Paul Yoon received his Ph.D. in ethnomusicology from Columbia University in 2005. He is Assistant Professor in the Department of Focused Inquiry at Virginia Commonwealth University and has also taught at Bowling Green State University and the University of Richmond. Yoon has established three separate Japanese taiko drumming ensembles, including Sora Taiko, which started on Virginia Commonwealth Unviersity campus in fall 2014. Working in conjunction with VCU’s Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorder Center, Dr. Yoon teaches taiko to patients with Parkinson’s Disease and conducts research to determine the benefits of large-scale, gross motor motion from drumming on patients’ balance, dexterity, and sense of well-being. Other research interests include popular music studies, critical race theory, gender, and acoustemology.
