Hahn-Bin

Hahn-Bin’s Seattle appearances are made possible through the generous support of the
Swiss Global Artistic Foundation. Based in London and Lausanne, Switzerland, the Foundation provides opportunities to exceptionally talented young artists of all nationalities.

Born in Seoul, violinist Hahn-Bin became a top prizewinner at the most prestigious competition for young musicians in Korea just five weeks after learning to play the violin. The six year old was quickly recognized as a child prodigy and made his first national television appearance in a documentary showcasing his extraordinary talent. Later that year, Hahn-Bin auditioned for the renowned Korean National University of Arts' Preliminary School and became its youngest student. By age ten, Hahn-Bin had made his orchestral debut with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and performed in virtually every major concert hall in Korea.

Shortly after his eleventh birthday Hahn-Bin moved to Los Angeles to study with the famed violin teacher Robert Lipsett, who immediately presented him at the Grammy Awards' Salute to Classical Music honoring the legendary violinist Isaac Stern. Stern went on to give Hahn-Bin invaluable guidance in future music education until his death in 2001. A series of engagements soon followed after his U.S. debut with numerous orchestras including the Pacific Symphony and the San Diego Symphony. At age twelve Hahn-Bin became the recipient of a 1735 Giuseppe Guarneri del Gesu from the Stradivari Society of Chicago. This notable event was accompanied with a feature article in various publications by the award-winning journalist Sam Weller. Weller recalled Hahn-Bin's first performance with the instrument: "The music that the young boy coaxes from the violin is a tour de force. For twenty minutes, the velvet sound wallpapers the room, swelling ever more intense with each ensuing measure. Eyes closed, [Hahn-Bin] is calling spirits."

Hahn-Bin made his European debut at age fifteen in a four-city concert tour of the Sibelius Violin Concerto under the direction of Klaus Arp with the Landesjugendorchester Rheinlad-Pfalz of Germany, concluding with performances in five cities across the U.S. with the orchestra later that year. Hahn-Bin also signed with Universal Music Ltd. and began recording in Seoul for his debut album 'HAZE' in 2004 with pianist John Blacklow. The album was preceded with a recital tour of the same title in United States and Korea before it was released to enormous critical acclaim in the summer of 2005. In addition, Hahn-Bin moved to New York in 2004 after being invited by Itzhak Perlman (with whom he had begun studying in 2002 at the Perlman Music Program) to join his highly-selective teaching studio at the Juilliard School. Hahn-Bin now studies with both Perlman and Catherine Cho at Juilliard as a full scholarship student.

Hahn-Bin’s 2005-2006 concert season includes over 60 performances in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, and Memphis in the U.S., Seoul, Daejeon, and Bucheon in Korea, and Kawasaki in Japan.

For Hahn-Bin, music outreach has always been an important aspect as a classical musician. Hahn-Bin has collaborated with artists such as Carl St. Clair, Yehuda Gilad, Klaus Arp, and members of the Pacific Symphony and the Zipper Orchestra in numerous performances to support music education in public schools. In 2004 Hahn-Bin was named as an Honoree of Future Leaders in Arts by Tommy Lasorda and the Los Angeles Dodgers Association.

With boundless interests in the category of art, Hahn-Bin regularly works on creating visual artworks, designing fashion apparels, and composing poetries. His inspirations have included Gertrude Stein, Rei Kawakubo, Marianne Faithfull, Yoko Ono, and Egon Schiele.

Hahn-Bin currently performs on a rare J. F. Pressenda from the Mandell Collection of Southern California.