Moon-Sook Park of Music Receives Fulbright US Scholarship

Moon-Sook Park, assistant professor of music and vocal performance in the Department of Music in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, was recently selected as a Fulbright US Scholar for the 2024-25 academic year in Germany.

Fulbright Fellowships, awarded by the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Program, enable fellows like Park to teach and conduct research abroad while building long-term relationships between the U.S. and other countries.

Park’s project, titled “The Effectiveness of Using Singing as a Foreign Language Learning Tool,” aims to expand knowledge of the Korean language and understanding of its culture through an interdisciplinary approach that includes neurological research, tools from vocology, and the International Phonetic Alphabet.

“When I received the letter informing me of this honor, I couldn’t believe it,” Park said, noting that there were very few art and music scholarship recipients in her application group, but the support from her mentors and university officials motivated her to continue her efforts.

Park expressed her gratitude to Vice Provost Terry Martin, Dean Brian Raines, former Interim Dean Kathy Sloan, and Department Chair Alan Gossman for their thoughtful support in engaging her in her Fulbright residency in Germany. She gave special thanks to her longtime mentor, Lynda Coon, Dean of the Honors College and Professor of History, for her unwavering support and encouragement throughout the process.

Coon also acknowledged her colleague’s accomplishments, connecting Park’s research with the rich history of music pedagogy.

“While the idea of ​​using music as a tool for language learning is not new, the multidisciplinary approach that includes vocal and cultural theory, musical performance, and cognitive science is truly pioneering,” Coon said. “As a medievalist, I have seen similar scholarship on monastic chant, but the merits of Park’s project are clear. Not only does it enhance language training, but it also provides immersion in Korean culture and history. I think the methodology is brilliant.”

As part of her Fulbright scholarship, Park was invited to lead an undergraduate lecture and a graduate seminar at the Institute of Korean Studies at Freie Universität Berlin. She will also give several invited lectures and recitals of Korean art songs at institutions including the University of Helsinki in Finland and York St. John University in the UK.

“As a Korean-American, I am deeply proud of my heritage,” Park said. “My goal is to provide Korean studies students at Freie Universität Berlin with a deep understanding of the language, strengthening their pronunciation and cultural awareness through the use of singing as a pedagogical tool.”

Park joined the U of A in 2012 and spent her early career performing as a soloist and recitalist in prestigious venues such as the United States, Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, the Czech Republic, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Korea. Her career was marked by her American recital debut at Carnegie Hall in 2001, making the United States her second home. She has also co-authored two anthologies of Korean art songs, the first of their kind in the United States.

“I am excited to participate in the cultural exchange this program offers and represent the U of A abroad,” Park added.

Fulbright’s distinguished alumni include 62 Nobel Prize winners, 89 Pulitzer Prize winners, 80 MacArthur Fellows, and thousands of leaders and experts from across academia and many other fields in the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. Park is the only music professor among eight U.S. professors selected as Fulbright recipients for Germany in 2024-25.

Park holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in vocal performance and vocal pedagogy from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, as well as postgraduate degrees (Aufbaustudium) from the music conservatories of Freiburg, Saarbrücken and Stuttgart in Germany. She also holds a “privata diploma” from the Academia di Canto F. Cavalli in Milan, Italy, and a Bachelor of Music from Seoul National University. Park has received numerous honors, including the KAAD Award from the German Educational Organization and the Bayreuth Stipend Award for Emerging Artists from the Bayreuth Festival in Germany. She is also an active board member of the Korean American University Professors Association and the International Alliance for Women in Music.