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Accordionist rises like phoenix after fire

Accordionist Shim Sung-rak / Courtesy of Paper RecordCrowdfunding campaign to replace burnt instrumentBy Kwon Mee-yoo Accordionist Shim Sung-rak, 80, lost his only accordion in a fire at his home in Seoul last month. Despite the unexpected loss of his longtime companion, Shim wanted to continue playing at a concert scheduled later that month.Hearing the news, Choi Sung-chul, director of Paper Records which organized the April concert, gave the accordionist a temporary loaner. After the concert, Choi came up with the idea to open a crowdfunding project to dedicate the accordion to the musician."We finished the concert successfully, but I wanted to do something for the musician who spent his life playing the accordion,” Choi said. “I thought it would be best if we could gift him the instrument so he can continue his life as a musician."Shim purchased the instrument for around 3.3 million won ($2,800) back in the 1980s, but now an accordion of the same model costs about 25 million won ($21,000). Over 17 million won was raised as of Tuesday, which is more than half of th

Jun 2, 2016
Accordionist rises like phoenix after fire

Busan Vice Mayor Cho Don-young shares knowledge on inviting foreign investment

 Cho Don-young, Busan vice mayor for investment policy / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul  By Kim Ji-soo The seaside city of Busan is largely known for its port logistics, good people and international film festival. Lately, it has made news after being named the host for Microsoft’s new data center, which will be built to better service users of Office 365 and the cloud platform Azure.Microsoft Korea said that it will build two data centers, in Seoul and Busan respectively, in the near future.One of the key man behind the move is Cho Don-young, vice mayor of Busan who is also in charge of investment policy. He and the city government are working to turn the city of 3.6 million people into a viable Northeast Asian investment hub.A long-time international salesman, Cho, 68, had served as vice president of Renault Samsung Motors for nine years from 2001 through 2010. In August 2010, he was appointed as Busan’s new investment chief. And before that, the graduate of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the University of Southern California graduate

Jun 1, 2016By Kim Ji-soo
Busan Vice Mayor Cho Don-young shares knowledge on inviting foreign investment

Entrepreneur seeks to spread Korean culture to world

Moon Hyun-woo, head of Arirang School / Courtesy of Moon Hyun-wooBy Kim Hyo-jinMoon Hyun-woo, head of Arirang School, calls himself a “Korean culture planner.”He runs classes and performances to introduce traditional music and arts to the public. At his school, an Indonesian student plays a gayageum, a Korean zither with 12 strings, and a Japanese student sings pansori, the traditional Korean vocal performance. On Hangeul Day, he introduced a project of decorating rusty walls with Korean letters and had school artists perform a calligraphy show. At the end of last year, he staged a traditional music street performance downtown in front of the Salvation Army’s charity pots.Arirang School is a three-year-old social venture Moon established to promote Korea’s culture to the public. It has grown into a leading culture platform providing performance opportunities for majors in traditional Korean arts and learning opportunities for ordinary people who want to experience Korean culture.The 30-year-old entrepreneur says he dreams of launching second and third Arirang

Jun 1, 2016
Entrepreneur seeks to spread Korean culture to world

Starkey Korea shines at Rotary Convention

Starkey Korea CEO Richard Shim, left, poses with Rotary Club Governor Kim Do-youl,  in front of its booth while attending this year’s Rotary Conventionat KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Starkey KoreaBy Lee Min-hyungStarkey Korea participated in this year’s Rotary Convention, as part of its efforts to extend humanitarian aid to the world, the company said Tuesday.The local subsidiary of the hearing aid manufacturer offers free hearing tests and consultations at its booth during the five-day event, which kicked off Saturday at the KINTEX convention center in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.The Rotary International Convention is held in a different city annually, discussing ways to tackle humanitarian challenges facing the world.“The Rotary Club has made a miraculous donation for 6 million children suffering from polio across the world,” U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in a congratulatory speech at the event, Saturday.The number of participants for this year’s convention was the largest ever, participated in by some 50,000

May 31, 2016
Starkey Korea shines at Rotary Convention

Time to pay attention to bank loan: investor

Eastspring Asset Management Chief Marketing Officer Alex Ye / Courtesy of Eastspring Asset ManagementBy Naｍ Hyun-wooThis is the time for investors to turn their eyes to bank loan trusts amid growing expectations that the U.S. Fed may raise its key rate in June, said Alex Ye, chief marketing officer of Eastspring Asset Management.“Unlike general bonds, a bank loan is a product with variable rates, meaning a potential rate raise will bring higher interest gains compared to other bond assets,” the veteran asset manager said in an e-mail interview with The Korea Times. “Given the nature of the investment in a bank loan, it bears significant meaning for investors in the current trend of low interest rates.”A bank loan here refers to any loans given to companies whose credit rating assigned by Standard and Poor’s is below BBB-. Since companies have to repay their loans prior to other types of debts, it is less volatile and relatively stable.“According to the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee, the majority of Fed members suggested that a key ra

