1. Tell us a little bit about yourself, your music background and anything else you’d like to share.
Hello, I’m Jin-Hwa Choi. I’m Korean, a current music composer, and a teacher. My music background started with my father, who is a composer too, so I’ve always thought being a musician was natural for me. Although the music and composition style between me and my father is completely different, I believe that he had a great effect on my music background.
2. How would you describe your musical style or styles?
It is not easy to describe my music being written in a “certain” style. Basically, I compose music in any style which I want to write.
3. What and/or who are your chief influences?
Literatures: Murakami Haruki, Paul Auster, Chuck Palahnuik, Stephen King, Charles Dickens
Classical Repertoire: Beethoven’s 9th Symphony
Composers: Franz Schubert, Claude Debussy, J.S. Bach
Painting: Impressionism paintings, Joan Miró, Henry Rousseau
4. Can you name something you did in a piece of music of which you are particularly happy?
I’ve never thought about it.
5. How could someone who is interested purchase your music?
Currently, I don’t have any music selling platform. Selling contemporary music is not easy. If any performer wants to buy my work, I will offer an affordable price.
6. If you could offer one piece of advice to other composers, what would it be?
Instead of advice, I’d like to ask them, “are you happy with your work?”
7. If you could put 3 pieces of your music on the Voyager spacecraft for dissemination to the stars, what would they be? Please give a brief description of each piece and where can they be heard.
Well, I think three pieces are too much. I’d like to put only one work of mine. It will be my cello solo work “Hibernation Season”. This work was written in the most hard times in my life, and I think the work reveals my personal feelings perfectly. I will be happy it can be heard by people on the way before arriving at the last star of the universe.
The Baltimore Composers Forum 