Julian Jootaek Kim

Kim won the Grand Prize in The Korea Voice Competition by the Lee DaeWoong Music Scholarship Foundation^[3] and won first place in the Music Chunchu Competition^[4] and Shin Youngok Competition^[5] during his high school years in Korea. In Italy, he received the Premio Miglior Giovane Promessa (Best Young Promise Prize)^[6] in the Renata Tebaldi International Competition in 2007. Additionally, he won second place in the Riccardo Zandonai Competition^[7] and International Lyric Competition Magda Olivero^[8] and first place and the Young Voices Award^[9] by the City of Magenta in 2009, followed by third place^[10] in the Francesc Viñas International Singing Competition and second place^[11] in the International Singing Competition Maria Caniglia in 2011. In 2012, he won second place in the Concorso Internazionale di Canto Lirico Giacinto Prandelli,^[12] the International Singing Competition Maria Caniglia,^[11] and the Verdian Voices International Singing Competition.^[13] He won first place^[14][15] in the International Singing Competition of Toulouse and second place^[16] in the Viotti International Music Competition. He also received fourth place^[17] and second place^[18] in the Seoul International Music Competition^[19] in 2007 and 2013, respectively, alongside the Myung-whun Chung Miracle of Music^[20] Awards in Korea in 2011.

Kim's debut took place in 2009 at the Teatro Pergolesi in Jesi, Italy, where he performed as Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia.^[21] He has since portrayed leading roles in La traviata,^[22] The marriage of Figaro,^[23] Madama Butterfly,^[24] Cavalleria rusticana,^[25] Il barbiere di Siviglia,^[26][27] Simon Boccanegra,^[28] Il signor Bruschino,^[29] Das Rheingold,^[30] Lucia di Lammermoor^[31] and La bohème^[32][33][34]

Julian Jootaek Kim made his debut at Teatro La Fenice in 2013, portraying the character Marcello in La bohème.^[35] As of June 2024, he has performed on the stage 104 times, earning acclaim for his prominent baritone roles in Attila (Ezio), Il barbiere de Serville (Figaro),^{[26][27][36][37][38][39]} La traviata (Germont), La bohème (Marcello),^[32][33][34] and Don Carlo (Rodrigo).^[32][33][34]

Phantom Singer is a JTBC television audition program in Korea that forms a male crossover vocal quartet. Julian Jootaek Kim mentioned feeling his heart race while watching the first season of Phantom Singer, leading to a realization that he needed a change in his life.^[40][41] Among the finalists in season 2, Kim was the only opera singer working abroad.^[42]

He emerged as the runner-up and joined Miraclass.^[43] Following the show, he continued his crossover activities in Korea while maintaining his operatic career in Italy. During this period, he performed in opera productions in Italy until the start of Phantom Singer season 3.^[44][45]

Miraclass is a crossover quartet composed of Julian Jootaek Kim, Phillip Jeong, Kang-hyun Park, and Tain Han [ko]. The group released its first full-length album, Romantica^[46] in 2018 and participated in various concerts.^[47][48][49]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Miraclass participated in Phantom Singer All Stars. The group received multiple first-place finishes, including an MVP award for its performance of Josh Groban's "Mai."^[50]

Since its formation on September 26, 2017, Miraclass has continued holding concerts, releasing full-length albums, and operating a YouTube channel named Just-10-minute.^[51]

For his activities as a member of Miraclass, see Miraclass

Kim has taken part in 20 concerts linked to Italian opera across different countries such as Italy,^[52][53][54] Russia,^[55] Austria,^[56] Japan,^[57][58] and Korea.^[59] These performances included collaborations with conductors Edoardo Müller, Pietro Mianiti, and Marco Boemi. Additionally, he has engaged in classical concerts alongside opera singers and crossover events in Korea, totaling over 100 concerts,^[60] excluding those with the crossover group Miraclass.

