Dr. Brian
Bak

Korean-American violinist and educator Dr. Brian Bak has built a multifaceted career encompassing performance, teaching, chamber music, and research into neuromuscular function and adaptive string technique. He earned his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where he was a recipient of the C.V. Starr, Juilliard Merit, and Samsung scholarships. He continued his studies at Yale University, earning an Artist Diploma, and received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University. His principal mentors include Hyo Kang, David Chan, and Philip Setzer.

Bak has appeared as soloist with the Tampa Bay Symphony, Central Florida Philharmonic, Sewanee Festival Orchestra, Florida Young Artists Orchestra, Chicago Chamber Orchestra, and other ensembles. A winner of the 2016 Stony Brook University Concerto Competition, he also appeared as featured soloist with the Stony Brook Symphony.

An accomplished cellist as well as a violinist, Bak has also performed as cello soloist with the Florida Young Artists Orchestra and Chicago Chamber Orchestra.

A two-time winner of the Ackerman Chamber Music Competition, Bak has collaborated with distinguished artists and ensembles including the Emerson String Quartet, flutist Carol Wincenc, harpist Nancy Allen, and members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

As a founding member of the Deka String Quartet and Trio de Novo, he has participated in chamber music residencies at the Banff Centre, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, and New Music for Strings Festival in Aarhus, Denmark. With the Deka Quartet, he served as an Artist-in-Residence through the Rockefeller Institute of Government, giving performances as well as coaching students from SUNY Schenectady and the Empire State Youth Orchestra. Trio de Novo was praised by Sequenza 21 as “a talented group who performed with detailed intensity… exceptional poise.”

Bak has frequently served as concertmaster of the New York Classical Players, leading the ensemble for performances as well as the album "Samuel Adler: Music for Chamber Orchestra" on Toccata Classics. He has also performed with Sejong Soloists and the New Asia Chamber Music Society and has appeared as a guest artist at the Las Vegas Music and Wine Festival and Annapolis Chamber Music Festival.

His orchestral leadership experience includes principal positions with the Juilliard Orchestra, Juilliard Chamber Orchestra, Stony Brook Symphony Orchestra, and Yale Philharmonia. He was selected for the Juilliard Orchestra's 2008 China Tour, and in 2011 conductor Lorin Maazel appointed him principal violinist of the Castleton Festival Orchestra.

Bak's festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival and School, Music Academy of the West, Pacific Music Festival, Castleton Festival, Great Mountains Music Festival and School, Atlantic Music Festival, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Sewanee Summer Music Festival, Schlern International Music Festival in Italy, and Kennedy Center Summer Music Institute.

Committed to making classical music accessible to broader communities, he was a member of Lincoln Center's Community Outreach Program and a recipient of the Gluck Community Fellowship.

Teaching has remained a central part of Bak's musical career. He has taught at the New York Music School, Music & Art of Long Island, and St. Andrew's Conservatory and served as a Teaching Artist at Yale University. He currently maintains an active private studio, teaching violin, viola, and cello, and has served on the faculty of the Rhine River Music Festival, St. Andrew's Conservatory Summer Music Academy, and International Chamber Music Alaska.

His students have received top prizes at competitions including the International Grande Music Competition, Rondo Young Artist Competition, Prima Volta Music Competition, Crescendo International Music Competition, Florida Federation of Music Clubs, and New York Young Virtuoso Competition. Students who have studied with Bak have been accepted to leading institutions and programs including The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, NYO2, All-State Orchestras, and Tanglewood Music Center.

Following a spinal cord injury, Bak developed a particular interest in the relationship between neurological function and instrumental performance. Drawing upon both his experience as a professional string player and his own recovery, he gives lectures and lecture-performances exploring spinal cord injury, neuroplasticity, neuromuscular function, and adaptive approaches to violin and string playing.

His lectures have been presented for organizations and institutions including the Central Florida Music Teachers Association, California State University Long Beach Conservatory of Music, Rhine River Music Festival, and International Chamber Music Alaska.

In 2023, Bak returned to the stage at Timucua in Orlando in a comeback performance that included "Suite for Brian", a work composed by Benoit Glazer in response to Bak's injury and recovery. The experience has continued to shape his approach to performance, pedagogy, resilience, and the role music can play in recovery.

Bak is also active as an adjudicator for music festivals and competitions, including the Florida State Music Teachers Association, MTNA Southwest Division, Central Florida Music Teachers Association, and Sacred Music Florida.