Chung-Yon Hong,Violin

Professional Bio

Chung-Yon Hong, violin, joined the Sarasota Orchestra in 2002 after earning both her Bachelor’s of Music and her Master’s of Music at Julliard School, where she was also trained in the pre-college division.  

Chung-Yon, a native of Seoul, South Korea, has performed at the Aspen Music Festival, the Verbier Music Festival in Switzerland, the Spoleto Music Festival in Italy and Charleston, the Killington Music Festival and with the National Repertory Orchestra, the Hampton-Sydney Music Festival and the Utah Opera Festival.  

Chung-Yon is a current member of Des Moines Metro Opera and an adjunct violin faculty at Manatee Community College. She served as a faculty member of New York Summer Music Festival in 2006.  

Chung-Yon began studying piano at age three and violin at age nine, in Melbourne Australia. She has studied under Margaret Pardee, Chin Kim, Masao Kawaski and Daniel Phillips.

Personal Bio

Nickname:
C.Y.  

What is your proudest musical moment / accomplishment?
My parents moved back to Korea when I was 15 wanting me to get into Juilliard. I guess I’m proud that I’ve achieved that dream by being self motivated and taking care of myself at such an early age. 

What non-musical accomplishment are you most proud of?
When one of my pieces of art was selected for showing in the Avery Fisher Gallery.  

What career would you have chosen if you weren’t a musician?
A professional karaoke singer or painter.  

Who is your favorite composer and why?
Prokofiev because he tells such interesting stories through his music, and it's fun to play.  

Which piece of music holds the most meaning for you and why?
Every piece of music I study or perform changes its meaning depending on what is going on in my life.  

When not rehearsing or performing, I spend my time:
playing the piano, teaching and catching up on celebrity gossip.  

When in the car, I listen to:
mix tapes that Bharat Chandra (SO principal clarinet) makes for me.  

My favorite holiday tradition is:
setting up my already assembled tree and leaving it out until April.  

My dream is to:
One of my dreams is to learn Japanese and to understand the Japanese culture. My grandmother, who passed away last year, was Japanese and I don’t know a lot about that side of my family. 

What I like best about the Sarasota / Manatee area:
The sunsets.