Ik-Hwan Bae was born in Seoul, Korea and made his professional début with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of twelve.  After studying with Ivan Galamian at the Juilliard School of Music he became a much sought after musician.  His performances in recitals and concerto concerts have taken him to most of the major cities in Europe, Asia and the United States.

In 1985 he won the Gold Medal at the Queen Elizabeth Violin Competition in Brussels and was also the prize winner at the Munich International Violin Competition in 1984.  In 1986 he was also the recipient of the Solo Recitalist Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

As an enthusiastic participant in many of the world’s greatest chamber music festivals, he has performed everywhere from Seoul to Alaska.  For the thirteen years before 1995 he was the Artistic Director of Bargemusic Limited, one of the leading presenters of chamber music in New York City.

His most recent projects include being Leader of the Hwaum Chamber Orchestra in Korea which is a conductor-less string orchestra, touring with them in Poland, China and Japan.

Much sought after as a teacher, Mr Bae has taught at the Peabody Institute of Music in Baltimore, the Manhattan School of Music in New York City and the Korean National Institute for the Arts in Seoul.  Every year he gives masterclasses worldwide.

Currently he is a Professor at the Indiana University, Bloomington, where he teaches violin and chamber music.  Mr Bae has been a jury member of the Munich ARD Competition in Germany, the Carl Nielsen International Violin Competition in Denmark and the first Benjamin Britten International Violin Competition in London.  In 2010 he will be in Helsinki to judge the 10th Sibelius International Violin Competition.

Mr Bae has recorded for the RCA, ECM, Delos and Koch labels.