Yumi Hwang-Williams made her debut at the age of fifteen as a soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra, six years after emigrating from South Korea. A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, she's known today both for her stylish performances of the classics and her commitment to the works of present-day composers.
Strings magazine calls her “a modern Prometheus” who has “emerged as a fiery champion of contemporary classical music.”
"The performance of Kernis' Lament and Prayer was notable for the outstanding interpretation of the solo violin part by Yumi Hwang-Williams." Indianapolis Star
"The violin part of the Rouse Concerto is especially challenging, with more double stops than a Paganini variation. Hwang-Williams' formidable technique made them fleet and sweet, bringing forth a frenzy of appreciation at the conclusion."" San Francisco Classical VoiceHer interpretations of works by Thomas Adès, Aaron Jay Kernis, Michael Daugherty, and Christopher Rouse have earned critical acclaim as well as enthusiastic approval from the composers.
Yumi is a frequent soloist with the Colorado Symphony and has soloed with other major orchestras both in the U.S. and abroad, including the Cincinnati Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony, Sinfonieorchester Basel (Switzerland), and the Bruckner Orchester Linz (Austria) in collaboration with conductors Marin Alsop, Dennis Russell Davies, Hans Graf, Paavo Järvi, and Peter Oundjian. An avid chamber musician, she has performed with Gary Graffman, Ida Kavafian, Jeffrey Kahane, Christopher O'Riley, Jon Kimura Parker, and Andrew Litton. She has played the Beethoven concerto with the CSO, horn trios at Carnegie Hall with Andrew Litton and CSO Principal Horn Michael Thornton, and the Isang Yun concerto #3 in Basel, Switzerland and Tongyeong, South Korea.
Since 2000 Yumi has been Concertmaster of the Colorado Symphony. She was Concertmaster of the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra for twelve years and Guest Concertmaster for the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ottawa, at the invitation of Music Director Pinchas Zukerman. She's a frequent guest first violinist with the Philadelphia Orchestra and a faculty member at Denver University's Lamont School of Music.
Yumi plays on a violin made by Carlo Landolfi in Milan, c. 1752. She is married to Daniel Willams, a horn player in the Philidaelpia Orchestra, and they have a daughter, Ava.