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One of ����’s most prized objects has officially changed hands. 

On Friday, Oct. 24, ���� announced that the “Bolton Violin,” a fine instrument gifted to ���� in 2019 by the Cleveland-based Payne Fund, has been loaned to first-year graduate diploma student Dongsub Jeoung. 

It previously was held by Zachary Brandon (PS ’23, AD ’25, Laredo/Lee/Rose/Sloman), an Artist Diploma student who graduated from ���� last spring. 

“It was a complete surprise and an immense joy to be chosen for the Bolton Violin loan program, an unexpected and truly inspiring opportunity,” Jeoung said. 

Jeoung is a first-year Graduate Diploma student of Olga Dubossarskaya Kaler. In his native South Korea, he began studying voice at age 7 before switching to violin at age 9. 

At age 16, in the U.S., Jeoung began pursuing violin in earnest and soon found himself soloing with the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra and placing highly in the Sidney Wright, Texas Young Artist, and Eisemann International Competitions. 

Jeoung continues to hold benefit concerts and participate in other fundraisers in support of music education and humanitarian efforts in the Corpus Christi area. He said the Bolton Violin will help him take the next step in his career. 

“This instrument will allow me to further hone my artistic identity and bring new depth to my musicianship,” he said. “As I prepare for upcoming recitals and performance projects outside of school, I am thrilled to see how this violin will inspire me to reach new artistic heights.”

The Bolton Violin was built by Stefano Scarampella, a noted Italian luthier, in 1910. Brandon and others who have played the violin praised the instrument’s rich, resonant tone and suitability for larger solo works such as concertos. 

The instrument was gifted to ���� in 2019 by the Payne Fund, a longtime and generous patron of scholarships. The fund itself was founded in 1929 by Frances Payne and Chester Castle Bolton in support of educational and cultural initiatives. 

Their descendent, Tom Bolton, has maintained the fund’s long relationship with ����. In addition to its gift of the violin, the Bolton family continues to grant The Payne Fund Prize, which sets up winners of the ���� Concerto Competition to appear with the Asheville Symphony Orchestra.

The Payne Fund “has transformed the lives of current and former students alike, enabling many to realize or begin pursuing their dreams,” said ���� President & CEO Paul Hogle in 2023.

“I never cease to be amazed by or grateful for the many ways Tom and the Bolton family find to show their affection for this school and its students.”