Violist James Kang is an inviting performer and artist-teacher who creates meaningful connections with audiences across the U.S. and abroad. James is the founding violist of the Abeo Quartet which was formed at Juilliard in 2018 and has been featured at Alice Tully Hall, The Kennedy Center, and Norway’s Vertavo Festival. James is currently pursuing his DMA studies at Northwestern University as the Teaching Assistant of Prof. Helen Callus, and received his bachelor’s degree at the Juilliard School as a proud recipient of a Kovner Fellowship. 

 

As a soloist, James won the American Opera Society of Chicago Centennial Award and top prizes at the American Viola Society Solo Competition and the ASTA National Solo Competition. In 2023, he performed Hindemith’s Der Schwanendreher Viola Concerto with the University of Delaware Symphony Orchestra. James performs with orchestras such as ProMusic Chamber Orchestra and Chicago Philharmonic, and has served as Principal Violist for the Juilliard and Symphony in C orchestras.

 

As an avid chamber musician, James has collaborated with musicians such as Itzhak Perlman, Joseph Kalichstein, Donald Weilerstein, Calidore String Quartet and Dover Quartet. Recent highlights for Abeo Quartet include returning to perform at the Kennedy Center and being the 2023-24 Ernst Stiefel String Quartet-in-Residence at Caramoor which entailed a yearlong residency that included outreach to young listeners. In June 2025, Abeo will be returning to Bad Tölz, Germany to give recitals after winning a prize at the Bad Tölz International String Quartet Competition in 2023.

 

James is devoted to teaching and is currently on the Chamber Music Faculty of Music Institute of Chicago. In 2019, he taught young violists in Brazil as a guest faculty artist in partnership with Guri Santa Marcelina. Dedicated to cultivating joy in his audiences, James is also active in community outreach and has participated in engagement concerts with Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Meet the Music!, “If Music Be the Food…,” and United Nations Chamber Music Society. His festival appearances include Music@Menlo, Perlman Music Program, Aspen Music Festival, NYO-USA, Yellow Barn YAP, and La Jolla SummerFest.