INTERVIEW 'Beethoven is in my soul, body, and heart' Pianist Rudolf Buchbinder. Courtesy of VINCEROAustria's renowned pianist Rudolf Buchbinder talks about his life-long love for BeethovenBy Anna J. Park Pianist Rudolf Buchbinder, 72, is a legendary Beethoven specialist, who has performed Ludwig van Beethoven's complete 32 piano sonata cycles more than 50 times in over 30 cities, including Munich, Vienna, Zurich and Buenos Aires, over the course of his more than sixty-year music career. He is also the first pianist who played all Beethoven's piano sonatas at the Salzburg Festival in 2014, which was recorded as a live DVD. 2020 will mark the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth and in light of the occasion, the renowned pianist is giving recitals of some of the most popular Beethoven sonatas in his 2019/20 season, including Korea as one of the destinations.Since early May, he has toured the cities of Daegu and Gwangju, and his two remaining recitals in Korea during this visit will be held at the Arts Center Incheon on Saturday and at the Seoul Arts Center on Sunday. He will play Beethoven sonata No. 10, 13, 25, as well as No. 8, widelMay 9, 2019By Anna J. Park
INTERVIEW Producer recounts joy, pain of Classic FM radio producing Classic FM Producer Kim Hye-seon posing at a live radio studio at KBS, last Friday. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukBy Anna J. ParkAnyone in Korea who wants to listen to classical music can easily tune into KBS Classic FM, or 93.1 MHz FM in the metropolitan area of Seoul. You can listen to classical music all day long for free, without any advertisements. Classic FM radio has been such a boon for classical music lovers in Korea over the last 40 years, since the channel was launched in 1979. This year, the channel celebrates its 40th anniversary, with various special events, including a release of special compilation CDs. The radio channel's veteran producer Kim Hye-seon is behind all these commemorative projects, and she herself is an integral part of the history of Classic FM. She spent the last 34 years at the KBS 1FM radio station and she has played a significant part in the channel's four-decade history. She is the most senior producer, who still makes a daily two-hour show for the channel ― “Classical FM Family with Kim Mee-sook,” the station's morning flagship progMay 7, 2019By Anna J. Park
Seoul Philharmonic appoints Finnish maestro Osmo Vanska as new music director Maestro Osmo Vanska. Courtesy of Greg HelgesonSibelius specialist and 'orchestra builder' maestro Vanska finally fills SPO's music director post, which has been empty since late 2015 By Anna J. ParkThe Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) has appointed Finnish maestro Osmo Vanska, 66, as its new music director for three years from January 2020. The conductor has served as the Minnesota Orchestra's music director for more than 15 years. He is also a conductor laureate of Finland's Lahti Symphony Orchestra, which he led as chief conductor for 20 years from 1988 to 2008. He is also honorary conductor of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, which he led from 1993 to 1996.Vanska is an internationally acclaimed Sibelius and Mahler specialist, with a Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance in 2013 for Sibelius Symphonies No. 1 and No. 4. His other orchestral albums on Mahler, Beethoven and Bruckner symphonies were also Grammy-nominated ― in 2001, 2007, 2012 and 2017. Seoul Philharmonic President and CEO Kang Eun-kyung, also known as Annette Eunkyung Kang, stressed that besides the Finnish conMay 3, 2019By Anna J. Park
INTERVIEW Violinist Bomsori Kim opens new era for Kumho Art Hall Yonsei Bomsori Kim. Courtesy of Harold HoffmanBy Anna J. ParkBomsori Kim, 29, one of the busiest and most sought-after Korean violinists, has returned to her homeland this week to give a recital at Kumho Art Hall Yonsei in Seoul, this evening. Her recital was part of the Beautiful Thursday concert series, which Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation has been hosting weekly for more than a decade now.Her recital's title “Da Capo: From the beginning” has added meaning, as it is the first “Beautiful Thursday” concert to be held at the new venue, since Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation relocated its headquarters to Kumho Art Hall Yonsei earlier this week. The art hall is located on the campus of Yonsei University in Seoul's popular college district of Sinchon. The previous Kumho Art Hall, located in Gwanghwamun, the center of Seoul's business district, had to permanently close at the end of April, due to a failure to renew its lease. This was sad news for classical music fans to lose a landmark art hall in the heart of the Seoul business district; but the Beautiful Thursday conMay 1, 2019By Anna J. Park
Violist Richard Yongjae O'Neill recounts magic of chamber music Richard Yongjae O'Neill speaks during a press conference at Somerset Palace Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of CrediaViolist prepares last installment of his 12-year-old Ditto Festival set for JuneBy Anna J. ParkRichard Yongjae O'Neill is one of the most beloved classical musicians in Korea with his warm and deeply-felt viola sound. It's not common for violists to gain popular support, partly due to the viola's neutral and less conspicuous sound than other string instruments like the violin and the cello, but Richard Yongjae O'Neill, the American artist of Korean descent, not only boasts stellar musical achievements as an internationally acclaimed viola soloist with an Emmy Award, two-time Grammy nominations and Avery Fisher Career Grant, but also enjoys a wide popularity in his motherland.“I am so lucky, because I'm not myself that special at all, but I think I have been so lucky to have met these extraordinary human beings, who helped me evolve from this little country boy to be the musician I am today and hopefully the musician I want to be in the future,” the humble violist tApr 30, 2019By Anna J. Park