In concert adaptations of Das Rheingold under the baton of Myung-whun Chung in Seoul in 2014,^[30] and Fidelio conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano in Rome in 2016,^[61] Kim assumed the roles of Donner and Don Fernando, respectively. He has been a prominent soloist in concerts overseen by Myung-whun Chung. Notably, he was one of 8 soloists in Mahler's Symphony No. 8 performed by the Seoul Symphony Orchestra in 2011,^[62] the sole male soloist for the Expo 2012 Concert,^[63] and performed Verdi's arias at the Salzburg Easter Festival in 2013,^[64][65] all under the direction of Myung-whun Chung.^[66][67]

Kim was actively involved in concerts and operas in Korea during the early 2010s. However, his significant introduction to the Korean audience was perhaps through the Baritone Julian Jootaek Kim Recital (바리톤 김주택 리사이틀) in 2015 in Seoul.^[68] Kim's performance in this recital led to him receiving the Best New Artist Award at the 2nd Seoul Art Center Award in 2016.^[69]

From 2016 to 2019, Kim participated in The Taming of Casanova, an opera collage featuring famous arias from diverse operas^[70][71] that aimed to attract a wider audience to the classical music domain.^[72][73]

In 2019, Kim presented additional recitals.^[74][75] Following a fan concert in 2021,^[76] he now regularly hosts a set of concerts titled Baritone Julian Jootaek Kim's Music Library, featuring performances of opera arias, classical tunes, Italian canzones, musical numbers, and Korean songs.^{[77][78][79][80]}

Julian Kim auditioned online for the Korean production of The Phantom of the Opera produced by the Really Useful Group and was selected as one of the four actors cast as the Phantom for the 2023–2024 production.^[81] His debut performance occurred on March 28, 2023, in Busan,^[82] followed by 31 performances in Seoul^[83] and 21 in Daegu,^[84] totaling 82 performances. He also received positive reviews for his powerful operatic voice and for his performance as the Phantom, which balanced strength and sensitivity.^[85][86] For his portrayal of the Phantom, he received The New Male Actor Award^[87] at the 8th Korea Musical Awards in January 2024.

Julian Kim portrayed Pierre Bezukhov in the Korean production of the musical Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 from March to June 2024.^[88] He also played Emperor Gojong in the 30th anniversary production of the musical The Last Empress from December 2024 to July 2025,^[89][90] followed by the role of Yeogyeong, the 21st king of the Baekje dynasty, in the musical Arang from January to May 2026.^[91]

For his activities as a member of Miraclass, see Miraclass

He won the Best New Artist Award at the Seoul Arts Center award in 2015 ^[112] and Best New Actor Award at the 8th Korean Musical Awards in 2024.^[113]

Julian Kim is a Verdian baritone.^[133] Kim can sing up to a high C note using his chest voice^[134] and has often been compared to Cappuccilli.^[135] His voice has been described as a Verdi baritone,^[136] characterized by warmth,^[137] resonance,^[138] and phrasing^[139][140] and tone.^[141] Critics have also praised his Italian diction, particularly his pronunciation of the Italian 'R'.^[142]

Kim admired Piero Cappuccilli, who was known for his extended phrasing and resonant high notes, qualities not commonly found in a baritone.^[135]

Gianni Tangucci, serving as a judge for the Zandonai International Competition, played a significant role incasting him in his opera debut as Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia at the Teatro Pergolesi.^[158] This opportunity marked the beginning of Kim's career in the operatic career. Tangucci frequently cast Kim in productions at renowned venues in Italy.^[159][160]

Kim has also cited Maestro Myung-whun Chung as an important influence. They first met when Kim participated in the Young Artist Program at La Scala. Maestro Chung, impressed by Kim's baritone voice, has since invited him to perform in numerous concerts^{[61][161][162]} and operas^{[163][164][165]} in Italy and Korea. During their interactions, Kim pledged to work diligently, to which Chung imparted a memorable piece of advice: "Doing your best is not enough. Everyone does that. You have to have you in your voice."^[166]