[Northwestern University News] Violinist Jinjoo Cho to join Northwestern Bienen School faculty

Violinist Jinjoo Cho to join Northwestern Bienen School faculty
April 11, 2024

South Korean violinist Jinjoo Cho has been appointed associate professor of violin at the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University, effective September 1, 2024.

“Jinjoo Cho’s resume as a performer is distinguished in its own right, but she is equally impressive as an educator,” said Jonathan Bailey Holland, dean of the Bienen School of Music. “Her forward-looking energy, rigorous yet supportive pedagogical approach, and creativity will complement and strengthen the Bienen School faculty. We are thrilled to welcome her to Northwestern.”

Jinjoo Cho is a versatile classical virtuoso of the 21st century. First prize winner of the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis and Concours musical international de Montréal in addition to Buenos Aires, Schoenfeld, and Stulberg Competitions, Jinjoo has toured on concert stages around the world since the age of 11. Today, she continues to perform at distinguished concert halls and festivals including the Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium, Aspen Music Festival, Gilmore Festival, La Jolla Music Society’s Summerfest (USA), Banff Centre, Festival de Lanaudière (Canada), La Seine Musicale, Aigues-Vives Music Festival (France), Kronberg Academy, Schwetzingen Festspiele, Herkulessaal (Germany), Teatro Colón (Argentina), and Seoul Arts Center (Korea).

A charismatic soloist, Jinjoo has appeared with leading orchestras such as the Cleveland Orchestra, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Deutsche Radio Philharmonic, Orquesta Clásica Santa Cecilia de Madrid, Ensemble Appassionato, Seoul Philharmonic, and the North Carolina, Phoenix, and Charlotte symphonies, collaborating with renowned conductors such as James Gaffigan, Kent Nagano, JoAnn Falletta, Mathieu Herzog, Peter Oundjian, Michael Stern, Tito Munoz, Michael Francis, Moritz Gnann, Karina Canellakis, Shi-Yeon Sung, Pietari Inkinen, and Clemens Schuldt. Jinjoo has deep love and appreciation for the chamber music repertoire and cherishes sharing the stage with prominent artists of the globe such as Gary Hoffman, Andreas Ottensamer, Ray Chen, Itamar Golan, Roger Tapping, Jaime Laredo, Sharon Robinson, Vadim Gluzman, and Clive Greensmith. In 2021, she formed Trio Seoul with pianist Kyu Yeon Kim and cellist and Bienen School alumnus Brannon Cho.

“Her forward-looking energy, rigorous yet supportive pedagogical approach, and creativity will complement and strengthen the Bienen School faculty."

- Jonathan Bailey Holland

In addition to being an active performer, Jinjoo is a dedicated teacher and an artistic director. She is currently the founding artistic director of ENCORE Chamber Music Institute, a 501(c)(3) non-profit; and assistant professor of violin at the Schulich School of Music at McGill University. She has previously served as violin faculty at the Cleveland Institute of Music and Oberlin Conservatory. Most recently, Jinjoo served on the official jury panel of international competitions such as the Indianapolis (USA, 2022) and Schoenfeld (China, 2024) competitions, and on the screening committee of the Montréal (Canada, 2019/2023) and Premio Paganini (Italy, 2023) competitions. Jinjoo’s dedication to nurturing the next generation of young musicians stems directly from the influence of her teachers Paul Kantor and Jaime Laredo. She holds degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Jinjoo is passionate about sharing her love of music, in whatever form that it takes. A consummate recording artist, she has thus far produced four albums: Saint-Saëns (Naïve Classique), La Capricieuse (SONY Classical), The Indianapolis Commissions (Azica), and Jinjoo Cho (Analekta). Described as “a delectable curtain-raiser” (Strad Magazine) and “finest silk thread of a violin tone” (Rondo Magazine), Jinjoo’s discography has garnered critical acclaim worldwide as well as commercial success. Her other creative explorations range from commissioning new works by composers Juri Seo and Andrew Rindfleisch to collaborating with artists of other disciplines such as dancer/choreographer Jinyeob Cha. In 2021, Jinjoo’s first book, Shine Someday, was listed as a best seller on major book platforms in Korea.

Photo by Kyutai Shim