Pianist Kissin mesmerizes Korean audience again with four encores Pianist Evgeny Kissin performs during a solo recital held at the Lotte Concert Hall, Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of Lotte Foundation for ArtsBy Park Ji-won“His music reminded me of an encounter with my loved one,” Choi Eun-kyu, a violinist and classical music critic, said after the recital by Russian pianist Evgeny Kissin at the Lotte Concert Hall, Seoul, Monday. Kissin is one of the most popular concert pianists in Korea.Indeed, the 50-year-old pianist, who has visited Korea five times since 2006, made the 1,600 audience members feel that they and his music were inseparable. As the audience's applause continued, he had to move between the stage and backstage nine times after the planned program ended, in order to play four more pieces. Whenever he smiled, the audience applauded louder. He asked the staff to place a big mirror backstage for him to check his appearance, but he had no time to take a look at it, as he was too busy going back and forth for the encores. The tickets for the concert were sold-out within 25 minutes, its organizer said.Pianist Evgeny Kissin performs dNov 24, 2021By Park Ji-won
INTERVIEW For Chopin competition winner Bruce Liu, piano is a 'hobby' he has passion for Bruce Liu, the winner of the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition / Courtesy of the Chopin InstituteBy Park Ji-wonClassical music fans all over the world were excited to watch the 18th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition held last month, expecting the emergence of a star pianist who could influence the classical music industry for some time to come. Korean fans had especially high expectations for the contest, as the winner of the last competition held six years ago was Korea's own Cho Seong-jin.However, Lee Hyuk, a Korean finalist in the competition, failed to win a prize, as Canadian pianist Bruce Xiaoyu Liu won the top spot with unique and skilled performance. The winner who is currently having an international “marathon-like” tour after the competition, will hold a concert with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, led by associate conductor Wilson Ng, at the Seoul Arts Center (SAC), Nov. 27. He will be playing Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11; Berlioz's Le Carnaval Romain Overture and Shostakovich's Symphony No. 9 in E-flat majNov 23, 2021By Park Ji-won
Pianist Kim Jeong-won to perform reflections of his past, present, future Pianist Kim Jeong-won performs during a press conference held at Yamaha Music Communication Center, Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of Kreis ClassicBy Park Ji-wonAlthough Korea's market for classical music has grown larger, few classical musicians have reached the “fandom” level.But Pianist Kim Jeong-won, 46, had fans from the early stages of his career; a loyal fandom, who have been eagerly supporting him since he was in his 20s when he advanced to the third round of the Chopin International Piano Competition in 2000 ― many of who still remain loyal.Since his debut recital in Korea in 2001, Kim has taken a unique career path as a musician, taking various roles ranging from a pianist to a DJ.Following completion of postgraduate studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna ― the youngest student ever to do so ― he went on to study at the Conservatoire National Superieur de la Musique de Paris. He performed as a pianist in the film “For Horowitz” (2006) and was a faculty member at Kyung Hee University from 2009 to 2017. He took on the role of artistNov 18, 2021By Park Ji-won
14-year-old singer from 'Mr. Trot' drops 1st studio album Singer Jeong Dong-won poses during an online press event Wednesday. Courtesy of Show PLAY EntertainmentBy Dong Sun-hwaTV Chosun's “Mr. Trot,” a singing survival show for male singers of trot music ― which enjoyed its heyday in Korea during the 1960s and '70s ― was undoubtedly one of the most popular programs last year. All seven winners from “Mr. Trot” rose to meteoric stardom thanks to the show's success, and Jeong Dong-won, the youngest one, became a household name.Jeong was a standout among all the contenders largely because of his young age: he was only 13 in 2020 when he won the title. So many people called him a trot “prodigy.” With his first full-length album, “The Giving Tree,” which hit shelves Wednesday, he is now ready to prove that he deserves the nickname.“It has taken about a year-and-a-half for me to gear up for the album, as I endeavored to make it perfect,” Jeong said during an online press conference Wednesday. The event was held a few hours before the album's release. “I know I cannot remain a child Nov 17, 2021By Dong Sun-hwa
Elias Brown wins 1st KSO conducting competition Elias Brown conducts the Korean Symphony Orchestra (KSO) on Sunday during the first KSO International Conducting Competition held at the Seoul Arts Center from Nov. 10 to Sunday. Courtesy of KSOBy Park Ji-wonPoster for the KSO International Conducting Competition / Courtesy of KSOConductor Elias Brown of the United States has won first prize at the first KSO International Conducting Competition, co-hosted by the Korean Symphony Orchestra (KSO) and the Seoul Arts Center held at the art complex from Nov. 10 to Sunday.He finished first in the competition among 166 applicants from 42 countries competing for the title. In the first round on Wednesday, 12 conductors advanced, and in the second round held Friday, five of them were eliminated. Germany-based Korean conductor Yoon Han-kyeol and U.S.-based Linhan Cui from China came in second and third, respectively.Park Sun-hee, CEO of the KSO, told The Korea Times that one of the most important criteria in selecting the winners was how well they can communicate with the orchestra members.Brown, who commenced his studies at Universitat der KunNov 15, 2021By Park Ji-won
