Music

Composer Bio

New-York-based composer Mark Kim-Mulgrew seeks to build common grounds in seemingly disparate ideas and is guided by a relentless pursuit of clarity: thought, intent, and expression. Mark is broadly interested in music as a collective communication experience among the composer, the performers, and the listeners. Mark’s debut album of chamber music Practical Considerations was released in November 2025. Mark studies composition in the studio of Conrad Cummings, and his musical mentors include Evan Fein, Ruka Shironishi, and Yeontaek Oh. Outside of music, Mark was trained as a mathematician and a science writer and works as a software engineer. (98 words)

Albums

• Nov 15, 2025 Practical Considerations

Compositions

All instrument names are written out in full for ease of text search.

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Instrumental - Large Ensemble

• Title TBD (work in progress)2026 | 5 minutes (subject to change)
  • for 12 musicians

    full instrumentation: violin 1, violin 2, viola, cello, double bass, flute, B-flat clarinet, trumpet, tenor trombone, piano, percussion 1 (TBD), percussion 2 (TBD)
  • will be premiered by Texas New Music Ensemble at MATCH, Houston, Texas, USA as part of the 2026 Texas New Music Festival

Instrumental - Chamber

• Title TBD (work in progress)2026 | 8 minutes (subject to change)
  • for string quartet

    full instrumentation: violin 1, violin 2, viola, cello
  • will be premiered by Euclid Quartet at the Arthur Zankel Music Center, Saratoga Springs, New York, USA as part of the 2026 Mostly Modern Festival (June 18, 2026)
• Title TBD (work in progress)2026 | 7 minutes (subject to change)
  • for viola, clarinet, and cello
  • will be recorded at St. Boniface Episcopal Church, Sarasota, Florida as part of the 2026 Soundbox Fellowship Program on April 12, 2026
• Loving All That Is Cold2025 | 4 minutes | watch | listen
  • for piano trio

    full instrumentation: piano, violin, cello
  • premiered by Erica Nam, Gaeun Kim, and Ruogu Wen at the Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City, USA (November 15, 2025)
  • first recorded by Hyeunji Lee, Yeontaek Oh, and Yuyu Ikeda at Skillman Music, New York City, USA as part of the Practical Considerations album recording sessions (October 17, 2025)
• There Was More To It2025 | 9 minutes | watch | listen
  • for wind quintet and percussion

    full instrumentation: flute, oboe, B-flat clarinet, French horn, bassoon, percussion (vibraphone, tom-tom, hi-hat, brake drum, wood block)
  • premiered by Celia Wojcik, Colby Kleven, Jin Yingcun, Minwoo Jeong, Sooah Jeon, and Vinay Sundar at the Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City, USA (November 15, 2025)
  • first recorded by Celia Wojcik, Colby Kleven, Jin Yingcun, Minwoo Jeong, Sooah Jeon, Vinay Sundar at MAX Studios, New York City, USA as part of the Practical Considerations album recording sessions (November 1, 2025)
• Counterexamples2025 | 8 minutes | watch | listen
  • for extended Pierrot ensemble

    full instrumentation: flute, B-flat clarinet, violin 1, violin 2, viola, cello, piano
  • premiered by The Berlin Academy of American Music at Studiobörne 45, Berlin, Germany as part of the 2025 Berlin Transatlantic Composers Workshop (July 12, 2025)
    see all 2 performances

    • November 15, 2025 - Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City, USA
    • July 12, 2025 - Studiobörne 45, Berlin, Germany
  • first recorded by Erica Nam, Gaeun Kim, HaoLun Chen, Jin Yingcun, Ruogu Wen, Sooah Jeon, and Torron Pfeffer at the National Opera Center, New York City, USA as part of the Practical Considerations album recording sessions (October 10, 2025)

Instrumental - Solo, Unaccompanied

• Piano Études: Nos. 1 – 42026 | 17 minutes
  see all pieces in the collection
  Piano Étude No. 1 ("Resonance")
  Piano Étude No. 2 ("Left Hand")
  Piano Étude No. 3 ("Polymeters")
  Piano Étude No. 4 ("Chords")
  • for solo piano
  • written for Umi Garrett
  • will be premiered by Umi Garrett
• Midnight in Brooklyn2025 | 4 minutes | watch | listen
  • for solo piano
  • premiered by Yeontaek Oh at the Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City, USA (November 15, 2025)
  • first recorded by Yeontaek Oh at Skillman Music, New York City, USA as part of the Practical Considerations album recording sessions (October 17, 2025)

Vocal - Solo

• I Would Follow You2025 | 16 minutes | watch | listen
  see all songs in the song cycle
  I. To The Visions of Fancy (Ann Radcliffe)
  II. Echo (Christina Rossetti)
  III. A Song In Summer (Sophie Jewett)
  IV. Chamber Music XVI (James Joyce)
  • a song cycle for tenor and piano
  • written for Blake Friedman
  • premiered by Blake Friedman and Yeontaek Oh at the Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City, USA (November 15, 2025)
  • first recorded by Blake Friedman and Yeontaek Oh at Skillman Music, New York City, USA as part of the Practical Considerations album recording sessions (October 13, 2025)

Education

Primary Teachers in Composition

• Conrad Cummings, 2025 – Present

Long-Term Mentors

• Evan Fein
• Ruka Shironishi
• Yeontaek Oh

Degrees and Certificates

• Juilliard Extension (CMS, CMC), 2022 – Present
• Prior training in mathematics (details)

Programs Participated

• precept.concept.percept XVI, 2026 – 2027
• Texas New Music Festival, 2026
• Mostly Modern Festival Institute, 2026
• Soundbox Fellowship Program, 2026
• Berlin Transatlantic Composers Workshop, 2025
• Prior training in science writing (details)