B.A. and M.A. degrees in Gayageum Performance, Seoul National University
Doctorate in Gayageum Performance, Ewha Womans University
First recipient of a doctoral degree in Gayageum performance in Korea
Professional Experience
Former Member, Jeongak Orchestra, National Gugak Center, Korea
Former Professor, Department of Korean Traditional Music, Yong-In University
Former Music Director, Gimhae Municipal Gayageum Orchestra
Former Director, Contemporary Music Ensemble Korea (CMEK)
President, Seogongcheol-ryu Gayageum Sanjo Preservation Society
President, Kim Byung-ho-ryu Gayageum Sanjo Preservation Society
President, Asia Geom (Zither) Exchange Association
Board Member, Gayageum Byungchang Preservation Society and Gayageum Performers Association
Member, Jeongnongakhoe, Gajeunakhhoe, and Gagok Pungnyu Preservation Society
Professional Accomplishments
Yi Ji-young is recognized as one of Korea’s foremost gayageum performers, acclaimed for her exceptionally broad musical spectrum ranging from the most traditional repertoire to avant-garde contemporary music. Since her appearance at the Edinburgh Festival in 1990, she has performed at numerous international festivals including the Kuhmo Festival, Asian Composers League, Other Minds Contemporary Music Festival, Pacific Rim Music Festival, Champs Libres Festival, New York Sanjo Festival, and Asia Pacific Festival. She has also presented solo recitals by invitation at prestigious festivals and venues such as Curious Classics, the Morelia Festival, and Uppsala Konsert & Kongress.
In addition, she has appeared as a soloist with internationally renowned orchestras and ensembles including the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra, Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Croatian Radiotelevision Symphony Orchestra, Atlas Ensemble, and Taipei Chinese Orchestra. She has also been invited to perform at major international arts markets such as MIDEM and Classical:NEXT.
Beginning with the world premiere of a solo gayageum work by the German composer Klaus Huber in 1993, Yi Ji-young has collaborated with internationally acclaimed composers including Chou Wen-chung and Donald Reid Womack, premiering numerous new works for the gayageum.
Furthermore, beginning with the International Summer Courses for New Music in Darmstadt, she has introduced the gayageum and Korean music to composers and musicians around the world through workshops and lectures at institutions such as the University of California, Santa Cruz, the University of Michigan, the University of Hawai‘i, Mannheim University of Music and Performing Arts, Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg, Chinese Culture University, Nanning University, and Victoria University of Wellington. Through these activities, she has inspired the creation of new repertoire for the gayageum and has made significant contributions to the modernization and globalization of Korean music.
Solo Albums:
1999 Lee Sung-chun Works: “A Story in the Forest” (Seoul Records)
2000 Lee Ji-young Gayageum Boheosa (Top Art Planning)
2004 Eight Scenes – Contemporary World Music for Gayageum (C&L Music)
2007 Lee Ji-young, Seogongcheol-ryu Gayageum Sanjo (KBS Gugak Broadcasting “Sorisup”)
2018 Lee Ji-young Gayageum Anthology <Silk Butterfly> (Akdang Eban)
2018 Lee Ji-young Gayageum “Kim Byung-ho-ryu Gayageum Sanjo” [LP] (Akdang Eban)
2018 Lee Ji-young Gayageum “Seogongcheol-ryu Gayageum Sanjo” [LP] (Akdang Eban)
2020 Lee Ji-young Gayageum 50 Years “Hwacheon Wolji” (Akdang Eban)
2023 Lee Ji-young Gayageum “Jindo Ssitgimgut” (Akdang Eban)
Publications:
2011 Contemporary Gayageum Notation for Performers and Composers
(Seoul National University Press – Designated Excellent Academic Book by the National Academy of Sciences, Korea)
2019 Lee Ji-young’s Guseong Gayageum Heotteun-garak (Minsokwon)
2022 Yimal-ryang Transmission: Gyeongju Pungnyu Gayageum & Yanggeum Scores (Oun Publishing)
2023 Seogongcheol-ryu Gayageum Sanjo (Seoul National University Press)
2025 Yang Yeon-seop Transmission: Gukaksa-yangseongso Gayageum Jeongak Scores (Oun Publishing)
Awards
2003 Today’s Young Artist Award (Minister of Culture and Tourism Award, Korea)
2003 KBS Korean Music Awards – Ensemble Performance Award
2012 KBS Korean Music Awards – String Instrument Performance Award
2020 Korean Culture and Arts Award (Presidential Commendation)
2025 Gwanjae Gugak Award
2026 Sayagugak Award for Special Achievement
