By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
Maestro Charles Dutoit, 72, is undoubtedly one of the busiest conductors in the world., but he will take a break from helming the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic to lead and inspire an ensemble of young Korean musicians in an all-new festival.
The inaugural edition of the Lindenbaum Music Festival (LBMF) will take place from July 26 to Aug. 1 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, downtown Seoul.
``I like to work with young musicians and to bring them our Western knowledge and to exchange ideas and cultures,'' Chantal Juillet, artistic director of the festival, said in an e-mail interview about her reasons for joining the project.
``I never thought it possible we would gather, in a very short time, such an extraordinary array of musicians coming from all over the world to teach and play with the young generation of Korean instrumentalists,'' said the 49-year-old violinist about organizing the festival rather late in January.
She had difficulty recruiting a conductor so late in the season. None other than the great Dutoit happened to have time and decided to help out his long-time colleague. ``Since I had a few days off, and also because the teachers (Juillet) invited are all good musical friends of mine, I agreed to come to Seoul and help out,'' said the maestro.
The conductor will lead some 100 young musicians in their teens and 20s that were chosen through an audition.
``I always enjoy very much working with young musicians. Of course, it is completely different from working with a professional orchestra, but I feel a sense of responsibility in teaching the younger players a way of working and listening from a young age and to form their ability to be able to work more efficiently and with better results,'' said the maestro.
The festival also brings together 13 principal musicians from top orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra's concertmaster David Kim, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra's principal clarinetist Michael Whight and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra's former principal trumpeter James Thompson, among others.
``I feel honored to be part of this new musical meeting between all of our countries and I do hope, you, the audience, will join us in great numbers to witness the inspiration and the dedication we have all put into this new adventure,'' said Juillet.
The festival features artists in various chamber music programs. On July 28, concertgoers can look forward to B. Martinu's ``Nonet'' for Woodwind Quintet and Piano Quartet, H. 144 and R. Strauss' Suite for 13 Wind Instruments in B-flat major, Op. 4. The musical journey will ultimately culminate Aug. 1 in a performance of Mahler's First Symphony featuring the Dutoit-led youth orchestra.
The LBMF benchmarks Switzerland's Lucerne Festival, which is associated with the reputed Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra, and Japan's Pacific Music Festival, which is known as Leonard Bernstein's pet project.
``Lindenbaum is very new, its first year, and already, I can see the eagerness in the participating members, teachers and staff, and I do hope that all our efforts culminate in something `grandiose,''' said Juillet.
For more information, visit www.lbmf.or.kr or call (02) 720-1013.