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"It's the most humanly possible way of being honest,'' cellist Young Song, 34, said about Happy Music School, a national outreach program for underprivileged children. "All the stage glamor, if you want to call it, is stuff I'm doing in the surreal world. Happy Music School brings me back down to Earth.'' / Courtesy of Stomp Music |
 This is the 15th in a series of interviews with the next generation of classical musicians ― ED
By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
It takes two to tango, and for Young Song (Song Young-hoon), the cello seems to be the perfect partner ― ``Even my wife says the cello is my real wife,'' said the 34-year-old, laughing.
The Korea Times sat down with the cellist as he grabbed some seaweed rolls before performing with the Inspired Passion Chamber Orchestra at Seoul Arts Center, Monday. The concert hall was almost empty, but the explosive applause following his electric rendition of Haydn's Cello Concerto No. 1 was completely out of proportion with the disappointing turnout.
Pressed chest-to-chest with the cello, Song led the dramatic yet far from overbearing music. The rest of the world seems to disappear for whole minutes at a time, but the beauty of his ``tango'' lies in the poetry of the silence between notes.
``Even if we play for two people, we need to give it our best. I actually had a great time tonight. It's really important to perform with new groups, not just the big ones,'' said the artist, who was seen communicating with the young orchestra throughout the performance, such as playing non-solo parts with the other cellists. After the concert, Song looked more alive than ever ― ``concerts are always invigorating,'' he smiled.
He is back in town to offer live Astor Piazzolla tunes from his ``Tango'' album (EMI Classics) ― while juggling a radio show, sneak appearances in small events, master classes and inspiring underprivileged students through a teaching program, among others.
``Yes, I really am testing my physical capacity. But I wouldn't be doing any of what I'm doing if I didn't want to,'' said the artist, his eyes brimming with affection as he looked at his ``baby,'' a beautiful, chocolate-hued 1704 Joseph Guarnerius. But not having time to play tennis for almost a year, he said, is a bit ``depressing.''
Born in Korea in 1974, Song debuted at age nine playing the Lalo Concerto with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra. He then entered New York's Juilliard School pre-college program and became the youngest ever student to take part in Yo Yo Ma's master class. Twenty years down the road, Song himself is giving master classes whenever and wherever he can, at music festivals in Finland or his alma mater Sun Hwa Arts High School in Seoul ― while playing with major orchestras and chamber groups in all the places in between.
But the cellist disillusions your idea of the ``typical'' child prodigy-turned-professional. A five-year-old Song ― ``wild, greedy, ambitious and a big troublemaker,'' he said in his own words ― started playing the cello because he wanted to play an instrument that was bigger than his older brother's violin. ``But I never practiced, I was too busy playing soccer until sunset,'' he said.
It was his Juilliard teacher Channing Robbins who enabled him to truly fall in love with the cello, and then his professor in Britain Ralph Kirshbaum helped him master technique. He practiced ``insanely'' but was often troubled by self-doubt.
He then had to rest aside the cello for almost a year when his father was hospitalized. Song spent everyday with him until he passed away eight months later. It was a time of grief but also a time of deep introspection. ``I was able to see things clearly for the first time,'' he said. A call from Juilliard professor Hyo Kang would bring him back, and working with the chamber group the Sejong Soloists would instill in him a deep love for chamber music.
``I was really excited, but of course I didn't tell (professor Kang) I hadn't been playing for almost a year,'' he grinned. ``But playing with them, though it was only like a year, really helped me get back on my feet.''
Song went on to play with the Kumho String Quartet and launch a piano quartet M.I.K. with his close friends. His music is deeply rooted in the classics, and he sees himself as a ``servant'' to the music. But he also aspires to be an artist in his own right by creating his own interpretation of music.
Song's music has a distilled rawness to it, like coarse red wine. It possesses a spontaneity of ``the now,'' particularly in his ventures that endorse unconventional genres. After his Piazzolla CD, he paid homage to soulful Brazilian tunes in his guitar duet album ``Song of Brazil'' (EMI).
The immediate quality of his musicality is also reflected in his efforts to reach out to fans through his KBS radio show. ``It's just like performing, I give all my gut into it,'' he said, adding that he particularly enjoys being able to communicate directly with avid classical music fans. He loves receiving live feedback during the show, although he is unsure how long he will be able to host the program.
Like his radio show, Happy Music School, an outreach program for needy children, was something he always wanted to do, but had imagined doing later on in his career. Life, however, doesn't always go as planned.
``You cannot say no to these things. They are services that require immediate attention especially for the less fortunate kids, and in my case, who want to be musically involved. So I said yes and took the directorship,'' he said. He handpicked 16 talented teachers from the elite Yewon School (Song's alma mater) ― dubbed ``angels'' ― who work on their weekends with children who cannot even afford a public education.
``Anything and everything we're doing,'' he said, pondering for the right words, ``it's the most humanly possible way of being honest. All the stage glamor, if you want to call it, is stuff I'm doing in the surreal world. Happy Music School brings me back down to Earth,'' he said. ``I just want to make (the children) happy, that's why it's called Happy Music School.''
Song will perform Thursday and Friday at EBS Space, located near Maebong station on subway line 3 and Seongnam Arts Center in southern Gyeonggi Province Sunday. Tickets for all concerts are sold out, but call Seongnam Arts Center, located near exit 1 of Imae station on the Bundang subway line, (031) 783-8000 to see if there are cancellations.
Fans can also look forward to Song's third solo album at the end of the year. It will be his first ``conventional'' classical music recording of Rachmaninov and Shostakovich cello sonatas.
hyowlee@koreatimes.co.kr
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