About

Kim made his solo debut with Wolfgang Sawallisch and the Philadelphia Orchestra at 12 years of age. He made his Kennedy Center debut with Marvin Hamlisch and the National Symphony within the year and has since performed with many orchestras around the world. Also an exhilarating recital artist, he has captivated audiences on some of the most prestigious stages around the world. His ensemble Trio Barclay, with pianist Sean Kennard and Pacific Symphony concertmaster Dennis Kim, is in residence at the Barclay Theatre in Orange County, California. They have premiered a new commission for every concert they have played since their inception.

Kim’s passion for chamber music stems from his fellowship at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where his ensemble with Joel Link (violinist of the award-winning Dover Quartet) and international piano sensation Yuja Wang performed the piano trio repertoire extensively. He now enjoys collaborating with the leading chamber musicians of our day, partnering with artists like Van Cliburn winner Jon Nakamatsu, Martin Beaver, Scott Yoo (host of PBS docu-series Now Hear This, on which Jonah has made multiple cameos), and Chee-Yun (from the HBO comedy series Curb Your Enthusiasm). He also shared the stage with principal members of ensembles like Orpheus, and the LA and NY Philharmonics, and members of the Tokyo, Formosa and Dover Quartets among numerous others.

In 2020, Jonah founded Trio Barclay with childhood friends Sean Kennard and Dennis Kim. They have commissioned and premiered a new work for every performance on their home stage as ensemble-in-residence at the Barclay Theatre in Orange County with their debut album set to release in January of 2026. In 2024, Jonah was named artistic director of Festival de Música de Cámara in San Miguel de Allende, now known as the Music Society of San Miguel. He is also founder and director of the San Francisco Music Festival.

Off the stage, one of Kim’s favorite ways to make music is in a recording studio. His debut album on the Delos label features the great romantic sonatas of Rachmaninoff and Barber with pianist Sean Kennard. It released in 2020 to rave reviews. In 2021, Kim released his second album for Delos, Approaching Autumn, titled after the new American work by Mark Abel bridging behemoths, the Kodály Solo and the Grieg sonatas. It was received with further critical acclaim for “[capturing] the very elusiveness that gives the music its substance” (Gramophone) and “flawless delivery of its Herculean technical demands” (The Strad). Kim is joined by Robert Koenig on the piano.

Born in Seoul, South Korea, American cellist Jonah Kim taught himself the cello watching VHS tapes of Pablo Casals. He was awarded full scholarship to The Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division at the age of seven. Growing up in New York City, he played for many of the pedagogues in the area including Aldo Parisot and Harvey Shapiro. Kim then became penpals with Janos Starker who invited him to Bloomington just before his ninth birthday. He continued to study with Starker throughout his career at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where he enrolled at eleven years of age. Under the supervision of then Dean Robert Fitzpatrick, he was the first fellow ever to train with multiple instructors, receiving lessons from Orlando Cole, Peter Wiley and Lynn Harrell. Kim defines a truly American school of cello by reconciling the Italian, German, Russian, Franco-Spanish and Hungarian lineages.

Kim’s favorite cello is the award winning “Stella” made in San Francisco by Haide Lin in 2022. Stella is paired with a bow made in Paris in 1904 by Jules Fétique. Kim makes his home in San Francisco with his wife, the respected and beloved American ballerina, Julia Rowe.