Korean-born American tenor Seiyoung Kim is a member of the Opernstudio at Volksoper Wien. In the 2024/25 season, Kim made his role debuts as Harlekin in the new production of Kaiserrequiem—a double bill of Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis and Mozart’s Requiem, created by Omer Meir Wellber and Andreas Heise for the Wiener Staatsballett and Volksoper Wien—as well as Der König des Ostens/Der Mond in the new production of Jonathan Dove’s The Enchanted Pig at the Volksoper Wien, and Goro in a semi-staged concert performance of Madama Butterfly with the Colorado Springs Philharmonic under the baton of Louis Lohraseb.
This summer, Kim made his Salzburger Festspiele debut as Rodé in a new production of Eötvös’ Three Sisters, conducted by Maxime Pascal and Alphonse Cemin and staged by Evgeny Titov. In the 2025/26 season at the Volksoper Wien, he will debut as the title role in a new production of La clemenza di Tito, the Witch in Hänsel und Gretel, Gastone in La Traviata, and Remendado in Carmen, while also reprising Harlekin in Kaiserrequiem, in addition to covering Tamino in Die Zauberflöte and the Italian Singer in Der Rosenkavalier.
In the 2023/24 season, Kim made his Houston Grand Opera debut, originating the roles of Rat and Monkey in the world premiere of Meilina Tsui’s The Big Swim. He also made his Glimmerglass Festival debut as Pane and Natura in the new production of La Calisto, Little Victor Farrell in the new production of Elizabeth Cree, and Tito in the workshop performance of the world premiere of The House on Mango Street. Additional engagements included Boston Lyric Opera’s Summer 2023 Concert in the Courtyard Series at the Boston Public Library, covering Ian Bostridge in Britten’s Les Illuminations with the Sejong Soloists, Yale Opera’s fall scenes as Don Ramiro in La Cenerentola and Jasper in The Snowy Day, and performing the role of Father in Yale Opera’s production of The Seven Deadly Sins.
In the 2022/23 season at Yale, Kim sang the title role in Le Comte Ory and appeared in the Yale Opera Gala with the Yale Philharmonia as Count Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Comte Ory in Le Comte Ory, conducted by Louis Lohraseb. In the 2021/22 season at Yale, he sang Oronte in a new production Alcina, was featured in the Yale Opera Gala performing Lindoro in L’italiana in Algeri, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Fenton in Falstaff, and Ernesto in Don Pasquale, and appeared in Yale Opera’s opera scenes program as Comte Ory, Fenton, and Brighella in Ariadne auf Naxos. During this time, he was also named a Connecticut District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition.
In the 2020/21 season, Kim was named a Tulsa District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. That same year he was invited by Korea National Opera to participate in their newly launched masterclass series and by the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation to sing in their opera gala as Count Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia.
In the 2019/20 season, Kim made his debut at Wolf Trap Opera as Brighella in Ariadne auf Naxos. He also appeared in the company’s scenes program as Dan Leno in Elizabeth Cree and Flute in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and was selected to sing in a public masterclass with Lawrence Brownlee. That season, he participated in the workshops of Huang Ruo’s M. Butterfly for Santa Fe Opera in New York City, and was scheduled to return to Santa Fe Opera as a second-year apprentice artist before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020 Kim was named one of the “Rising Opera Stars” by Auditorium (월간객석), one of Asia’s leading performing arts magazines.
At New England Conservatory, Kim made several important role debuts: Tamino in Die Zauberflöte at Boston’s Cutler Majestic Theatre; Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi at the Huntington Theatre; Jimmy O’Keefe in Later the Same Evening at NEC’s Plimpton Shattuck Black Box Theatre; and Don Basilio in Le Nozze di Figaro at the Paramount Theatre. He was featured in NEC’s opera scenes programs as Tonio in La fille du régiment and Don Ramiro in La Cenerentola, and covered the title role in NEC’s production of Candide. Kim also participated in NEC’s Liederabend series, performing songs by Liszt, and was chosen for public masterclasses with Lawrence Brownlee and Gregory Kunde. He represented NEC students as a soloist in the Conservatory’s 150th Anniversary Gala in the historic Jordan Hall with the NEC Philharmonia, and was invited by Dartmouth College to perform the tenor soloist in Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle.
At The Juilliard School, Kim sang Fileno in La fedeltà premiata and covered the role of Mercurio in La Calisto. He was also featured in the Juilliard opera scenes program as Fritz in L’amico Fritz and Lurcanio in Ariodante, and participated in the school’s Liederabend series performing songs by Beethoven, Schubert, and Wolf. He joined Juilliard415 and the Royal Academy of Music on tour, performing the music of Bach in New York, Boston, London, and Leipzig. As a Gluck Fellow, he also presented a series of recitals in community centers and healthcare facilities throughout New York City.
At the age of 17, Kim was invited by the Korean government to sing the national anthem at the state ceremony marking the 4,343rd Anniversary of the National Foundation of Korea, which was broadcast nationwide. That same year, as a concerto competition winner at Seoul Arts High School, he made his concert debut at the Seoul Arts Center’s Concert Hall under Maestro Nanse Gum and also appeared as a soloist with the Prime Philharmonic Orchestra. He went on to win first prizes in the Korea Voice (Lee Dae-Woong) Competition, the Sungjeong Competition, the Suri Music Concours, the Ewha & Kyunghyang Music Concours, and the Korea Herald Music Competition. His studies in Korea were generously supported by the Woongjin Foundation and the Sungjung Foundation. Kim’s stage experience began at the age of five, performing as one of the children in La bohème with the Korea National University of Arts. His early roles included Commissionario in La traviata at the Seoul Arts Center, Zwei Knabe in Die Zauberflöte with productions at both Hanyang University and the Daejeon Arts Center, Kurt in The Sound of Music with the Shinsi Musical Company, and Young Scrooge in A Christmas Carol with the Seoul Performing Arts Company. As a chorister, he also appeared in productions of Pagliacci, La bohème, Andrea Chénier, Youngjo Lee’s Tcheo Yong, Le nozze di Figaro, Poulenc’s Les mamelles de Tirésias, Janáček’s Katya Kabanova, Madama Butterfly, Candide, and Doctor Atomic.
Kim received his Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School, his Master of Music degree from New England Conservatory, and his Master of Musical Arts degree from Yale University, where he was awarded the prestigious Phyllis Curtin Career Entry Prize. He is an alumnus of Houston Grand Opera’s Young Artists’ Vocal Academy and has been a young artist with The Glimmerglass Festival, Wolf Trap Opera, and Santa Fe Opera.