East Studio Building, JS226
Education
- M.M., Master of Music, The Boston University School of Music, 1990
- B.M., Bachelor of Music, Seoul National University, 1988
Biography
Sung-Mi Im is senior lecturer in music in chamber music at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
A native of South Korea, Im began her piano studies with her mother at the age of three. After a successful debut with Daegu Symphony Orchestra at the age of eight, she pursued undergraduate studies at Seoul National University and her master’s degree in performance under the Dean’s Scholarship at Boston University, studying with Kwi-Hyun Kim and Tong-Il Han.
She has won numerous competitions, including the Dong-A Newspaper Competition, Ye-Um Chamber Music Competition in Korea, and the Kahn Award in Boston.
Im has given solo and chamber music recitals in London, Montreal, Dallas, Seoul, and New York, and appeared with orchestras in Korea including Daegu Symphony Orchestra, Ulsan Philharmonic Orchestra, and Busan Symphony Orchestra for the 10th Korean Orchestra Festival at Seoul Arts Center. Her performances with the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra in Bloomington, Indiana, and the Jupiter Symphony in New York City, were met with much acclaim as well.
Im has appeared in many international festivals, including Kusatsu Music Festival and Moon Beach Festival in Japan, Seattle Chamber Music Festival, Sitka Music Festival in Alaska, Bargemusic in New York, Chamber Music International in Dallas, Tucson Chamber Music Festival, Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival in Finland, and the Great Mountains Music Festival in Korea, among others.
Im has been an active member of the Bloomington music community since 1999. In addition to her wide range of solo and chamber performances, she premiered P. Q. Phan’s Duo Concertante for Violin and Piano with Chamber Orchestra with her late husband, violinist Ik-Hwan Bae, joined by the New Music Ensemble of the Jacobs School of Music. She also collaborated with the IU Ballet Department, performing the Stravinsky Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra.
Linking the Bloomington music community to both a larger national network and to local community groups confronting local food insecurity, Im launched the Bloomington Chapter of Music for Food, which presented its inaugural concert in 2022.