Lotte unveils in-house artist members

Bae Won-hee, second from left, the leader of Esme Quartet, a Germany-based ensemble, speaks during a press conference held Monday to announce that the team and Korea Chamber Orchestra were selected as this year's in-house art troupes to present a series of concerts at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul. From left are Korea Chamber Orchestra music director Kim Min, Bae, second violinist Ha Yu-na of Esme Quartet, violist Kim Ji-won of Esme Quartet and cellist Heo Yee-un of Esme Quartet. Courtesy of Lotte Culture Foundation

By Park Ji-won

Lotte Culture Foundation, which runs Lotte Concert Hall, announced Monday that Esme Quartet and Korean Chamber Orchestra would join its first in-house program as artists and present quality classical concerts every year.

The new program aims to house one or two ensembles every year to present several quality concerts throughout the year at the concert house. The two team will present three concerts until next year. The 55-year-old Korean Chamber Orchestra, which has performed more than 1,000 times so far, will present three concerts on Nov. 26, March 11 and July 2 where it will play chamber music including Vivaldi's Four Seasons, best repertoires of Piazzolla and Tchaikovsky's Souvenir de Florence.

Kim Min, music director of Korean Chamber Orchestra, said "There were times that we didn't have a score and had to stay up all night to hand copy it … (After those years), we were honored to become the first in-house artist, which is also new to our art troupe."

The Germany-based Esme Quartet is one of the leading groups winning multiple international awards including first prize at the 2018 Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition in London. The all-woman group features first violinist Bae Won-hee, second violinist Ha Yu-na, violist Kim Ji-won and cellist Heo Yee-un. They will present three concerts on Nov. 28, May 11 and May 16, next year. They will start with Haydn's string quartet "How Do You Do" in the first concerts while presenting various style quartet music such as Beethoven's string quartet Op. 59, No. 2, Mozart's "Dissonant," Debussy's string quartet in G minor and Schubert's string quartet in G major, D.887.

"In Lotte Concert Hall, we can closely listen to each other's performances. We are known as very powerful players, and the concert hall is capable of delivering our powerful style," Bae said.

"We had to self-isolate three times to perform in Korea … Amid the pandemic, we will put our efforts into coming up with a set list consisting of classical masterpieces focused on better presenting the quartet itself."

Site Map E-paper Subscribe Register LogIn
Site Map E-paper Subscribe Register LogIn