European trio to jazz it upBy Rachel Lee The sweet, romantic melody of European jazz can be heard at a special concert at Seoul’s LG Arts Center at 6 p.m. on Sept. 16. European Jazz Trio (EJT), known for their unique blend of jazz, classical and pop music, is returning to Korea after performing here last September. They have a wide repertoire including tracks from film soundtracks. They have positioned themselves among the most-loved performers in Korea along with pianist Eugen Cicero, Keith Jarrett and Jacques Loussier since their first show here in 2003. The group consists of three Dutchmen; pianist Marc van Roon, bass player Frans van der Hoeven, and drummer Roy Dackus. They made their debut in 1984 with the studio album “Misty European Jazz Trio Debut.” Since then the trio has released more than 20 records, of which three of them — “Libertango” (1999), “Europa” (2000), and “Sonata” (2004) — won one of Japan’s highest music honors, the Swing Journal Gold Disc award. EJT has collaborated with Japanese label M&I from 2000 and toured there annually. Pianist van Roon, in partiSep 2, 2012
Kim Sun-wook to play Beethoven, SchubertBy Do Je-hae A major challenge for any pianist is to study and perform the works of the First Viennese School, referring to masters like Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, of the late 18th and early 19th century. Among Korea’s young pianists, no one has been as forthcoming about this challenge as Kim Sun-wook, whose full cycle of the 32 Beethoven sonatas has been underway at the LG Arts Center in Seoul. He previously performed a cycle of the five Beethoven piano concertos in 2009. Piano lovers will have a chance to hear how the London-based artist has matured as a serious interpreter of the First Viennese School in the upcoming mini-concert of beloved pieces by Beethoven and Schubert at the Ilshin Hall in Hannam-dong, Seoul. The performance is organized by the Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) as a side event of the Culture Communication Forum (CCF). A key activity of the institute is to take place on Sept. 4-6 in Seoul. The concert program consists of the Beethoven Sonata in A-flat major Op.22; Schubert Impromtu in E-flat major D 899 No.2 and Schubert ImproAug 27, 2012By Do Je-hae
Korean flutist Jasmine Choi captures ViennaVienna Symphony names Choi as principal flute By Do Je-hae Stories about the international success of Korean violinists, pianists and opera singers are now familiar. But not much attention has been paid to the nation’s woodwind musicians. No Korean to date has become as established as Jasmine Choi in this area, the first Korean to be named principal flute of the 112-year-old Wiener Symphoniker, or the Vienna Symphony. She has been working for the renowned Austrian orchestra since June, after a grueling audition process. She has left her former post of associate principal flute with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra to join one of Austria’s most respected music institutions. “When I received the audition invitation from the Vienna Symphony, my first reaction was a bit of disbelief, to be honest — simply because it was not common sense for an Asian woman wind player to join such a conservative musical hub,” Choi said in a recent interview with The Korea Times. She was the only player to be selected from a pool of 245 candidates from all over the world. VAug 15, 2012By Do Je-hae
Album reviewWhy we recommend it: Ocean’s debut LPis packed with raw emotions expressed through a dizzying array of words and sounds. Revolutionary. Recommended track: “Bad Religion,” “Thinkin’ Bout You,” “Sweet Life,” “Forrest Gump,” “Pilot Jones” Frank Ocean ‘Channel Orange’ (DEF JAM/UNIVERSAL) Ocean made headlines a few months ago for being the first man in hip hop to publicly acknowledge his attraction to other men. But his commercial release debut shows that he is earning attention for his extraordinary musical skills rather than his sexual orientation. Made in partnership with producer Malay, Channel Orange breaks all the rules constricting the music industry, with clever combinations of notes and words. Though the LP’s centrepiece is “Pyramids,” an idiosyncratic 9-minute ode to an unrequited love, comparing her to Cleopatra, by far the best track is “Bad Religion,” a tribute to his first gay love, with raw emotion and sincere vulnerability perfectly captured. The true depth of the album makes it hard to believe that it lasts slightly over an hour. It is still a lot to Aug 14, 2012
YouTube music video rating riles up artistsBy Kwaak Je-yup After the culture ministry announced Tuesday that music videos posted online by the industry will be rated by government authorities, some artists protested the decision. “Music video censorship?” rapper and TV entertainer Eun Ji-won tweeted on the same day. “Is it to create another job post or is it because they really think it’s necessary? No more music videos from me!” Kwon Sun-wook, music video director and brother of K-pop artist BoA said on the subject, “This will obviously hinder album releases from now and will put the brakes on the K-pop boom.” Though the amendment to the movie and video content promotion law was ratified by the National Assembly in December without public attention, reactions from the likes of Eun and Kwon have hit the media and social networking services since Tuesday. From Aug. 18, the new law requires music videos as well as movie trailers posted online by artists, producers, management companies and distributors, even offered for free consumption, to be rated prior to upload by the Korea Media Rating Board (KMRB) or face uAug 8, 2012
