Praised by critics for the “millimeter precision of touch,” “full of contrasts and nuances,” “rare sensitivity and dazzling virtuosity,” “finesse of touch and technical mastery,” and the “brave administration of silence,” Yeontaek Oh began playing the piano at the age of five. He studied at Seoul National University, and New England Conservatory of Music, where he graduated with honors and was awarded the Gilbert Foundation Scholarship. After his studies in Boston, he pursued further study in Europe, completing his Konzertexamen at Hochschule für Musik Freiburg as a recipient of the DAAD and German Government Scholarship, and the Concertiste degree at École Normale de Musique de Paris on a full scholarship. He later earned his DMA at Manhattan School of Music with a teaching assistantship, completing a dissertation on piano pedagogy in relation to atonality and program music, focusing on his former teacher Gilead Mishory’s children’s pieces.

He made his concerto debut at the age of 12 with Wonju Philharmonic Orchestra and has since appeared as a soloist with Daegu Philharmonic Orchestra, Daejeon Pop Orchestra, Euro-Asian Orchestra, Gwangju Philharmonic Orchestra, Jeonju Clamu Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra of the University of Alicante, CRR-Cergy Orchestra, Morocco Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León, Rome Tre University Orchestra, Chuncheon Youth Orchestra, as well as Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, Freiburg Musikhochschule Orchestra, and Cuba National Symphony Orchestra.

Invited to perform worldwide, he has given solo recitals across Korea, the United States, and throughout Europe, as well as in Morocco, Brazil, and Cuba. His performances include Lyon Chopin Association, Animato Association, Piano Campus Foundation, Great Mountain Festival, Kumho Foundation, Seoul Arts Center Summer Music Festival, The House Concert, and Chosun-Ilbo. More recently, he appeared at Salle Cortot in Paris, Theatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro, Temple Israel with the musicians of Lenox Hill, Seoul Arts Center Summer Festival, and Piano Pic Festival in Bagnères-de-Bigorre, France. In 2019, his performance in Paris was live-recorded and released by Piano Campus Foundation. He has also given masterclasses at Gangwon Arts High School and Gangwon University in Korea, and at the Festival Pianos Folies du Touquet in France.

In addition to winning over ten national competitions in Korea, including the prestigious Joong-Ang Music Competition and Artsylvia Chamber Competition, Oh has received more than ten international awards including Rio de Janeiro International Competition, Brazil (1st Prize) , Prix de Bern, Interlaken Klassics, Switzerland (2nd Prize), Piano Campus International Competition, France (1st Prize, Contemporary Piece Prize, Audience Prize), Animato International Piano Competition, France (Schumann Special Prize), Concours International de Piano de Lyon, France (3rd Prize, Special Prize), Arthur Lepthien Wettbewerb, Germany (1st Prize), Frechilla-Zuloaga International Piano Competition, Spain (1st Prize), Rome Chopin International Competition, Italy (2nd Prize), Valsesia Musica International Piano Competition, Italy (2nd Prize), Palma D’oro International Piano Competition, Italy (2nd Prize), Concorso Internazionale Pianistica “Piana del Cavaliere,” Italy (2nd Prize), Morocco Philharmonic Orchestra Competition, Morocco (2nd Prize)

A Young Steinway Artist, Yeontaek Oh has joined the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music in January 2025.