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Park Ji-won

Korea Times Politics & City Reporter

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.

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Music

INTERVIEW For Chopin finalist Lee Hyuk competition is way to meet audiences

Pianist Lee Hyuk / Courtesy of Etoile ClassicBy Park Ji-wonMany Koreans hoped Lee Hyuk, the Korean finalist in the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition held in October, would be triumphant as its last winner was Cho Seong-jin, also a Korean, but the trophy went to Chinese-Canadian competitor Bruce Liu.But Lee's disappointment was short-lived. At the Concours International de Piano ― Grand Prix Animato Chopin 2021, held between Dec. 3 and 7, right after the Chopin competition, the 21-year-old won the first prize with his rendition of Fantaisie, Op. 49. The musician humbly said he didn't expect to win and was simply happy to perform for the audience.“I never expected to win. I just enjoyed every round. I was grateful to have an opportunity to be able to communicate with the audiences in Paris with Chopin's works after the Chopin competition,” Lee said during a telephone interview with The Korea Times, Friday. He was in Warsaw, Poland, to support his brother in another piano competition.Reversing people's normal thinking that he must aim to win at multiple co

Dec 19, 2021By Park Ji-won
[INTERVIEW] For Chopin finalist Lee Hyuk competition is way to meet audiences
Trends

Silent Christmas: Koreans forgoing Christmas songs

Copyright law, religious pluralism, dwindling role of churches all contributing to bleak Christmas season By Park Ji-wonThe streets in Seoul's bustling downtown area were like no other Christmas season, Thursday. They were calm and silent, making it difficult for people to feel that Christmas is just a week away. No Christmas carols or songs could be heard, as there were few stores playing them.The bleak Christmas season nowadays is a stark contrast to the lively holiday atmosphere here in the 1990s, when Christmas songs used to fill the air in almost every corner of the capital around this time of year. In stores, Christmas trees with electric lights were lit with carols being played loudly, and colorful Christmas decorations were easy to spot. Back then, the Christmas spirit was in full swing in most big cities. Koreans celebrating Christmas silently without carols is something odd for those who are familiar with the religious demographics of the country. This year's Gallup survey of 1,500 Koreans, conducted between March 18 and April 7, found that Korea is religiously diverse, wit

Dec 16, 2021By Park Ji-won
Silent Christmas: Koreans forgoing Christmas songs
Arts & Theater

Historic Cecil Theater poised to close over safety issues

Cecil Theater / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan GovernmentBy Park Ji-wonThe Cecil Theater, founded in 1976 and owned by the Anglican Church of Korea, is facing closure again due to safety concerns. The Seoul Theater Association, which has been running the historic theater since April 2018, issued a press release Wednesday announcing that it has decided to cease its operations there upon the request of the church and vacated the building as of Dec. 10.“The Seoul Theater Association has been running the facility over the last three and a half years, but we practically ran the space for a year and seven months,” Ji Choon-sung, chairman of the association, said in the release.“We aimed to house various theatrical works from many different art troupes to keep the theater's identity as a public facility and turned it in to a theater for children. But we found serious problems in the facility which we failed to solve, resulting in its closure.”Previously, the theater's operation was suspended due to construction of a terrace on the roof of the building in January 2020

Dec 16, 2021By Park Ji-won
Historic Cecil Theater poised to close over safety issues
Music

Pianist Suh Hyung-min wins Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn

Suh Hyung-min, center, receives the top prize in Germany's International Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn, Germany, Saturday (CET). Courtesy of the International Telekom Beethoven Competition BonnBy Park Ji-wonPianist Suh Hyung-min, also known as Hans H. Suh in English, won the top prize in Germany's International Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn on Saturday (CET). Together with the top prize, he also won three special prizes.Suh played Klavierstucke Op. 7, which he composed in 2017 and Beethoven's Piano Trio in C minor, Op. 1, No. 3, in the chamber final, as well as Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, in the orchestra final with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn, conducted by Hans Graf.The International Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn, which was founded in 2005 and honors young pianists between the ages of 18 and 33, said that the nine-member jury chaired by Pavel Gililov was convinced by Suh's interpretation of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor.Suh also won the "Audience's Favourite" Prize for the best interpretation of a piano concerto in the final, wh

Dec 13, 2021By Park Ji-won
Pianist Suh Hyung-min wins Telekom Beethoven Competition Bonn
Music

Korean symphony orchestra unveils 2022 program led by new conductor, David Reiland

Newly appointed artistic director David Reiland of the Korean Symphony Orchestra (KSO) / Courtesy of the KSOBy Park Ji-wonThe poster for the 2022 season of the Korean Symphony Orchestra (KSO) / Courtesy of KSOThe Korean Symphony Orchestra (KSO) announced its 2022 season program, Thursday, under the leadership of newly appointed artistic director David Reiland, who is Belgian and whose background is shaped by various cultures of Europe, featuring German and Austrian pieces, as well as works from France.Under the theme, “New Wave,” the new director, who was given the title of “Schumann Guest” at the Dusseldorfer Symphoniker, and who has served as a guest conductor for many orchestras in Europe, will open up the season with Schumann's Symphony No. 2, Op. 61 on Jan. 23. The KSO, conducted by the new director, will play Mozart's “Clarinet Concerto,” one of the highlights of Reiland's conducting, and Haydn's “The Creation.”A number of leading and emerging conductors will perform during this upcoming season. Conductor and violinist Guy Braunst

Dec 11, 2021By Park Ji-won
Korean symphony orchestra unveils 2022 program led by new conductor, David Reiland
Music

