Earl Kim (1920–1998; née Eul Kim) was an American composer, and music pedagogue. He was of Korean–descent.

Early life, education, and training

Kim was born on January 6, 1920 in

Dinuba, California Dinuba is a city in Tulare County, California, United States. The population was 21,453 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Visalia-Porterville metropolitan statistical area. The Alta District Museum is located in Dinuba in a restored rai ...

, to immigrant Korean parents. He began piano studies at age 9, studying under Homer Grun, and he soon developed an interest in composition. He attended

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California S ...

from 1939 to 1940, studying under Arnold Schoenberg. Kim briefly attended the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in 1940. His studies were paused when he served the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, as a captain in intelligence. After the war, he returned to study at UC Berkeley under Ernest Bloch, and

Roger Sessions Roger Huntington Sessions (December 28, 1896March 16, 1985) was an American composer, teacher and musicologist. He had initially started his career writing in a neoclassical style, but gradually moved further towards more complex harmonies and ...

; and he received his BA degree in 1950 and MA degree in 1952. In 1967, he earned a second MA degree from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

Career

From 1952 until 1967, Kim taught at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

. In 1967 he left Princeton for

, where he taught until his retirement in 1990. Kim is known for his vocal and music theater works, many of which use texts by Samuel Beckett, and for his expressive, often tonal style. Reviewing a

New World Records New World Records is a record label that was established in 1975 through a Rockefeller Foundation grant to celebrate America's bicentennial (1976) by producing a 100-LP anthology, with American music from many genres.Anthony Tommasini Anthony Carl Tommasini (born April 14, 1948) is an American music critic and author who specializes in classical music. Described as "a discerning critic, whose taste, knowledge and judgment have made him a must-read", Tommasini was the chief ...

wrote in

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

, "As a composer and a teacher of composers, Earl Kim espoused a principle so simple it should have seemed obvious. He maintained that every sound in a piece should be precise, purposeful and above all faithful to the composer's sensibilities." In 1971 and 1972, Kim collaborated with his wife dancer Mimi Kagan on the work "Exercises en Route", which toured and featured text by Samuel Beckett, and soprano soloist performer Benita Valente. His art songs have been performed by

Bethany Beardslee Bethany Beardslee (born December 25, 1925) is an American soprano particularly noted for her collaborations with major 20th-century composers, such as Igor Stravinsky, Milton Babbitt, Pierre Boulez, George Perle, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and her ...

Karol Bennett Karol Bennett is an American soprano known for her performances of lieder, chanson, and oratorio and her championing of music by living composers. Education Bennett is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where she studied wi ...

Merja Sargon Merja may refer to * Merja, Estonia, a village in Estonia * Merja (name), a Finnish female name See also * Merya (disambiguation) {{Disambiguation ...

, Benita Valente, and

Dawn Upshaw Dawn Upshaw (born July 17, 1960) is an American soprano. She is the recipient of several Grammy Awards and has released a number of Edison Award-winning discs; she performs both opera and art song, and her repertoire spans Baroque to contempor ...

. He died on November 19, 1998 of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...

at his home in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

at the age of 78.

Personal life

Kim was married three times to Nora Phillipsborn (in 1947), dancer

Mimi Kagan Mimi Kagan (1918–1999; née Miriam Gabrilovna Kagan, and also known as Miriam Odza, Mimi Kagan Kim) was a Russia-born American modern dancer, choreographer, educator, and dance journalist. She was the founder of the avant-garde Mimi Kagan Dan ...

(in 1956), and Martha Potter (in 1977); and he had two daughters.

Discography

*Where grief slumbers. Dawn Upshaw, soprano; Elektra Nonesuch 79262-2 *Ophelia. Margit Kern, accordion; Deutschlandfunk/Genuin GEN 13267 *Two Bagatelles. Robert Helps, piano; Composers Recordings, Inc. CRI CD 874 *Earthlight. Merja Sargon, soprano; Martha Potter, violin. New World Records NW 237 *Exercises en route; Now and Then; Three Poems in French; Dear Linda. Benita Valente, soprano; Karol Bennett, soprano; Eva Kim, narrator; Metamorphosen Chamber Ensemble, Scott Yoo, conductor. New World Records 80561-2 *Violin Concerto; Dialogues, for Piano and Orchestra; Cornet, for Narrator and Orchestra. Cecylia Arzewski, violin; William Wolfram, piano; Robert Kim, narrator; RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra; Scott Yoo, conductor. Naxos 8.559226 *Three Poems in French. Lucy Shelton, soprano; Mendelssohn String Quartet; BIS SACD-1264 *Violin Concerto. Itzhak Perlman, violin, The Boston Symphony Orchestra, Seiji Ozawa, conductor. His Master's Voice 067 EL 27 0051 1; and Angel Records DS-38011

References

Bibliography

* Brandt, Anthony, liner notes to "Earl Kim" (New World Records, 2001) *Barkin, E. "Earl Kim: Earthlight"; '' Perspectives of New Music'' xix/1–2 (1980–81), pages 269–77. *Brody, Martin. "Kim, Earl". ''Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online''. 31 December 2008 . *Jeon, M.-E. "I am Concerned with What is Good", ''Sonus'', vii/11 (1987), pages 1–9 nterview *Tassell, J. "Golden Silences: the Flowering of Earl Kim", ''Boston Globe Magazine'' (27 February 1983). *Forbes, Elliot; Lockwood, Lewis; Martino, Donald; & Rands, Bernard (Chair). "Faculty of Arts and Sciences—Memorial Minute—Earl Kim", The Harvard University Gazette Archives (May 25, 2000

External links

Interview with Earl Kim
May 19, 1995
Earl Kim's page at Theodore Presser Company
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Earl 1920 births 1998 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century classical composers Princeton University faculty Harvard University faculty American classical musicians of Korean descent American male classical composers American classical composers People from Dinuba, California Pupils of Arnold Schoenberg Pupils of Roger Sessions Pupils of Ernest Bloch Classical musicians from California Deaths from lung cancer in Massachusetts United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II University of California, Berkeley alumni Harvard University alumni