How this Utah violinist wound up playing for a Luxembourg prince

Although he won his first major music competition at the age of 12, David Park used to keep his violin playing somewhat of a secret.
He was an athletic kid, too, who boasted the 50-yard dash record at his elementary school. The way he saw it, emphasizing sports over his musical talent was the better way to earn the respect of his peers in junior high. So he would sometimes enter school through the back doors so his classmates wouldn’t see him with his violin case.
But eventually, his plan hit a snag.
The school orchestra was having a hard time recruiting students. The conductor approached Park and asked if he would perform a solo at the upcoming music assembly to try and generate interest. Park said no initially — he had a reputation to uphold, after all — but he caved in after some persistent pleading.
The day of the assembly arrived. The kid before him showed off his drum prowess, playing along to the music of ’80s rockers AC/DC. “I have to play after that?” Park recalled thinking as the kids cheered, sort of wincing when the announcer said: “And next, we will have a violin solo by David Park.”
The eighth grader then took the floor. Park laughed as he recalled how the students started clapping when he was simply tuning his instrument, unsure if it was the start of the performance. And then he played the virtuosic piece that had won him his first competition: Pablo de Sarasate’s “Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs).” As Park remembers it, everyone was shocked — and not just because they didn’t know he played.
“I think the kids never heard anything like that before,” he said.
After his performance, the blonde girl who he had a crush on at the time finally noticed him. And the following year, Park said, the Los Angeles-area school orchestra grew from around 30 students to over 100.
“And I thought, ‘Wow, maybe music is not so bad,’” he said with a laugh.
For Park, this marked one of the first times he realized he could win people over with music — and that he could inspire people through his violin.
So he stopped hiding his love for the instrument. And now, he’s built a career upon it, showcasing the power of classical music across Utah — where he taught at the University of Utah and was in the Utah Symphony for nearly 30 years — and throughout the world.
His next stop: a Thursday gala performance at London’s UN Ballroom, where the guest of honor is Prince Felix of Luxembourg.
As Park tells it, having a career as a full-time solo artist in the classical music world is somewhat of an “endangered species.”
It’s something he’s long had his eye on — even during his time with the Utah Symphony, where he held the title of assistant concertmaster. As a symphony musician, he said, it’s not typical to take on many solo performance opportunities since keeping up with all of the rehearsals and performances throughout a season can be so demanding.
But over the years, when his schedule permitted, Park would put his foot in the door, leaving an opening for a full-time solo career. He’s met a lot of dignitaries in Utah, collaborating with the late Sen. Orrin Hatch, who was a composer in his own right, and performing at the 90th birthday party for the late President M. Russell Ballard of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. One of his biggest supporters in the Beehive State is Scott Anderson, who was the president and CEO of Zion’s Bank for 25 years.
In 2019, Park became a cultural ambassador for Ferrari — a role he says allows him to present classical music to a wider audience. The following year, he released an album that gained some traction. Not much later, an international artist management company expressed an interest in representing him.
And that’s when Park made the decision to leave both the Utah Symphony and his teaching job at the University of Utah. He wanted to seize the opportunity, he said, because the chance to have a solo career doesn’t come often. He knew he could play in an orchestra at just about any point in his career. For Park, it was essentially a choice of now or never.
Now, Park performs roughly two to four concerts a month as a solo artist. He recently flew to Paris for a performance, and then, a few days later, followed that up with a concert in the rural town of Delta, Utah.
“I play for everyone,” he said.
The violinist next takes the stage in London, at the request of Prince Felix of Luxembourg.
The two first met at France’s Chateau Haut-Brion, where they bonded over a mutual love of wine, classical music and sports. Soon after, the prince invited Park to perform at his upcoming reception at the UN Ballroom — the historic spot where the inaugural meeting of the United Nations took place in 1946, Park said.
The violinist spent roughly three months preparing a program for the occasion. His 45-minute set on Thursday includes pieces he said showcase the beauty of the violin, like Camille Saint-Saens’ “The Swan” and “Meditation” from the opera “Thais.” He’s also included virtuosic numbers like de Sarasate’s “Carmen” and the technically demanding “Round of the Goblins.”
He’ll play music that represents Luxembourg as well, with a performance of “Poupee de Cire, poupee de son,” the winning French song that represented Luxembourg at Eurovision in 1965.
All of his performances — no matter if they are for royalty or students in Delta — have the same purpose, he said: to show just how exciting classical music can be, and to keep the love of the art form alive.
Park often laughs as he tells the unlikely stories of his career — including how he wound up making his acting debut in the 2015 Sundance film “The Strongest Man,” as well as contributing to the soundtrack. But underneath all of the joking and lightheartedness is a lot of commitment and sacrifice.
It started young. Both of Park’s parents played the cello, so music was always a staple in his home. But his mother, who was a cellist in the Seoul Philharmonic in South Korea, tried to dissuade Park from becoming a professional musician since she knew firsthand how difficult it was to pursue that path. Instead, she encouraged Park to be a doctor and his older brother to be a lawyer.
But Park fainted at the sight of blood.
So by the time he was a high school senior, he got his mother’s blessing to pursue a music career. He went on to study at Indiana University, and graduated with a master’s degree in music from The Juilliard School. As Park was getting ready to leave Juilliard, the school’s president gave him some parting advice, encouraging him to be a leader by leaving the classical music bubble and expanding its reach.
That advice has stuck with Park over the years, and now, he believes he is fulfilling it.
And while it does take a lot of practice to maintain a career as a solo artist, Park still views it as more of a passion than he does a job.
After his recent performance at Delta High School, Park came home to a large stack of thank-you cards from the students.
“I read every one of them,” he said, adding how touched he was that the students took time to share what his performance meant to them. “When I hear things like that, then it makes me feel like … all the sacrifices and torture and hard work and, you know, ups and downs, it is worth it. For me, that’s the most important thing. … I feel like I’m doing something useful in this life.”