Midsummer night's scream A capacity crowd enjoys the inaugural Ultra Korea electronic and dance music festival at the Olympic Stadium Complex in southern Seoul last year. Organizers are expecting that this year’s two-day run on Friday and Saturday will garner about 100,000 visitors, more than last year’s 80,000. / Courtesy of UC KoreaAnnual DJ fest Ultra Korea prepares for electric two-day run on Friday, SaturdayShut Da MouthBy Baek Byung-yeulThe Ultra Music Festival, one of the world’s biggest outdoor dance music festivals, returns to Korea this week, bringing together some of the coolest DJs around the world.The second annual Ultra Korea, which takes place Friday and Saturday at Olympic Park in southern Seoul, will feature 60 notable names in the electronic and dance music scene, highlighted by the return appearance of Carl Cox and arrival of Dutch master Armin van Buuren.Other high-profile DJs include Avicii, Afrojack, Tommy Trash, Kaskade, Sander van Doorn, Boy George DJ Set, Riot Gear, Taku Takahashi, Shinichi Osawa and Krewella.Last year’s event took place in August, but organizJun 10, 2013
Orchestras turning to youthful leadership Canadian conductor Yannick Nezet-Seguin, 37, conducts the Rotterdam Phiharmonic. / Courtesy of Seongnam Art CenterThe Boston Symphony appointed young Latvian conductor Andris Nelsons as the successor toJames Levine at last month.Chang Han-na will begin her tenure at the Qatar Philharmonic inSeptember. / Korea Times fileBy Do Je-haeUp until about a decade ago, conductors weren't taken seriously until they were aged 50 or older. Not anymore.When the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra performs in Korea next week, all eyes will be on its young music director Yannick Nezet-Seguin.The 37-year-old is leading a boom of 20 to 30-something music directors at some of the world's foremost orchestras in the U.S. and Europe.The Canadian will be conducting at the Seongnam Art Center in Gyeonggi Province with the Rotterdam Philharmonic on June 9 in a program of Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky. He has been with the orchestra since the 2008-2009 season, succeeding a lengthy tenure by Russian maestro Valery Gergiev.Nezet-Seguin has brought a new level of fame to the 95-year-old ensemble, the top Dutch Jun 2, 2013
Metropolitan Opera to hold audition in Seoul The Metropolitan Opera House in New YorkBy Do Je-haeThe Metropolitan Opera will audition singers in Seoul for the first time next month as part of the NYIOP (New York International Opera) Auditions.The NYIOP Auditions were first held in New York City in 2002 and, since then, have generated hundreds of contracts and helped singers make contact with international opera houses and agencies. Auditions have taken place in more than 25 major cities worldwide.Known as a venue for the world’s greatest voices, the Met has been under the musical direction of James Levine since 1976.The best-known Korean singer at the Met is soprano Hong Hei-kyung, who debuted there in 1984 and has sung every season since then.“We have heard Korean singers in auditions around the world in the past 20 years. They are a rising force in the classical music community,” said Lenore Rosenberg, associate artistic administrator of the Met in a press release.The Los Angeles Opera will also take part in the auditions, seeking singers for both their main stage and their Domingo-Thornton Young Artist ProgMay 22, 2013
Jazz fest lineup enthralls audience The indoor concert hall inside the Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, southeastern Seoul, was packed on Friday during British pop-rock singer-songwriter MIKA’s performance. / Korea Times photo by Yun Suh-youngBy Yun Suh-youngThe two-day Jazz festival held in Seoul over the weekend boasted of the best lineup the Seoul Jazz Festival (SJF) organizing committee ever came up with, succeeding in mesmerizing the audience who’ve been waiting, yearlong, for the event.The festival, held in four different stages at the Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, eastern Seoul, began on Friday, which was also Buddha’s Birthday and a national holiday in Korea, and lasted through Saturday.The first performance on Friday that kicked off the festival was American jazz vocalist Jeff Bernat who sang at the outdoor stage “May Forest” followed by Roberta Gambarini, an Italian jazz singer.The crowd went wild when Dutch pop jazz singer-songwriter Wouter Hamel, who is widely popular in Korea, came on stage. The audience hailed when he sang some of his hit songs like “Breezy” and &ldquMay 19, 2013
Braunstein leaves Berlin Philharmonic Guy BraunsteinBy Do Je-haeIsraeli violinist Guy Braunstein, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra's star concertmaster, will leave the orchestra at the end of the 2012/13 season."The decision to leave my orchestra has been a long and painful one. I have loved working with Sir Simon Rattle and my esteemed colleagues in Berlin, but my original training was as a solo violinist and it is difficult to manage both," Braunstein said on his web site.The orchestra has announced an audition in Berlin to replace Braunstein. He is one of the three first concertmasters of the top German orchestra. He joined the orchestra in 2000, when then-music director Claudio Abbado appointed him first concertmaster.Although a concertmaster of a major orchestra, Braunstein has maintained an illustrious solo career and has also enjoyed success as conductor.Guy is currently artist-in-residence with the Hamburg Philharmonic. Since 2006 he has been the Music Director of Rolandseck Chamber Music Festival in Germany where he has collaborated with international stars such as flutist Emmanuel Pahud and pianist Yuja WangMay 19, 2013By Do Je-hae
