Park Ji-won is a writer for The Korea Times who has been covering a wide range of topics from Korea’s culture to its politics. An avid journalism enthusiast to the core, Ji-won brings a thoughtful and unique perspective to every topic she covers. On weekends, you'll often find her contemplating life’s purpose on a yoga mat — with a cup of quality tea in hand. A native Korean speaker by birth and fluent in English through her work, she went to college in Japan and is learning Chinese and French — hoping to add Polish, Russian and Thai to the mix.
New leader of KBS Orchestra: Korean audiences are passionate, warm-hearted
Pietari Inkinen, KBS Symphony Orchestra's new music director / Courtesy of Kaupo Kikkas
By Park Ji-won
By Park Ji-won
KBS Symphony Orchestra's new music director, Pietari Inkinen, portrays Koreans as “one of the world's most passionate” audiences.
“Korea has one of the most passionate and warm-hearted audiences around the world. I always felt very welcome in Korea,” he said during a news conference held online on Wednesday. “The commitment from the audiences is unique. I wish further to cement KBS Symphony Orchestra's reputation in Korea as the leading symphony orchestra, and to bring wonderful music not only to Seoul but to the entire country.”
The 41-year old Finnish maestro and violinist participated in the press conference via Zoom because he is currently in Zermatt, Switzerland. Inkinen will take the helm in January next year. He will lead the KBS Orchestra until the end of 2024.
He replaces Israeli musician Yoel Levi, who left the position in 2019.
Inkinen is also serving as the chief conductor of the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra. He is tasked with directing six concerts or more during his term with the KBS Symphony Orchestra, which ends on December 31, 2024. Inkinen has also been asked to expand the orchestra, which will face a renewal of its contract with KBS in 2025. In the agreement, the orchestra receives 1.08 billion won ($9.56 million) in financial support from the state-run broadcaster every year.
Stressing his past collaboration with KBS, Inkinen said, “In the last concert we did (in October), I was very impressed by the quality, the commitment and the drive of the orchestra. I felt a great chemistry and the end result was excellent in my opinion. We have wonderful potential in the future to grow together … that is a lot about trust. In general, in the role of music director, I want to know as much as possible about the organization, potential problems and things to improve. It is a very organic process usually.”
He has led the orchestra as a guest conductor several times in the past: in July 2006, June 2008 and October 2020.
When asked why the orchestra had picked the Finnish conductor, Park Jung-ok, president and CEO of the organization said, “He is young but has 26 years of experience as a conductor. That's why he is being called 'maestro,' due to his experience and ability. Above all, his passion working with the orchestra, along with its performance, had impressed the board members and nomination committee. So we decided to name him to the position.”
His appointment will fill the position that had been left vacant for the past one and a half years.
As the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra has also been led by Finnish conductor, Osmo Vanska, since January 2020, the country's main orchestras have both ended up being led by two maestros from Finland.
Inkinen studied at the Cologne Music Academy with Zakhar Bron, and then went on to study conducting at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. When asked what has contributed to Finnish conductors leading international orchestras, he stressed that Finland's music education is “inexpensive” for many citizens, while financial support is available to musicians, and there are many music conservatories and academies, even in small cities, that offer young conductors like him opportunities to conduct.
KBS Symphony Orchestra's new music director Pietari Inkinen speaks during a press conference held via Zoom at the Korea Press Center, Seoul, Wednesday. The Finnish conductor will lead the orchestra from January 2022 to December 2024. Courtesy of KBS Symphony Orchestra