Hansol Choi / Ink Still Wet 2026
«May we introduce you …?»Published: 20 August 2026
Get to know Hansol Choi one of the five participants from this year's Ink Still Wet workshop, which Composer in Residence Olga Neuwirth will lead.
«I believe that a composer’s most compelling voice emerges when informed by a performers sensitivity to sound, gesture, and embodiment. The Grafenegg Festival’s emphasis on contemporary orchestral engagement and artistic immersion makes it an unparalleled environment in which to refine this synthesis, allowing me to interrogate and clarify my aesthetic voice within a space that encourages intellectual and creative rigor.»
Biography
Hansol Choi is a South Korean composer and percussionist based in Queens, NY and Ann Arbor, MI. He draws inspirations early experiences of singing hymns in church and performing in Samulnori (Korean percussion quartet) groups.
Inspired by liturgical music and Traditional Korean Folk music (Gu-Gak), Choi ponders the universally shared theological and existential longings that drive us toward connections, attempting to affirm our divinely placed hopes for life and love without end. He is committed to integrating Gu-Gak elements within his music.
Choi’s music has been performed by notable musicians such as the Great Falls Symphony Orchestra, University of Michigan’s University Symphony Orchestra (conducted by YeoRyeong Ahn), Talujon, and American Modern Ensemble. He is also an alumni of the 2024 American Composers’ Orchestra’s Earshot readings with the Jacobs School of Music’s Chamber Orchestra. He holds a master’s degree in composition from The Manhattan School of Music, and a Bachelors’ degree in percussion from the Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens College, CUNY.
He is currently pursuing his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in composition at the University of Michigan. There he currently studied with Evan Chambers, Bright Sheng, Roshanne Etezady, and Kristin Kuster. His significant composition mentors include James Ra, Richard Danielpour, Marjorie Merryman, David Serkin Ludwig, Vivian Fung, and Edward Smaldone.
«Zones of Blue»
Neuwirth in GrafeneggTonkunstler Orchestra · Brad Lubman · Participants of the composer conductor workshop «Ink Still Wet» · Jörg Widmann
ARAFAH / CHOI / GILLEROT / GODARD / KIM / PENDERECKI / NEUWIRTH