Eliot Goldmund (né Euntaek Kim) is a New York-based American pianist, composer, and conductor, whose musical prowess has been lauded as “nimble” and “colorful” (Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times) and a “real pianistic talent.” (Roy Westbrook, MusicWeb International)

Native of Incheon, South Korea, Eliot moved to the U.S. at the age of 13, after sweeping all of the major piano competitions in his native country. Eliot went on to become prizewinner and participant in numerous competitions, including The 2007 Queen Elisabeth Competition, The 4th International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians, The 2001 Oberlin International Piano Competition, and The Center for Musical Excellence Grant. Eliot was also the main feature of the 2005 PBS documentary, titled “Euntaek Kim and Performance of Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy."

Eliot received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from The Juilliard School where he studied under Jerome Lowenthal. Upon the admission to The Juilliard School at the age of 16, Eliot was awarded the “Presidential Distinction,” awarded to the candidate with the highest ranking. He went on to complete his Artist Diploma on a full scholarship at Yale University under the tutelage of Boris Berman. Eliot also studied privately under the legendary Chinese pianist Yin Chengzong and was coached by Samuel Adler, Audrey Axinn, Ronald Copes, John Corigliano, Mario Davidovsky, Ilya Itin, Joseph Kalichstein, Joel Krosnick, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Seymour Lipkin, Robert McDonald, Charles Neidich, Matti Raekallio, and Mark Steinberg.

As a concert pianist, Eliot has made solo appearances in venues across the globe, including Belgium, Canada, China, Italy, South Korea, and the United States.As an avid chamber musician, Eliot has collaborated with members of Aeolus, Calidore, Enso, Escher, Parker, and Ying quartets. Eliot’s collaborations with Heartbeat Opera and Cantata Profana, based in New York City, in their modernized renditions of Beethoven’s "Fidelio" in May 2018 and Samuel Barber's "Vanessa" in July 2025 and May 2026 was praised by The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, and The Wall Street Journal. Eliot’s tantalizing appearances in June 2018 at the catacomb of Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, NY, as a part of the world premiere of David Hertzberg’s new chamber opera The Rose Elf, were lauded by WQXR as “the best opera event of 2018.” Eliot’s exquisite performances can be heard in his debut solo album, “Debut - CME Presents Vol. 3: Russian Piano” under the MSR Classics label, as well as in “Hertzberg: The Rose Elf” (under Meyer Media LLC) and “The Wake World” (under Tzadik label).A

s a conductor, Eliot has worked on opera productions such as Cracked Orlando, dramma per musica e fractal by Jonathan Dawe (2010), and NY-based Heartbeat Opera’s production of Fidelio! (2018). He was mentored by Michael Gilbert, Benjamin Loeb, Jeffrey Milarsky, Otto-Werner Mueller, and Carl St. Clair.