Korean-American composer, performer, educator Beata Moon was born in North Dakota and raised in Indiana where she began studying piano at age five. She made her orchestral debut with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra at age eight, and concertized throughout the Midwest, giving recitals and appearing with various orchestras in the region. Moon graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree from the Juilliard School where she was a student of Adele Marcus.

After completing a semester of the Masters Degree Program at Juilliard, she took a break from playing to reflect on what music meant to her personally. It was at this time that she discovered composing and teaching, which eventually resulted in her return to performing.

The role of the composer as performer and educator is an important one in Moon's life. She is an ardent ambassador for new music and has enjoyed working as a music television host (WNYE; NY, NY) as well as an impresario to reach out to broader audiences. A behind-the-scenes look at the making of her latest CD, Earthshine, is available via streaming video on Artspass, the leading digital arts content provider.

Moon’s music has been described as an “irrepressible outpouring” and “music of irreducible images.” Her first CD (Perigee & Apogee) of original piano and chamber works on the Albany Records label was well-received by press and public alike and continues to be broadcast on radio stations across the nation. Moon’s works were featured in Instrumental Women, a nationwide radio program from Minnesota Public Radio.

She was also one of 20 women selected by Lifetime Television for a series of brief profiles honoring the diverse contributions and activities of women today. This commercial-like segment, spotlighting her work as a composer, is currently airing across the United States on the Lifetime Real Women network.
Her latest CD, Earthshine, this time released on her own label, Bibimbop Records, features works commissioned by artists such as marimbist Makoto Nakura, guitarist Kevin Gallagher and saxophonist Brian Sacawa. The disc also includes the highly acclaimed Corigliano String Quartet, baritone Nmon Ford and soprano Julianne Borg, and members of the Beata Moon Ensemble, an all-female chamber ensemble created to promote women composers, conductors and performers.

click!Comprised of some of the finest musicians in New York, the Beata Moon Ensemble made their debut at Columbia University's Miller Theatre on February 22, 2002, to critical acclaim. Violinist Lara St. John was the guest soloist, and Sarah Ioannides, associate conductor to Tan Dun, led the ensemble in works by Tania Leon, Ruth Crawford, Anne LeBaron, Julia Wolfe, Elena Kats-Chernin and one of Moon's own pieces.

Moon enjoys interacting with the audience in her piano recitals, which feature both traditional and contemporary works. Her recital series, WHODUNNIT?!, where audience members are given the program notes after the performance, continues to be extremely popular.

An interest in aesthetic education led Moon to become a teaching artist for Lincoln Center Institute, where she has conducted workshops for students and teachers as well as for administrators from across the nation. Moon also serves as an advisor for the "Portraits Project" (in conjunction with the Police Athletic League) which brings musicians and poets together to serve as mentors for at-risk youth.

Through her various roles as an educator, performer and composer, Moon fulfills her wish to work musically with people of all ages and backgrounds. She believes that creating and making music (not just listening to music) can be an invigorating way to process life’s varied experiences. Moon hopes to reach and engage all people through her music and work.