Melodies of the Morning Calm

Dennis Kim shares his connection to Korean music as he performs with haegeum artists Eunah Noh and Soo Yeon Lyuh at Winifred Smith Hall: A Q&A session

On Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, at 8 p.m., the UC Irvine Department of Music, co-sponsored with the Center for Korean Critical Studies, will present Melodies of the Morning Calm at Winifred Smith Hall, an evening of traditional and contemporary Korean works. The program brings together violinist Dennis Kim with two of Korea's leading haegeum artists: Eunah Noh, professor of Korean music at Seoul National University and a driving force in expanding the instrument's repertoire, and Soo Yeon Lyuh, a haegeum player, composer and improviser whose new works for the instrument have been commissioned by ensembles including the Kronos Quartet.

Dennis Kim, Assistant Professor of Violin at the Claire Trevor School of the Arts, was born in Korea, raised in Canada and educated in the United States. Over the past decade, he has led orchestras across the U.S., Europe and Asia, building a career defined by exactly the kind of international perspective this program celebrates.

Question (Q): The concert is co-sponsored by the Center for Critical Korean Studies. What does that cross-campus partnership mean for an evening centered on Korean music and culture?

Dennis Kim (DK): I'm very grateful to Professor Joseph Jonghyun Jeon, the center's director, who reached out to me. It's very rare that I get to work from a completely blank palette. He said, "Whatever you want to do, I'm here to support it. Bring the best artists. It's 100% up to you artistically." That was an incredible gesture. I also love that different parts of the university, some with nothing to do with each other, can collaborate and make each other's departments stronger. That's one of the great things about working at UC Irvine.

Q: Born in Korea, raised in Canada and educated in the United States, what does it mean to you to bring Korean music to the stage in this program?

DK: Everywhere I've lived has been different. Being Korean American was one thing, and living in Korea was a little different again. Being able to help produce a concert of Korean music is very special to me. When people think about Korean music, they think about K-pop. But Korea has an incredible history of traditional music and classical music, with real superstars. To branch out and play music I'm not that familiar with or trained in, and to help show our community what this music is about, is a great opportunity. I'm grateful again to Professor Jeon and the center.

Q: How did this collaboration with Eunah Noh and Soo Yeon Lyuh come about?

DK: I was a fan of both artists before meeting them. One is from New Jersey, and I've only seen her online. We've spoken, but I've never met her in person. The other, a professor from Korea, gave a presentation at UCI a couple of years ago, and that's when I met her and performed with her. In the world of Korean traditional music, they're superstars, so having the chance to bring them to perform is something I'm grateful to Professor Jeon for making possible. The message from the center was that there were no restrictions and I should get whoever I wanted, so I tried to get the best available. 

Q: What can audiences expect to hear on the program?

DK: It's going to be a mix of different genres. There will be some very traditional Korean music with traditional melodies, some crossover that's a little more Westernized, and some modern Korean works. One of our guest artists is a composer herself, so she might play some of her own music, which is a little more avant-garde. It will be very interesting to see the diversity of music we perform that night.

Q: You've spent the past decade leading orchestras across the U.S., Europe and Asia. How does that international career shape the way you approach a program like this, or the way you teach our students?

DK: Being a professor at UCI lets me do many different things, have many different roles and play many kinds of music, and I think that's one of the reasons I teach here. I'm a recording artist in the studios, playing soundtracks for movies and I can also play traditional Korean music. I want to show my students that I can play all different kinds of music so that they will be able to as well. Instead of saying, "I play violin, so I'm going to play in an orchestra," I want them to know they can do everything, and that having the opportunity to do everything is important.

Q: What do you hope audiences, especially those discovering Korean music for the first time, take away from Melodies of the Morning Calm?

DK: Like me, I hope audiences discover new music and learn that there's a genre most people aren't familiar with, including this traditional Korean instrument, the haegeum, and traditional Korean music. I hope they come away, first of all, entertained, listening to beautiful music played by top artists in their field. And I hope it opens up a whole new world of different sounds and genres for them.

Q: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

I want to thank Professor Jeon and the Department of Music chair, Michael Dessen and Dean Tiffany López. Without the space and the opportunity, it's hard to reach these audiences.

For ticketing information for Melodies of the Morning Calm, visit here.