Hyeonseon Baek

Hyeonseon Baek is a jazz vocalist, songwriter, and educator based in New York City. Born in Korea, he discovered his love for music as a child in choir and was quickly drawn to the emotional depth of soul and jazz legends like Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, and Carmen McRae. A turning point came when he encountered the artistry of Kurt Elling and Mel Tormé, which sparked his fascination with jazz phrasing, improvisation, and vocal storytelling. He completed his Bachelor of Music in the Netherlands, where he received a Holland National Excellence Scholarship and became the first vocal student to graduate a year early. A university-funded trip to New York City exposed him to its intensely diverse art scene and changed the trajectory of his life. ​ He later moved to the U.S. and earned his Master’s degree in Jazz Voice under the guidance of Dominique Eade at the New England Conservatory. During his time there, he also had the opportunity to perform and study with internationally renowned artists including Jason Moran, Dave Holland, Cécile McLorin Salvant, and Michael Mayo. In December 2023, just as the world was slowly emerging from the long shadow of the pandemic, Hyeonseon recorded his debut album Longing in a single day at Bunker Studio in Brooklyn. The session captured fleeting emotions and intimate musical conversations—bridging genres, generations, and cultural distances. Released in 2024, the album features Kevin Hays, Linda May Han Oh, Jochen Rueckert, and Lucas Pino. The album received a four-star review from All About Jazz and was named one of Jazz Weekly’s Top 10 Albums of the Year. Baek’s honors include the Queens Arts Fund (2025), the Ran Blake Foundation Honorable Mention, Seoul National University Alumni Association Honor Scholarship, and recognition in several international jazz voice competitions. Beyond performance, he is a committed educator and writer whose work explores improvisation, cultural identity, and the transformative potential of jazz in a globalized world.

Awards

Hyeonseon is a recipient of the "Honorable Mention, Ran Blake Foundation Music Award," 2020, and a recipient of "the Honor Scholarship, Seoul National University Alumni Association of New England" 2021. In addition, he was a "Semi-Finalist in the Riga international Jazz voice competition"2019 and "7 Virtual Jazz Contest" 2024

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