Japanese company releases rare Chung Kyung-wha recordings The King Records’s discs, to be released on May 31, contain previouslyunreleased materials from Korean violinist Chung Kyung-wha’s live performances in Tokyo in the late 1990s. Sonatas by Schubert and Schumann or Ravel’s “Tzigane” have never been found on her officialdiscography by Decca or EMI. / Courtesy of HMV JapanBy Do Je-haeA Japanese record company will soon release a previously unreleased material of violinist Chung Kyung-wha from her live performances at Tokyo's Suntory Hall in 1998, according to a local classical music fan site Go Classic.The recordings by King Records come in two double CD sets. They contain works that the Korean-born virtuoso has never recorded for her companies Decca and EMI, such as Schubert ‘s “Sonata No.4 in A Major” and “Fantasie in C Major” or Ravel's "Tzigane," one of the most technically demanding pieces in the solo violin repertoire.Also found on the discs are pieces that she has rarely played in her career, including Stravinsky's "Duo Concertante" and Bartok's “Sonata NoMay 19, 2013By Do Je-hae
Mraz, Greenplugged rock fest highlight event-packed weekend Jason MrazBy Baek Byung-yeulThe extended weekend that started with Buddha’s Birthday has made room for a slew of cultural events here, but it was Jason Mraz who clearly dominated the buzz.The 35-year-old American singer-songwriter performed Friday evening at the Jamsil Sports Complex in southern Seoul, on the eve of his scheduled appearance as a guest host on the Korean version of Saturday Night Live (SNL) on cable channel tvN. Mraz has a particularly large following in Korea, where he managed to sell more than 140,000 copies of his 2008 album, "We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things,’’ which is an impressive number in a market dominated by online downloads. His songs, including "I Won’t Give Up,’’ "Geek in the Pink,’’ and "I’m Yours’’ are Korean radio favorites. His opening acts included British pop singer Joe Brooks, Roy Kim, a star produced by the Korean television singing contest "Superstar K,’’ and guitarist Jung Sung-ha, who garnered more than 19 million hits for his YouTube cover of ``I’m Yours.&rsMay 17, 2013
Violinist mentors Korean musicians Violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter/ Courtesy of CrediaBy Do Je-haeViolinist Anne-Sophie Mutter will perform in Seoul next month with the Mutter Virtuosi, a group of 14 musicians that she supports through her foundation.While maintaining a hugely successful solo career, she has devoted herself to nurturing the future generation of string players by establishing the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation in 1997.The German virtuoso will perform with the group at Seoul Arts Center on June 14, in a program of Mendelssohn’s "Octet in E Flat Major, Op. 20" and Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons." They will also give a Korean premiere of the U.S. composer Sebastian Currier’s “Ring tones," reflecting Mutter's devotion to spreading contemporary music.Mutter has played in Korea several times, but this is the first time she will be joined by the Mutter Virtuosi that includes three extraordinary Korean artists.Violinist Choi Ye-eun, 25, made her local debut with the New York Philharmonic in 2010. After studying under Kim Nam-yun, Choi currently works with Ana Chumachenko in Munich. In 20May 10, 2013By Do Je-hae
Alternative to Psy These three scenes are from Lee Hyo-ri’s music video for her new single, “Miss Korea,” which was released Monday. / Courtesy of B2M EntertainmentLee Hyo-ri is Miss Korea in new albumBy Baek Byung-yeulThe Korean music scene is currently a two-man act between veteran singer Cho Yong-pil and YouTube rapper Psy. Now Lee Hyo-ri, the self-proclaimed queen of K-pop, is looking to prove three can play this game.The 33-year-old singer on Monday unveiled her first new song in three years, ``Miss Korea,’’ which will be included on her fifth studio album that is soon to be released.In the music video for the song, Lee masquerades as a beauty pageant contestant fully displaying what made her the country’s sex symbol for the 21st century, but nonetheless singing that every ordinary woman is a winner. But there are only a few winners like her.It could be argued that Cho, Psy and Lee are the only pop singers in Korea whose cultural influences transcend their music and have broader social impact. Cho’s new album, ``Hello,’’ and Psy’s ``GangnMay 6, 2013
Cho Yong-pil talks about new album, challenges Cho Yong-pil reacts to the audience at the Olympic Hall in southern Seoul Tuesday evening before singing some of the songs from his new album, “Hello.” / YonhapBy Baek Byung-yeulCho Yong-pil, who remains the country’s most influential rock musician at the age of 63, talked about the pressure of reinventing himself as he introduced his new album to journalists and fans Tuesday evening."Hello" is Cho’s 19th studio album but his first in more than a decade. Performing songs from the album at Olympic Hall in southern Seoul and taking questions in between, Cho said his challenge was to retain the identity of his music without becoming familiar and predictable. "I started to make this album two years ago. I had some frustration that my music was being stagnant and I needed to break away from my previous style," said the veteran singer-songwriter before the much anticipated showcase, which was attended by dozens of reporters and some 2,000 fans. The event was streamed live on Naver (www.naver.com), the country’s most popular website."I am a veteran so I amApr 24, 2013By Baek Byung-yeul