REVIEW Vienna Philharmonic lifts spirts of classical music fans Conductor Riccardo Muti conducts the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Seoul, Sunday. Courtesy of Sejong Center for the Performing ArtsBy Park Ji-wonIt was a very special night for classical music fans. The prestigious Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (VPO) led by Riccardo Muti performed Mozart, Schubert and Johan Strauss at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in central Seoul on Sunday.Expectations were high even before the performance, because it was the most-anticipated and biggest performance in Korea by an overseas ensemble since the COVID-19 pandemic started. The 100-minute program included two classic Austrian orchestral masterpieces, Mozart's “Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385,” (the Haffner Symphony) and Schubert's “Symphony No. 9 in C Major” (the Great). As a result, even though the ticket price was relatively expensive for a classical concert here ― the most expensive VVIP seat was 430,000 won ($364.5) and the cheapest seat was 80,000 won ― 2,000 tickets were sold out within a day after sales started on Nov 15, 2021By Park Ji-won
Folk singer Lee Dong-won loses battle with esophageal cancer Late singer Lee Dong-won performs at a restaurant of Walkerhill Hotel in Gwangjin District, eastern Seoul, in this Oct. 22, 1989, photo. YonhapBy Park Han-solFolk singer Lee Dong-won, who is best-known for his 1989 lyrical duet of “Nostalgia” with tenor Park In-soo, died Sunday after battling esophageal cancer. He was 70.The singer passed away at the residence of his close friend, comedian Jeon Yoo-seong, at the foot of Mount Jiri in Namwon, North Jeolla Province.After making his debut in 1970, Lee has often been called a singer who elicits “autumnal emotions” with his signature poetic lyrics and melodies.For his best-known track, “Nostalgia,” the singer adapted a poem written by literary pioneer Jeong Ji-yong (1902-50) into a song ― to express an inconsolable, nostalgic longing for one's hometown. Performed as a duet between a pop singer and a classical vocalist, the song is reputed to have broadened the horizons of the Korean music scene in the 1990s.His other folk tracks, such as “Farewell Song,” “My Love” and “AutuNov 14, 2021By Park Han-sol
INTERVIEW Pianist Kim Dae-jin, president of K-Arts behind Koreans winning of global music competitions Pianist Kim Dae-jin, newly-elected president of the Korea National University of Arts, speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at his office on Nov. 2. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukBy Park Ji-wonKorea is now known as one of the leading countries in terms of having the largest number of winners of international competitions. Statistics show that Korean musicians won 150 top prizes in the World Federation of International Music Competitions-approved tournaments over the last 60 years as of 2017.Even Western media documented the secrets of the success of Korean classical musicians. Belgian filmmaker and TV director Thierry Loreau who has been making films on classical music and filming the final stages of the Queen Elisabeth Competition for more than two decades released documentary films on the wins, including "K-classics generation" (2020), a film tracing award-winning Korean classical musicians in international music competitions. He labeled the young Koreans dominating classical music competitions as the “K-classics generation” and considered it to be a cultuNov 11, 2021By Park Ji-won
Shamanic folk-pop band ADG7 goes on US tour as pandemic wanes Korean fusion folk-pop band ADG7 holds a North America tour in November. Courtesy of SORI ArtistsBy Kwon Mee-yooKorean folk-pop group Ak Dan Gwang Chil, also known as ADG7 internationally, has embarked on a North America tour this month, resuming live concerts as the COVID-19 pandemic situation settles.The nine-member band combines music used for Korea's shamanic "gut" ritual and "minyo" (folk songs) from Hwanghae Province, now in North Korea, to create a new style of traditionally minded Korean music for contemporary audiences. "Ak Dan" from the group's name means troupe and “Chil” means seven, as the band was established in 2015 when Korea commemorated the 70th anniversary of liberation from Japanese colonial rule. Unlike other Korean folk fusion bands which are open to the use of electronic instruments, ADG7 only uses traditional Korean instruments such as "gayageum" (12-string plucked zither), "daegeum" (bamboo flute) and "piri" (double-reed instrument). The band has received much attention both domestically and globally, reflecting the rising popularity of Korean musNov 10, 2021By Kwon Mee-yoo
Tens of thousands mourn death of Brazilian country music singer A fan holds a CD of Brazilian singer Marilia Mendonca while waiting in line to pay final respects, during a wake at the Ginasio Arena in Goiania, Brazil, Nov. 6. AP-YonhapStruck with grief, tens of thousands of fans gathered Saturday to pay tribute to Marilia Mendonca, one of Brazil's most popular singers who was killed a day earlier in an airplane crash at age 26.The Latin Grammy winner and four other passengers, including her producer and uncle, perished Friday when their plane crashed while flying from Mendonca's hometown of Goiania in Goias state to Caratinga, a small city in Minas Gerais state north of Rio de Janeiro.Some mourners arrived as early as Friday night to bid farewell to the country music singer, spending the night outside the large gymnasium in Goiania where Mendonca's wake was held. People stood in lines for hours Saturday in the sizzling heat, at times taking shelter from the sun under large umbrellas, waiting to pass by her coffin.``Her, dead, it doesn't make sense. Everyone likes her,'' said Tania Rodrigues, who was in the crowd with her 11-year-old daughter, RosNov 7, 2021
