Nobel Prize-winning author Han Kang takes the stage at Berlin concert hall
Novelist Han Kang gives a reading at the Chamber Music Hall of the Berlin Philharmonie in Berlin, Monday (local time). Korea Times photo by Jung Seung-im
Sold-out reading at Berlin Philharmonic's home reflects continued interest in Korean Nobel laureate
BERLIN — Korean Novelist Han Kang met German readers for the first time since receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature in Germany on Monday (local time), taking the stage at the Chamber Music Hall of the Berlin Philharmonie, one of the world's most renowned classical music venues.
The occasion was “Satzwechsel,” a reading performance jointly presented by the International Literature Festival Berlin and the Berlin Philharmonie. The German title can be translated as “changing sentences” or “changing movements.” The Berlin Philharmonie created the new chamber music program to bring music and literature together.
Three writers are scheduled to be invited for performances during this season, with Han selected as the first featured author.
Han, who usually wears dark-colored clothing, appeared onstage in a white dress. As members of the Berlin Philharmonic opened the performance with Claude Debussy's “Danse sacrée et danse profane,” one of the leading works of French Impressionism, Han smiled and said, “I have written many heavy works, but as I was writing a book that I wanted to fill with light, I was able to begin with such transparent music.”
She was referring to her prose collection “Light and Thread,” which was published in German at the end of last month.
Audience members line up to purchase books signed by Han Kang following her reading at the Berlin Philharmonie in Berlin, Monday (local time). Korea Times photo by Jung Seung-im
During the reading, Han read excerpts from “Light and Thread,” which includes stories about the aftermath of her becoming a Nobel laureate and her experience tending a garden, as well as from “We Do Not Part,” her 2021 novel, which centers on the Jeju April 3 Uprising.
The German-language passages were read by German actress Martina Gedeck, who starred in the film “The Lives of Others,” while literary journalist Katharina Borchardt moderated the event.
The program was conducted in Korean, German and English, and all 1,190 seats in the venue had sold out well in advance.
Asked whether she considers herself to be writing about political and historical subjects, Han responded by posing the question, “Can we really separate the personal from the political?”
She explained, “'The Vegetarian' may seem like a personal novel, but it is a very political novel. 'Human Acts' and 'We Do Not Part' began with personal experiences.”
Han Kang, second from left, claps after a musical performance during a reading at the Chamber Music Hall of the Berlin Philharmonie in Berlin, Monday (local time). Korea Times photo by Jung Seung-im
'I danced as if I were Kim Yuna'
The audience broke into laughter several times at Han's unexpected and humorous answers.
Asked about what happened after she learned that she had won the Nobel Prize, Han said, “When I said that I had chamomile tea with my son after hearing the news, people around me started giving me chamomile tea as gifts, so now I have enough tea to last 10 years.”
She also recalled writing “We Do Not Part” intensely during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. “I would play Kim Kwang-seok's 'My Song' and dance around in circles, imagining that I was figure skater Kim Yuna,” she said, drawing laughter from the audience.
Responding to a question about “Human Acts,” which deals with the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising, Han said, “People around me would tell me, 'I found the novel painful to read,' and they would buy me a lot of meals.”
“I thought about why readers felt the pain that I had felt,” she said. “And I realized that this pain exists because we trust and love humanity.”
One audience member, Lena Bose, 35, told Hankook Ilbo that she had read only “The Vegetarian” among Han's works before attending the event.
“Through today's performance, I was able to better understand her more recent works,” she said. “I also discovered that she is surprisingly humorous.”
Another audience member, 35-year-old Myeong Sa-rang, said, “It was a valuable experience to get to know what kind of person Han Kang is, rather than knowing her only through her books.”
“Her remark about wanting to 'surround [things] with light' really resonated with me,” Myeong said. “I think that may be what we need most these days.”
A Berlin Philharmonie official told Hankook Ilbo that the excerpts were selected after discussions among Han, moderator Borchardt and producer Simone Schroder.
Han Kang, fourth from left, greets the audience after her reading at the Chamber Music Hall of the Berlin Philharmonie in Berlin, Monday (local time). Korea Times photo by Jung Seung-im
“The music was chosen through consultations between Han's German publisher and the Berlin Philharmonie,” the official said. “The intention of the program is for the music to expand into the themes contained in Han's writing, while at the same time allowing the music to shed new light on Han's language.”
“Seeing the audience fill the concert hall made me realize just how much Korea's cultural standing has risen," said Yang Sang-geun, director of the Korean Cultural Center in Germany. "We will continue introducing diverse aspects of Korean culture to local audiences.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.