The Bethel University Music Department will present a Music Gala in the Everest-Rohrer Rotunda on Friday, April 10 at 5:30 p.m., followed by a Choral Showcase in the Everest-Rohrer Auditorium at 7 p.m.

The Gala aims to raise funds for Bethel’s music programs and includes dinner and music by the University Choir and BU Voices. Limited seating is available, and tickets may be purchased for $25 here.

“The evening will be filled with beautiful music and dinner together with fellow supporters of the Bethel Music Department,” says Stephen Martin, DCM, Chair of the Department of Music & Theatre.

The Choral Showcase at 7 p.m. is free general admission, open to the community, and will feature the Bethel Worship Collective, in addition to the University Choir and BU Voices.

Join pianists Dr. Siwon Kim (Bethel University) and Dr. Hyemin Kim (Interlochen Arts Academy) for an exceptional evening of duo-piano artistry. This concert will take place at 7 p.m. on Friday, February 13 in the Everest-Rohrer Auditorium. Admission is free and the concert is open to the public.

The program features the evocative drama of Grieg’s “Peer Gynt Suite,” the sparkling wit of Saint-Saëns’s “The Carnival of the Animals” and the imaginative charm of Bolcom’s “The Garden of Eden.” Together, these acclaimed artists craft a program that blends narrative richness, virtuosity and expressive depth — offering a rare and inspiring musical experience for our community.

About Dr. Siwon Kim

Dr. Siwon [see-one] Kim, a native of Seoul, South Korea, is praised for her “masterful musicality with the distinct, unrestrained sound” (The Segye Times). On the stage, she is “commanding and decisive” (South Bend Tribune). She actively performs in prestigious concert venues in North America, Europe and Asia, including Mariinsky II (Russia), Musashino Hall, Toppan Hall (Japan), Harbin Concert Hall (China), the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Morris Art Center, Hill Auditorium, (USA), Kumho Art Hall and Universal Arts Center (South Korea).

Dr. Siwon Kim appears as a guest artist and a faculty at the invitation of such festivals and concert series as the Harbin International Piano Music Festival (China), SNU Chopin Concert Series, SNU Piano Duo Ensemble Series (South Korea), and Ultreia Stage Concert Series, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Oklahoma Baptist University Keyboard Festival, Michigan City Chamber Music festival, IU Blossom Piano Camp (USA). She was featured in the Prokofiev Piano Sonatas Marathon and the Rachmaninoff Piano Marathon at the Toradze International Music Festival, as well as at the Presidential Order of Excellence in Tbilisi, Georgia. Dr. Siwon Kim also performed as a soloist with orchestras worldwide, including the Prime Philharmonic Orchestra, the South Bend Symphony, the Mariinsky Orchestra and the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra. Besides performing as a solo musician, she is also a versatile pianist in demand for chamber music. She has performed and worked internationally with the Van Cliburn Competition Silver Medalist, Maestro Alexander Toradze, as his designated Piano Duo Partner since 2017. She was invited to perform with the Contemporary Directions Ensembles of the University of Michigan for the “The Legacy of George Crumb: Angels and Stars” tribute series, “Zappa and Dead Elvis” and the “Gershwin Centennial Celebration: Rhapsody in Blue in 100”.

Dr. Siwon Kim is a top prize winner of The Segye Times Competition, The Sunhwa Music Concours, The GMI Competition, The Sungjung Cultural Foundation Concours, Music International Grand Prix and The Concert Artists International Competition. She also has won prizes at numerous competitions, including the Korean National Students Competition, the Korean-American Cultural Foundation Concours, the Eumak-Chunchu Competition, the Samick-Beckstein Concours, the Suri Music Concours, the Indianapolis Matinee Musicale Competition and the W. Byrd International Piano Competition.

Dr. Siwon Kim began studying piano at the age of three in Seoul under Young-Ja Lee. She continued her musical studies at the country’s most prestigious music schools, such as Sunhwa Arts School, Seoul Arts High School and Seoul National University. She received multiple merit-based scholarships throughout her studies, as she consistently ranked first in her class. Her teachers during this time included Youngsil Kim, Sekyoung Park and Hyoung-Joon Chang. After graduating from Seoul National University with a Bachelor of Music degree, she moved to the States, joined the Toradze Piano Studio at Indiana University South Bend and received an Artist Diploma and Master of Music degree. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, under the guidance of Prof. Arthur Greene. Dr. Siwon Kim serves as the music director at Grace United Methodist Church in South Bend and as an adjunct professor of music at Bethel University in Mishawaka, Indiana. (siwonkimpiano.com)

About Dr. Hyemin Kim

Dr. Hyemin Kim a versatile concert pianist and educator, serving as a core faculty member in Collaborative Piano at Interlochen Arts Academy. Her expansive career is marked by a wide range of performance roles, seamlessly integrating her work as a soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, collaborator and pedagogue.

Dr. Hyemin Kim has performed extensively across the U.S., Austria and Korea, gracing highly regarded international stages such as the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall (U.S.) and the Mozart Hall of the Wiener Konzerthaus (Austria). As a featured soloist, her appearances include collaborations with the Philharmonische Solisten Bratislava (Vienna, Austria), the Archi Chamber Orchestra (Changwon, South Korea) and the Benzie Area Symphony Orchestra (Interlochen, Mich.). Beyond these landmark venues, her recital and concert appearances underscore her broad engagement and consistent presence in the arts, including performances at the Grazer Landesmuseum (Austria), Youngsan Grace Hall (Korea) and numerous U.S. venues such as the Alluvion, the Music House Museum and the Steinway Piano Gallery Detroit.

Her artistry has been recognized with numerous accolades in international piano competitions. Notably, she received the Schubert Special Award at the Internationaler Wiener Pianisten Wettbewerb, alongside top prizes from the Vienna Grand Prize Virtuoso Competition, the Concorso Internazionale d’Esecuzione Musicale “NUOVI TALENTI”, the Tadini International Music Competition, the Concorso Internazionale Città di Ischia, the Fanny Mendelssohn International Competition, the Franz Liszt Center Piano Competition and the American Protégé International Competition.

As a highly sought-after collaborator, Dr. Hyemin Kim was invited as a pianist at the Styrian Chamber Music Festival (Graz, Austria) to perform with Erich Oskar Huetter, the founder and director of haus.kultur and Sounding Jerusalem. Furthermore, she is the Artistic Director and chamber artist for the fully sponsored Hyemin Kim’s Concert Series, “Classical Voyage,” presented by the Music House Museum (Williamsburg, MI). Chamber partners have included a roster of distinguished musicians, such as Principal and Associate Principal players from the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, alongside faculty members from institutions including The Juilliard School of Music, the Eastman School of Music, Yale School of Music, Manhattan School of Music and Rutgers University.

Dr. Hyemin Kim holds dual Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.) degrees in Piano Performance and Collaborative Piano from Michigan State University. She also holds a Master of Music and Postgraduate Diploma from the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Graz, Austria and a Bachelor of Music from Kookmin University, South Korea. Prior to her appointment at Interlochen Arts Academy, she served as a Piano Instructor at the Flint Institute of Music and as a Chief Mentor at the Celebrating the Spectrum Piano Festival. Currently, Dr. Hyemin Kim holds leadership positions as the Chair of Representation and Advocacy at MMTA (Michigan Music Teachers Association) and a committee member in Inclusive Teaching at The Piano Conference: NCKP 2025 and serves as a Piano Instructor at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp.