Foundation Orchestra.
Irene’s professional training was centered at the Peabody Conservatory, where she received her Doctorate in Musical Arts. She was awarded the Albert and Rosa Silverman Memorial Scholarship, the Lillian Gutman Memorial Piano Prize, and the Clara Ascherfeld Award by the Conservatory for her musical endeavors during her studies there with Boris Slutsky, Benjamin Pasternack, and Marian Hahn. In the course of her musical erudition, she also had the honor to work with various distinguished musicians, including Leon Fleisher, Anton Kuerti, Robert McDonald, Ani Kavafian, Alexander Toradze, Robert Van Sice, and Ransom Wilson amongst others.
Irene is an avid believer that the arts are a manifestation of humanity and its creativity and aspires to let music travel to where its resounding compassion is much needed.
Have Professional studio setup : Yes
Steinway & Sons, Model L Grand
Ratings & Reviews
0
Based on
0 reviews
5 Star
0
4 Star
0
3 Star
0
2 Star
0
1 Star
0
Schedule a lesson
Select Timezone
Africa/Abidjan
Select a Date
May 2026
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
26
27
28
29
30
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
Pick your discipline(s)
Select the discipline items
Select a Time slot
Select a Date
This teacher currently has no available time slots.
Resume
2010 - 2016
DMA, Piano Performance
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States
2007 - 2008
MM, Piano Performance
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States
2014 - 2016
Piano, Early Childhood Faculty - Neighborhood Music School
New Haven, United States
Key role and responsibility :
Developed curriculum for early childhood classes. Prepared student instrumentalist for auditions and recitals. Taught piano to beginner and intermediate students.
2014 - Present
Piano Faculty & Admin - Porterville Strings
Porterville, United States
Key role and responsibility :
Designed curriculum for 100+ students for class piano in an underserved agricultural community.
2000 - Present
Piano Instructor & Coach - Piano Studio of Dr. Irene Kim
Los Angeles, United States
Key role and responsibility :
Instruct select students whose goals are to perform in front of live audiences with confidence, technical mastery, and stage presence.
2017 - Present
Piano Faculty - Craft Music
Los Angeles, United States
Key role and responsibility :
Instruct piano students of all ages and levels in person and online.
No data found
The requested information is not available.
English
-fluent
Korean
-conversational
Italian
-basic
My specialties
Study and performance of the western classical tradition: Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Impressionist, Late Romantic Modern, and Contemporary styles.
Coordinating your visual cues to best enhance your performance.
Preparation of brand new material, workshopping with the composer, knowing your audience, and successful presentation of new works.
Prepare repertoire methodically for the highest chance of success at an audition.
Q&A with Irene K.
The largest indoor stage I've performed on for a classical concert has been at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The largest outdoor venue has been at the Coachella Festival.
Many of the students in my studio are those who have an intermediate level or above understanding of piano technique and artistry as well as an elementary or above foundation in music theory.
In our lessons, we'll push your artistic boundaries so that performances are powerful and fulfilling. For your personal practice, I'll help build your toolkit essentials, including physical and mental self awareness. You will practice more efficiently and your ability to focus will improve, directly translating into faster absorption of music, realizing solutions to challenges, and ultimately experiencing music in a multi-dimensional way.
Studies began at the age of two and a half when I discovered I could spend more time with my soprano and piano teacher mother, who was busy teaching other children, by having piano lessons with her.
Steinway B and L models for practice and preparation; concert grands (Steinway D, Fazioli F278 & F308, Shigeru Kawai SK-EX); Roland keyboards and MainStage on rock tours; local onsite harpsichords for baroque concerts.
Patience, curiosity, and a strong unwavering belief that practice makes better.
Well-maintained concert grands provide infinite possibilities in clarity and range for sound production and responsiveness. With the right technique, you'll be able to express your thoughts directly through the instrument from a single melodic line to a symphonic soundscape, all by yourself.
I approach all of my students with respect and empathy; for the younger ones, I use a firm hand only when needed with a healthy dose of silliness.
Time and again, the greatest experiences consist of vulnerable storytelling through musical vibrations with colleagues I trust and respect fully, whether it's convening with 50 other musicians for a piano concerto performed without a conductor or it's at Coachella in front of 25,000 people, locking in with my bandmates in the middle of a windstorm.
I would prefer to imagine the infinite renditions of Mahler and Brahms symphonies by studying their scores.
Loving fully, living fully, communicating fully, and practicing awareness in all corners and spaces in my life.
The entire western classical canon from Baroque to Modern; contemporary art music including premieres of new works often informed by jazz, rock, and non-Western musical principles; musical theatre.
I enjoy teaching students of any age who can be fully present both in their lessons and in their personal practice.
Danny Elfman Live Shows at Coachella/Hollywood Bowl/Sick New World/Shoreline Amphitheater | LAPhil Noon to Midnight | Brightfeather tours in Europe, Southeast Asia, Southern California | Street Symphony in Skid Row | Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra | Delirium Musicum | Wicked Music People | Ensemble della Piattellina | Solo and chamber performances at The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Smithsonian Planetarium, Library of Congress, Conservatoire de Paris, Conservatorio Claudio Monteverdi
Top Prizes:
Los Angeles International Liszt Competition
Beverly Hills National Auditions
Korean Concert Society, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Prize
Garrison-Liszt International Young Pianist Competition
Russell C. Wonderlic Memorial Competition
Yale Gordon Concerto Competition
Carmel Music Society Competition
Awards:
Clara Ascherfield Award in Accompanying awarded by the Peabody Conservatory
Lillian Gutman Memorial Piano Prize awarded by the Peabody Conservatory
Zephyr Chamber Music Festival Scholarship
Peabody Career Development Grant
Banff Center for the Arts Scholarship
Outside of music, my interests vary including spending time with animals, authentic relating, cooking, creating her own stage outfits, learning languages, and practicing piano technology.
At Craft Music, we believe music is an expressive language and a creative outlet. It shapes culture and identity, and we're here to inspire and support your musical and personal growth!