Star soprano Sumi Jo dedicates new album 'Mother' to all mothers Sumi Jo and Federico Paciotti speak during a press conference held at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in southern Seoul, Tuesday. Paciotti performs duets with Jo during her concert tour of Korea. Courtesy of SMIBy Anna J. ParkGrammy Award-winning soprano Sumi Jo has returned with her newest album “Mother” and unveiled her tour schedule in Korea. “This album is dedicated to all the mothers in the world,” Jo, 56, said during a press conference in Seoul, Tuesday. “I always hoped to make an album for mothers and finally I found the courage to do it. The 13 songs come not only from the classical music genre, but also from crossover and traditional Korean minyo songs."“It was particularly hard to choose only 13 songs out of the countless musical pieces about mothers out there. I wanted to make an album through which everyone in the world could feel a mother's warmth as they listen to it, so I included traditional songs from Poland and Scotland as well.” Jo said the album is special to her. Her mother, who discovered and nurtured Jo's Apr 23, 2019By Anna J. Park
INTERVIEW 'Immerse yourself in traditional Korean folk music' Folk Music Group's artistic director Kim Young-kil with his "ajaeng," Korea's traditional low-pitched string instrument. Courtesy of the National Gugak CenterFolk Music Group celebrates 40th anniversaryBy Anna J. Park While some global music fans seem to be fanatical about K-pop, others might have wondered what traditional Korean music sounds like. For those unfamiliar with it, Kim Young-kil, 57, artistic director of the Folk Music Group, one of three traditional music companies affiliated with the National Gugak Center, explains that Korean folk music embodies all the primal sounds of all the people who ever lived on the Korean Peninsula. “Traditional folk music runs through our veins. It is the collection of primitive sounds that we heard as lullabies, or the sounds of peasants working fields. Lamentations became songs, wind blowing through bamboo forests became inspired music played on the daegeum bamboo flute. As it is the sound of nature, audience members can get glimpses of their hometowns or ancestors when listening to it,” Kim told The Korea Times during a recent Apr 21, 2019By Anna J. Park
INTERVIEW Violinist Lee Ji-yoon speaks on what it's like to be concertmaster Violinist Lee Ji-yoon. Courtesy of WCNBy Anna J. ParkIt's been nearly a year since Korean violinist Lee Ji-yoon, 26, has been granted lifetime tenure as the concertmaster at the Staatskapelle Berlin. Founded in 1570, it is one of the leading and oldest orchestras in the world. Lee is the first Asian concertmaster of the German orchestra. “I think this is truly the best experience that one can have in his or her twenties. You get to work with great conductors and great instrumentalists in diverse genres of classical music, ranging from Baroque to contemporary. Playing for the orchestra, I learn so much, like new perspectives on music pieces,” Lee said during a recent interview with The Korea Times, when she visited Seoul for a concert with the Incheon Philharmonic Orchestra at Seoul Arts Center last Wednesday. Lee, the first-prize winner of the 2016 Carl Nielsen Violin, auditioned for the post of concertmaster at the Staatskapelle Berlin in May 2017, and started working in September 2017. It usually takes a two-year trial period before being granted the lifetime tenure, buApr 16, 2019By Anna J. Park
INTERVIEW Korean bamboo flute daegeum's sound connects East and West Daegeum player Yoo Hong rehearses on stage at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul. Courtesy photo of Nah Seung YullKorean artist plays daegeum for global audiences By Anna J. ParkUnlike other bamboo flute musicians, who perform traditional Korean court or folk music for local audiences here in Korea, Yoo Hong's target audience is beyond the borders. Yoo, 40, a traditional Korean bamboo flutist or daegeum player based in Berlin, is a pioneer who has fascinated European audiences with the exotic sound of the musical instrument. He initially studied classical guitar. After playing it for several years, he changed his musical course when he was 13 and decided to play the traditional Korean bamboo flute, called the daegeum. “I was struck by the sound of the daegeum, when I attended a music concert by chance. The sound was so new and unimaginable that I was totally fascinated. I decided to make that sound myself,” Yoo said during a recent interview with The Korea Times.Yoo explained the daegeum's special sound comes from the instrument's structure. It has one mouthpiApr 12, 2019By Anna J. Park
INTERVIEW Much coveted music festival ends, yet TIMF CEO Riem still busy Florian Riem, CEO of Tongyeong International Music Foundation (TIMF) / Courtesy of TIMF By Anna J. ParkKorea's southern city of Tongyeong boasts some of the country's most breathtaking seaside scenery, attracting both domestic and international tourists. The local tourism industry is not the only beneficiary of Tongyeong's natural assets. The Tongyeong International Music Foundation (TIMF), which leads the city's cultural activities and hosts an annual music festival, partly owes its success to the city's wonderful natural setting.TIMF CEO Florian Riem, 50, has overseen overall affairs of the foundation since he took the helm in 2014. The music foundation hosts the Tongyeong International Music Festival every spring, an annual international classical music festival launched in 2002, and manages the yearly programming of Tongyeong Concert Hall, a state-of-the-art music hall built in 2014 right next to the sea. The foundation also holds the annual International ISANGYUN Competition, a classical music competition to commemorate the accomplishments of the late composer Yun I-sang (1917-1Apr 9, 2019By Anna J. Park
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