The Blair School of Music is proud to welcome Sun-A Park as assistant professor of piano. A Korean American pianist celebrated for her “exquisite clarity” and “remarkable virtuosity,” Park brings to Blair an extraordinary international career, a deep love for teaching and a lifelong connection to music that began in her earliest years.
Born in Busan, South Korea and raised in New Jersey, Park began playing piano at age four under the guidance of her mother, a musician and her first teacher. She grew up in a musical household shaped not only by discipline and support, but also by inspiration, especially from her older sister, a pianist who would later become one of Park’s most trusted mentors.”Since I was born, someone in my family was always singing or playing the piano which sparked my interest in this instrument,” she said. “I grew up playing piano all the time and played with my older sister.”
Since making her orchestral debut with the New Jersey and Houston Symphony Orchestras, Park has performed in many of the world’s most respected venues. These include the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Steinmetz Hall in Orlando, Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and the Manuel de Falla Auditorium in Spain. She has appeared as a soloist with orchestras throughout the United States, Europe and Asia, and has worked with esteemed conductors including Peter Oundjian, Eiji Oue, and Krzysztof Urbański.
Her competition accolades include first prizes at the Olga and Serge Koussevitzky Young Artists Awards and the Kosciuszko Chopin Competition, as well as honors at the Jaén, Busoni, Gina Bachauer, and Sendai international competitions. She was awarded the Rosa Sabater Prize for best interpretation of Spanish music at the Jaén International Piano Competition in Spain.
Park holds degrees from The Juilliard School and the Yale School of Music, and completed the prestigious Soloklasse program in Hannover, Germany. She also studied historical performance and fortepiano at Yale and the Peabody Institute, releasing a Naxos recording of early keyboard sonatas by Muzio Clementi in 2019.
While she once envisioned a career focused solely on performance, Park’s musical path shifted during her doctoral studies. Through her own transformation as an artist, she discovered a passion for teaching and mentoring students at all stages of their musical development. “My early teachers were incredibly influential, and I wanted to give students the same kind of encouragement and guidance I received,” she said. “Teaching became something I felt called to do.”
Before coming to Vanderbilt, Park served as assistant professor of piano at the University of Central Florida. She brings a global, well-rounded perspective to her teaching and believes in building a strong foundation while helping each student explore their individuality.
“I want my students to go deep into the music, but also discover what makes their interpretation meaningful and personal,” she said. “It’s about both precision and freedom.”
When she visited Blair during her interview, Park was struck by the students’ attentiveness and enthusiasm during her masterclass. “I left feeling more energized than when I walked in,” she said. “That kind of mutual energy and investment is what great music-making is all about.”
Park will spend her summer performing and teaching at chamber music festivals in New York, Germany and Italy before arriving in Nashville this fall. She looks forward to collaborating with Blair’s faculty and students, and to building future outreach programs and performance opportunities for the broader community.
“My goal is to help students become the best version of themselves as artists,” Park said. “Whether or not they choose music as a career, I want them to leave Blair knowing they pushed their boundaries and unlocked something powerful in themselves.”
“The most meaningful compliment I can receive is when someone says, ‘Your performance moved me,” she added. “That is the reason I make music and also my drive in teaching, to connect with others.”
Follow Sun-A Park’s musical journey: