Olivia Oh

On Stage
Olivia Oh joined the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra as Principal Bassoon in September 2018. Ms. Oh has performed concertos in Korea with the Prime Philharmonic Orchestra, Charity Chamber Ensemble, Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Korean Senior Symphony Orchestra. She was the First Prize winner in several competitions, including The Music Association of Korea Competition, Seoul National University Competition, Hanyang University Competition, and The Korean Music Journal Competition.
Born and raised in Seoul, Korea, Ms. Oh began studying bassoon in 2000 with Mr. Sangwon Yun, former principal bassoonist of the KBS Symphony Orchestra. She is the first Korean bassoonist who has B.M. and M.M. degrees at The Juilliard School, where she was a student of Kim Laskowski of the New York Philharmonic. As a highlight of her student years in school she was awarded second prize at The Juilliard School Mozart Bassoon Concerto Competition as a freshman. Her passion for the orchestra moved her to play as a principal bassoonist at the Juilliard School under conductors, Alan Gilberts, Michael Tilson Thomas, Yannick Nezet-Seguin, Leonard Slatkin, Matthias Pintscher, Semyon Bychkov.
As a reflection of her love for music, Ms. Oh has taught bassoon for over 10 years with her students being accepted to prestigious programs such as the Juilliard Pre-college and the Juilliard School. Olivia Oh resides in Charlotte with her husband and daughter Ruth, who was born in 2017. She is expecting another child in December 2018.
Off Stage
Why did you select your instrument?
People seem to be surprised to hear that I am a mother of the two under two. My first child is turning one in August 2018, and I am expecting another one in December 2018.