Remembering Queensboro Symphony Orchestra founder
Dong-Hyun Kim, the prolific maestro of the Queensboro Symphony Orchestra, passed away last year on December 12. Although it has been a year since his passing, Kim continues to live on in the memories of those who worked alongside him.
The Korean-born conductor founded the Queensboro Symphony Orchestra in 2015. The group rapidly emerged as one of the most exciting ensembles in New York’s classical music scene, dedicated to bringing vibrant and inspiring symphonic music to a broad and diverse audience.
The orchestra never charged admission to its concerts, which were regularly attended by large audiences of hundreds of fans enthralled by the intensity of the energetic and vibrant orchestra.
Kim led performances of the Queensboro Symphony Orchestra perform at venues like Flushing Town Hall and the Korean Mission to the UN. Just days after his passing, the orchestra performed at Mokyang Presbyterian Church in Whitestone, which Kim had helped coordinate.
“Maestro Kim’s posthumous Xmas concert was performed exactly the way he wanted thanks to the members of the Queensboro Symphony Orchestra,” wrote Paul Joseph, a composer in residence at the Queensboro Symphony Orchestra, in a tribute to Kim. “The incredible event was a sad but beautiful celebration of Maestro Kim and his legacy.
“He made a lot of concertgoers and musicians very happy,” Joseph added. “He’ll be missed by so many people. His musicians and his audience loved him.”