Richard Joo

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Richard Hyung-ki Joo is a British-Korean pianist and composer.

Hailed by Yehudi Menuhin as “A most engaging human being of great talent,” Richard Hyung-ki Joo has captivated audiences throughout the world with his multi-dimensional artistry and charisma. Grand Prize Winner of the Stravinsky International Piano Competition, he has performed all around the world including venues such as Carnegie Hall, Musikverein, Barbican Hall, and a command performance for the US President, at the White House. The legendary songwriter, Billy Joel, chose Joo to arrange and record Joel’s classical piano pieces for the album “Fantasies and Delusions“ which was released on the Sony Classical label. It was recorded at the Mozart-Saal, Vienna Konzerthaus, and reached the no. 1 spot on the Billboard charts for eighteen weeks.

Chamber music is an important part of his musical life and besides concerts with his piano trio, “Dimension”, he has enjoyed performing with musicians such as Lidia Baich, Thomas Carroll, Thomas Christian, Michael Collins, Alex da Costa, Gervase de Peyer, Rafal Payne, Julian Rachlin, Fuminori Shinozaki, Radovan Vlatkovich and also members of the Alban Berg, Artis, Belcea, and Hugo Wolf quartets. He also has a piano duo with Mihaela Ursuleasa. Next season, his trio, “Dimension”, will perform Beethoven's Triple Concerto with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Born in England, of South Korean parents, Mr. Joo began his formal training in the UK at the Menuhin School with Peter Norris and Seta Tanyel and later earned his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with pedagogue Nina Svetlanova. Other teachers include Richard Goode, Ferenc Rados, and Oleg Maisenberg. From an early age, through his own compositions and his versatility in various musical styles, Mr. Joo has been searching for new ways in which classical music can be performed. He has written and created several shows that integrate comedy and music including “DUEL”, which has been presented at the Edinburgh and Avignon Festivals, and his latest show, “A Little Nightmare Music”, co-written with Aleksey Igudesman (TRIOLOGY), was premiered at the Musikverein, Vienna. His most recent composition was premiered at Wigmore Hall in London. Other highlights this season include concerto appearances with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Joo has recently teamed up with actor Gabriel Byrne and they are currently working on a project that combines poetry, prose, and classical music.

Persondata
NAME	Joo, Richard
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Joo, Richard Hyung-ki
SHORT DESCRIPTION	British-Korean pianist and composer
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