Emerson Koh is a flutist from Columbus, OH. In the fall of 2026, he will be pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and Flute Performance at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). Emerson will study flute under the instruction of Sooyun Kim, Randy Bowman, Amy Taylor, and Heather Verbeck.

Emerson graduated from Westerville North High School in Westerville, OH with an Arts Honors Diploma in May 2026. He took classes full-time at The Ohio State University during his senior year as part of their College Credit Plus Academy program. In high school, Emerson studied flute with Randy Hester, an Eastman School of Music graduate and the principal flutist of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra from 1973-2018. He also previously studied with his wife Phyllis Hester, who also played flute in the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.

Emerson has had the honor of serving as the principal flutist of the 2026 OMEA All-State Orchestra, the 2025 Ohio State University Honors Wind Symphony, the 2025 Indiana University Summer Music Clinic Cream Band and Orchestra (and Honors Recital performer), the Newark-Granville Youth Symphony from 2024-2026, the Westerville North High School Wind Ensemble from 2024-2026, the 2025 Columbus Youth Symphonic Band, the 2024 and 2026 Westerville City Schools High School Honor Bands, Capital University Junior Winds from 2021-2023, and as the assistant principal flutist of the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestra from 2023-2024. He has also served as the lead tenor saxophone player of the Westerville North High School Big Band from 2024-2026 and played flute and piccolo in The Ohio State University Symphonic Band in 2026.

In 2026, Emerson placed first in the Central Ohio High School Concerto Competition hosted by the Westerville Community Bands. In 2025, he placed second in the Senior High Division of the Central Ohio Flute Association Competition and placed third in the Junior High Division in 2023.

Emerson has been the recipient of many awards and scholarships including the John Philip Sousa Award (2026), the "Semper Fidelis" Award for Musical Excellence (2026), the Richard Suddendorf Instrumental Music Education Scholarship (2026), the Westerville North High School Academic Boosters Scholarship (2026), the Cincinnatus Scholarship (2026), the CCM Honors Scholarship (2026), the President's Award for Educational Excellence (2026), the Westerville North High School Medallion Award (2026), the Ohio Governor's Merit Scholarship (2026), the College Board First-Generation Recognition Award (2024), the College Board School Recognition Award (2025), and the Westerville North High School Marching Band "Outstanding Woodwind Musician" Award (2024, 2025).

In the future, Emerson hopes to become a band director and inspire the next generation of musicians.