About
Dr. HYE-GYUNG JI, a native of South Korea, is a tenured Professor of Music in Piano at South Plains College in Texas, where she has been teaching an Honors course and other music courses in all levels of applied music, class piano, keyboard skills, music fundamentals, and music appreciation since 2007. Her collaborative profession includes teaching ensembles, music arrangements, vocal coaching, choir and jazz ensemble accompaniments, and collaboration with faculty and students. Before SPC, she served at Lubbock Christian University as an adjunct piano professor.
A winner of the Texas Tech University Symphony Orchestra Soloist Concerto Competitions in 2002, Dr. Ji was chosen as a piano soloist “For Excellence In Performance” by the music honorary society Pi Kappa Lambda. She has actively performed solo, lecture, and collaborative guest artist recitals and given masterclasses throughout the United States, South Korea, and Malaysia. Her performances were featured on “Music from Texas Tech” at KOHM Classical Radio Station (current KTTZ-FM), and lectures/workshops have been presented at various conferences and higher education institutes including the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy (NCKP), Texas Music Teachers Association (TMTA), Lubbock Music Teachers Association (LMTA), Chung-Ang University, and Kunsan National University. An active collaborator, she has regularly given faculty chamber recital tours with Dr. Lynn Ledbetter, a violin professor at Texas State University.
In 2022, Dr. Ji made her solo piano recital debut at Weill Recital Hall of the Carnegie Hall in New York City and was humbled to be selected as a keynote speaker for the Annual Piano Pedagogy Conference by the Korean Association of Piano Pedagogy (KAPP) in South Korea. She was also chosen as the First Place Winner (College Students and Professional Musicians Category) of the American Protégé International Competition and performed at Carnegie Hall for the Winners Recital. Her 2025 ongoing projects include solo/lecture recitals, a research paper presentation, and a masterclass in Texas, New Mexico, Arkansas, and possibly Illinois.
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As a piano pedagogue, Dr. Ji has been invited for adjudications at various venues such as the Piano Concerto Competition at Texas Tech University (2021), the Pastoral Festival of the National Federation of Music Clubs (2020, 2022), the Sonatina Festival of Levelland Music Teachers Association (2019), the Grace Hamilton Piano Competition at West Texas A & M University (2016, 2020), Young Artist Piano Competition at Texas State University (2013), LMTA Piano Performance Competition (2011), TMTA State Convention All-Star Festival (2005-2007), and National Guild of Piano Teachers Pastoral Festival (2003-2008). She helped with the completion of supplementary repertoire books for a Korean piano method called “Klavier.” Her article entitled “The Importance of Awareness While Practicing” was issued at International Piano Korea (Vol. 77/ July 2009). In addition, her recent presentation at the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy was published in the "Proceedings of NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference." Dr. Ji loves taking a bridge role in music education between America and South Korea. Her Korean translation of the piano repertoire books "Piano Maestro Book 1, 2, 3" by SeKwang Publishing Co. is ongoing peer review. Also, she is currently contributing at The Frances Clark Center as a Korean translator for the International Initiatives Program.
A certified music educator in the Essentials of Performing Arts Health accredited by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA), her research interests have been focused on musicians’ health management and the enlightenment of music wellness education programs.
With distinction, Dr. Ji holds a B.M. degree in Piano Performance, summa cum laude, from Chung-Ang University in South Korea, where she studied under the tutelage of Dr. Wan-Kyu Chung, a founder/former President of the Korean Association of Piano Pedagogy (KAPP) and a current Co-President of The Piano Society of Korea. She received both her M.M. in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy and D.M.A. in Piano Pedagogy from Texas Tech University, where she studied under Dr. Lora Deahl, a co-author of “Adaptive Strategies for Small-Handed Pianists (Oxford, 2017)”. After earning her doctoral degree, Dr. Ji has continued to enjoy her musical performance journey under the tutelage of Dr. Louis Nagel, a professor emeritus of music in piano at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Her other piano teachers include Seong Yeob Hwang, Sung Min Park, and Hyuck Yoo.
Dr. Ji holds memberships in the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA), the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), the College Music Society (CMS), the Texas Music Teachers Association (TMTA), the Lubbock Music Teachers Association (LMTA), and the Korean Association of Piano Pedagogy (KAPP).
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