On June 4, 2017, critically-acclaimed violinist Jinjoo Cho will join other GMF artists-in-residence to present, “Jinjoo Cho and Friends” as part of the Geneva Music Festival. This concert represents a reunion of Cho, GMF Director and Violinist Geoffrey Herd, and Violist Eric Wong. Cho and Herd met at the Cleveland Institute of Music during high school and met Wong there as undergraduate students. All three studied with Paul Kantor at various points in their careers. (Wong and Cho are now on the faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Music.) Jinjoo Cho and Friends will take place Sunday, June 4, at 2 p.m. in the Gearan Center for the Performing Arts on the Hobart and William Smith Colleges Campus in Geneva. For a sample of what you can expect in June, watch Jinjoo perform Leos Janacek’s “Violin Sonata”:
Born in Seoul, Korea, Cho moved to Cleveland, Ohio, at 14 to study at the Cleveland Institute of Music as a Young Artist Program student. She won numerous student and collegiate competitions within a few years and The New York Times described her concertmaster solos as “rich and open…finely polished, (and) focused.”
Gold Medalist of the 2014 Ninth Quadrennial International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, she debuted on the international music scene at the age of 17. She became the recipient of the First Grand Prize and Radio Canada’s People’s Choice Award at the 2006 Montreal International Musical Competition. Times Argus of Montreal proclaimed her performance of Shostakovich Violin Concerto possessed “an undeniable charisma and depth…with an intense lyricism and heartfelt tenderness that sent shivers up the spine.”
Since then, Cho has won numerous international awards and concertized throughout North and South America, Asia, and Europe, performing as a soloist with prestigious orchestras. Last season, she gave her Carnegie Hall Stern Auditorium concerto debut with the New York String Orchestra.
As her biggest passion is arts education and audience engagement, she has performed master classes, showcases and lecture recitals at more than 100 venues. Cho is the founder of a chamber music program for high school and college students in Cleveland, Ohio, named ENCORE Chamber Music. In an interview for Violinist.com, she noted, “It is my goal to create a transformative experience where young musicians are led to discover this inner connection between music and themselves early on by collaborating with others. I truly believe Encore will not only grow better musicians, but also better human beings who are kind, passionate, and loving, who will ultimately shape the horizon of music for the better.”
On the other side of the globe, Cho is involved with Classical Revolution Korea, traveling throughout the country to give free concerts in cafés. She also writes a column in the Korean performing arts magazine, “Auditorium.”
With her pianist Daniel H.S. Kim, she regularly tours in North America as Duo Istas. The two perform intensely creative programs that feature seldom-played works and contemporary repertoire.
Cho’s full biography is available on our Artists page.
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