Pianist Lee Hyuk wins France's Animato international piano competition

Pianist Lee Hyuk, third from left, smiles after receiving the first prize at the Concours International de Piano ― Grand Prix Animato Chopin 2021 in Paris, France, Tuesday, in this photo released on Thursday (CET). Courtesy of Philippe BreullesBy Park Ji-wonKorean pianist Lee Hyuk, a finalist in the Chopin international competition this year, has won the first prize at the Concours International de Piano ― Grand Prix Animato Chopin 2021, held between Dec. 3 and 7, its organization said, Thursday (CET).In the final, where six contenders were able to compete with works of Chopin, including Lee, he played the Fantaisie, Op. 49.He will be receiving the prize money of 30,000 euro (39.9 million won) from Animato, the association which organized the competition, run under the slogan, “Tomorrow's great pianists, today,” and be invited to join recitals and concerts organized by the group.Lee debuted at the Kumho Prodigy Concert in 2012. In 2018, he won third prize at the Hamamatsu Piano Competition, the second prize at the Poshan Chopin International Piano Competition and the firs

Dec 10, 2021By Park Ji-won
Pianist Lee Hyuk wins France's Animato international piano competition
Music

Pianist Yang Bang-ean releases new album to mark 25-year solo career

Pianist Yang Bang-ean / Courtesy of Endorf MusicBy Park Ji-wonCover image for pianist Yang Bang-ean's new album “Light & Shadow” / Courtesy of Endorf MusicPianist and composer Yang Bang-ean released his latest album “Light & Shadow” on Nov. 30. The new double album includes 25 pieces recorded during live performances since 2017 in the “Light” side and new pieces in the “Shadow” side.Yang, who has also worked as music director from time to time for various high-profile shows including the opening and closing ceremonies of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018, said he was planning to release an album with new songs to mark the 25th anniversary of his solo career this year, but decided to release the recordings of live performances as well as new songs due to the COVID-19 pandemic making it difficult for him to record with orchestras. The title song “Meteor ~ Nora” is composed for his late friend ORIGA who died in 2015 and is aimed to give pandemic-hit people hope that their wishes could come true.“I wanted to

Dec 9, 2021By Park Ji-won
Pianist Yang Bang-ean releases new album to mark 25-year solo career
Music

Renowned accordionist Shim Sung-rak dies at 85

Accordionist Shim Sung-rak / YonhapBy Park Ji-wonShim Im-sub, an accordion virtuoso better known by his stage name Shim Sung-rak, died Saturday. He was 85.According to his acquaintances, Shim underwent surgery earlier for pain in his waist and his health worsened while recovering from the operation.He has been known as one of Korea's leading accordionists, laying the foundation for the development of the country's popular music industry and taking part in many popular music recordings and soundtracks.Born in Kyoto, Japan, in 1936 when Korea was under Japanese occupation, Shim participated in about 7,000 songs on 1,000 albums as an accordionist and electronic organist. He had worked with famous singers, including Patti Kim, Cho Yong-pil and Na Hoon-a, to name a few. He also participated in the soundtracks of famous films, such as “One Fine Spring Day” (2001).He was known as a self-taught musician who first encountered the accordion in 1953 while working as a part-timer in an instrument shop in Busan. Shim started his career as an accordion player for a singing contest on t

Dec 8, 2021By Park Ji-won
Renowned accordionist Shim Sung-rak dies at 85
People & Events

Orchestras unveil star-studded 2022 concert line-up

Poster for the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO)'s 2022 Season 1 program / Courtesy of SPOBy Park Ji-wonAmid the pandemic entering its third year, Korea's orchestras have recruited foreign conductors as their music directors, roles which have long been held by Korean nationals. Chung Myung-whun, for instance, served at the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) for nine years since 2006 and Chung Chi-yong served at the Korean Symphony Orchestra for four years since 2018.Hoping to fill more seats at their concerts, the KBS Symphony Orchestra has appointed Finnish conductor Pietari Inkinen, who will lead the broadcaster's music organization starting January, and the Korean Symphony Orchestra (KSO) appointed Belgian conductor David Reiland. Finnish music director Osmo Vanska replaced Chung in 2020 as music director for SPO and will led the organization until 2022.As the New Year approaches, the local orchestras unveiled their programs for next year, which include many performances starring foreign virtuosos and renowned performers.The SPO will begin next year with requiems in January.Vansk

Dec 7, 2021By Park Ji-won
Orchestras unveil star-studded 2022 concert line-up
Arts & Theater

Exhibition recognizes Joseon-era Buddhist monk artisans

Seen are underdrawings and paintings of “the Eight Great Events of the Life of the Buddha from Tongdosa Temple,” a national treasure, at the exhibition, “Monk Artisans of the Joseon Dynasty” in the National Museum of Korea (NMK) / Courtesy of NMKBy Park Ji-wonPoster for the exhibition, “Monk Artisans of the Joseon Dynasty,” by the National Museum of Korea (NMK) / Courtesy of NMKAfter reaching its peak with the full-fledged support of the ruling class during the 918-1392 Goryeo period, Buddhism is known to have declined during the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom after the new rulers adopted Confucianism as their ideology.But what is lesser known about Buddhism during Joseon is that its paintings and sculptures actually flourished. Many paintings and sculptures in temples around Korea were produced during the latter half of the Joseon period following Japan's invasion in the 1590s, contributing to the artistic development of that period. The 16th-century war was a turning point for Buddhism. Monks joined the war to defend the nation and their role was appre

Dec 6, 2021By Park Ji-won
Exhibition recognizes Joseon-era Buddhist monk artisans
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