Gov't to enforce music video ratings system despite protestsDefying protests from local entertainment businesses, the government announced Tuesday it will enforce a music video ratings system as scheduled this month to better protect teens from sexually explicit and violent videos. The decision has frustrated the local K-pop music industry, which uses music videos as an important means of promoting their music products. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said music videos must receive age ratings from authorities before being circulated on the Internet starting on Aug. 18, when a related law revision is scheduled to go into effect. Currently, TV networks have their own criteria for censoring sexually explicit or violent music videos, and are not regulated by the government. But many videos declared unfit for broadcasting have drawn huge popularity on the Internet, raising mounting public concerns about their potential influence on teenagers. Lawmakers have led the revision to the law on the promotion of movies and videos to address such problems, according to Park Byeong-woo, chief of the ministry's department on video prAug 7, 2012
UMF Korea proves best against oddsBy Kwaak Je-yup When the first announcements were made earlier this year, there was no shortage of skeptics. Hosting the world’s largest electronic dance music festival at Seoul’s Olympic Stadium seemed to them too ambitious a project, especially given the overcrowded season of music festivals this summer. Especially after the event’s previous Warsaw stop was abruptly cancelled last month — a week before the scheduled date — many started questioning the possibility of recreating the magic of Miami’s iconic annual festival held in March in other parts of the world. Boy, were they wrong. Even though nothing could match the original Miami Music Week experience, the Friday and Saturday’s UMF, or Ultra Music Festival, was Korea’s best weekend in recent memory, with an atmosphere so special that words could not properly describe. Beat the heat with more heat, so the local proverb goes: the saying was shown in true form as more than 50,000 people danced their socks off in the 37-degree weather from 4 p.m. to midnight on both days. The sweat that interminably tricklAug 6, 2012
Pianist Zhang to make local debutBy Do Je-hae Early 20th-century Hungarian composer Bela Bartok once said, “Competitions are for horses, not artists.” However, it is undeniable that contests have launched the careers of a number of aspiring artists, such as Zhang Haochen, the 2009 co-winner of the prestigious Van Cliburn Competition in Texas. Immediately after his gold medal win, Zhang embarked on an extensive three-year international tour. He will make his Korean debut in Seoul next month, performing with the China National Symphony Orchestra on Aug. 23 at Seoul Arts Center. Orgazined by the Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation, the concert marks the 20th anniversary of Korea-China diplomatic relations. For Korean piano fans, he has been known more as the pianist who beat Korean Son Yeol-eum, who took the silver medal in the same competition. Since the Van Cliburn Competition, Zhang has been working with the world’s foremost orchestras including the Philadelphia Orchestra and the London Philharmonic. “Zhang combines extraordinary technique and sensitivity. He is one of the star pianists to emerge from CAug 1, 2012By Do Je-hae
Bullying scandals hit K-pop groupsBy Rachel Lee Hwayoung’s recent departure from T-ara, allegedly due to bullying by the group’s other members, shows a dark side to the booming K-pop industry. The group’s agency, Core Contents Media announced Tuesday that the contract with the 19-year-old member has been cancelled. And agency CEO Kim Kwang-soo has denied the widespread rumors of bullying within T-ara, saying in a statement that the company has made the decision for better teamwork. This is not the only bullying claim to surface. Other popular idol girl groups such as Girls’ Generation, Kara, Wonder Girls and Afterschool were all once embroiled in similar scandals. After Tuesday’s announcement, both Korean and overseas fans have expressed their anger and disappointment in the misbehavior of some singers. “I cannot believe such thing really happened to my favorite Korean girl group,” said a 25-year-old Chinese woman, who wished to remain anonymous, Wednesday. “I am not sure if I will remain a K-pop admirer like I used to be because this whole childish behavior has kind of disillusioned me and other biAug 1, 2012By Do Je-hae
2NE1 triumph in year's most thrilling concertBy Kwaak Je-yup The K-pop girl group 2NE1 are often called Korea’s TLC. In Sunday’s concert, however, the four Korean girls showed not only can they match America’s hottest female act of the ’90s but even better them onstage. They aptly began the show with the thrilling club-banger “I Am the Best,” which the group sang again as the final encore of the two-hour set. And what came in between proved that bold claim. Though they made their debut in the summer of 2009 as the “female Bigbang” their show was superior to their label-mates’ performance earlier this year. Seoul’s Olympic Gymnastics Stadium, the city’s largest indoor arena, was slightly below full capacity, with some of the most affordable seats empty but that did not deter 2NE1 from bringing their best. The choreography, upgraded by one of the industry’s best, Travis Payne, was flawless and their pipes were in top shape despite the intricate dance moves. More often than not, the strength of their voices made pre-recorded tracks meaningless, at times even overpowering the back-up band. The level of energy, Jul 30, 2012