Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Ready For Rachmaninoff
At 16, Saehyun Kim already piano virtuoso
Saehyun Kim will turn 17 on March 31. Four days before his birthday, he’ll play Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto, considered one of the most “technically challenging and dramatic piano concertos of all time,” with the Arkansas Philharmonic.
“Lasting more than 40 minutes, this concerto is the epitome of piano literature,” Saehyun says, seemingly unfazed. “I cannot wait.”
Saehyun says he met Steven Byess, APO music director, at the Concerto Finals of the 2023 Cleveland International Piano Competition for Young Artists, where Saehyun was awarded the First Prize, the Audience Prize and the Junior Jury Prize. Most recently, he was named a 2024 YoungArts Winner with Distinction in Classical Music (Piano).
Growing up in Seoul, Saehyun started playing the piano at the age of 4. He started loving the piano when he was around 8, he says.
“I stumbled upon a video of a performance of a piece by Frederic Chopin,” he remembers. “This performance opened my eyes to a wide range of expressions and an endless palette of sound colors — and there was no turning back. I started to voluntarily explore music, and it became my biggest passion.”
In between, Saehyun dreamed of becoming a professional soccer player, tennis player and mathematician, he says.
“I used to play for an intense youth soccer team under FC Seoul, and I also competed in top-level tennis tournaments,” he remembers. “Now, tennis is one of my hobbies, but I currently rarely play it because of the risk of injury. However, I enjoy table tennis and founded a table tennis club at my school. I am so far unbeaten!”
Saehyun is a senior at Walnut Hill School for the Arts and the New England Conservatory Preparatory School in Boston. His day starts with academic classes, followed by studies in chamber music, music history, tonal composition and choir at Walnut Hill. On Saturday, he has piano lessons at the Conservatory with HaeSun Paik.
“During school hours, I find time to practice during breaks,” he says. “After school, I practice at home in the suburbs near Boston. Typically, I spend at least four hours at the piano every day, and my maximum hours have spanned to 11 hours a day.
“To maintain a healthy balance, I try to keep it under six,” he says, then adds, “and when I am not playing the piano, I tend to think about music, study my score, read about music, or practice by visualizing.”
While Saehyun says “mostly, I play seriously,” he admits he loves music most “when I am serious and focused. But I do take time to play just for the sake of enjoyment. One good example would be improvising on the piano, because it builds connection between myself, the instrument, and the music.
“I do not think life as a musician is necessarily about chasing a career, but more about following your passion,” he goes on. “But if I do get to have a career as a concert pianist, I hope to travel around the world, performing in illustrious halls with esteemed orchestras and musicians, while also taking time to share my music with underprivileged communities that lack access.”
Asked his advice for other young musicians, Saehyun demurs.
“As I am also an aspiring young musician, I do not think I am at a stage where I can give any useful advice,” he says. “If there is one thing, I would like to borrow a beautiful quote from a much more competent and experienced musician, Sergei Rachmaninoff himself: ‘Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music.’ Personally, I think there is nothing impossible if one loves what they do with their whole heart, so I wish other aspiring musicians the best of luck!”