May 30, 2016
Time to pay attention to bank loan: investor

Sangmyung University Museum holds European pottery exhibition

Sangmyung University President Goo Kee-heon, left, and Sangmyung Academic Foundation Chairman Lee Jun-bang, second from left, participate in a ribbon-cutting ceremony to launch a European porcelain exhibition at Sangmyung University Museum in Seoul, Monday. Posing with them are Executive Vice President for Development and External Affairs Kim Chong-hee, second from right, and Vice President Hong Seong-tae. / Courtesy of Sangmyung UniversityBy Chung Hyun-chaeThe Sangmyung University Museum launched a three-month exhibition featuring 200 pieces of European porcelain, Monday, to celebrate the 79th anniversary of the Sangmyung Academy Foundation and the 51st anniversary of Sangmyung University. “Ours is the only university museum that holds European porcelain in our collections,” said Lyu Han-su, director of the museum. The exhibition includes a Meissen Blue Onion Tea Set decorated in Chinese patterns, made by potters in Meissen, eastern Germany, in the 18th century.Also on display is the Royal Crown Derby Imari Tea Set having Japanese patterns, manufactured by

May 30, 2016
Sangmyung University Museum holds European pottery exhibition

Ex-President's brother-in-law dies

Lee Seong-hoBy Kim Ji-soo Lee Seong-ho, brother-in-law to the late former President Kim Dae-jung, has passed away. He was 85, various reports said Friday.Police officials in Jongno District, downtown Seoul, said that they found Lee lying still in his officetel residence Tuesday, after receiving a call from an acquaintance of Lee’s that he could not be reached.Lee, the youngest brother of former First Lady Lee Hee-ho, graduated from Gyeongbok High School and Seoul National University, after which he went to the United States and studied at Emory University. He at one time headed a Korea-American group in Washington, D.C., and also ran a travel agency.He returned to Korea in 1985, setting up a travel agency to take care of the travel of his brother-in-law who at that time was at the Party for Peace and Democracy.Lee was often dubbed an “insider” in President Kim Dae-jung’s administration (1998-2003) but was implicated in graft scandals afterwards.Lee divorced and his two sons also live in the United States, leaving him to live alone in Korea. A mortuary is

May 27, 2016
Ex-President's brother-in-law dies

Taxi driver is 35-year volunteer in traffic control

Yang Pan-young controls traffic at the crossroads in front of Jeongeupseo Elementary School in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province. He has been doing this as a volunteer every morning for the past 35 years.  / YonhapBy Kim Rahn Every morning for the past 35 years, students at Jeongeupseo Elementary School in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province, have met a person on their way to school ― not a teacher but a taxi driver who works as a traffic control volunteer at the crossroads near the school.Yang Pan-young, 76, started his voluntary work in 1982 when he was named an “exemplary driver” by police, the title given to taxi and bus drivers who have not had an accident for 10 years.“Living through a poor childhood, I had wanted to serve society when I grew up,” he said. “I didn’t have much money to help others, so I came up with the idea of helping with traffic control work that I could do without having to pay any money.”Meeting every morning of their years as schoolchildren, Yang and the students get to know each other well. If Y

May 27, 2016
Taxi driver is 35-year volunteer in traffic control

Luna of f(x) to drop solo mini album

LunaBy Kim JI-soo Luna, main vocalist of the girl band f(x), will release a mini-album titled “Free Somebody” on Tuesday. This will be the first solo album for Luna since her debut seven years ago. She is the second member of f(x) to make a solo album. Fellow f(x) member Amber released the solo EP “Beautiful” in February 2015 and followed it up with singles as well.The 22-year-old Luna in recent years has been actively participating in various original sound tracks and winning the network MBC’s “King of Mask Singer” program, in which singers compete wearing masks. She also starred in the musical “In the Heights,” and in the movie “Lightning Man” (2016) and also in dramas.  In the album “Free Somebody,” Luna presents six songs that feature a musical style different from that of her group. The four-member girl band is known for their eclectic, electropop-based sound. 

May 26, 2016
Luna of f(x) to drop solo mini album

Monk helps Nepalese people in need

Ven. WoljuBy Jhoo Dong-chan Song Wol-ju, or Ven. Wolju, established a non-governmental organization (NGO), The Good Hands, to help poor people across the world in 2003.The 81-year-old Buddhist monk and The Good Hands have visited remote areas in poor countries, including Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia, to build water supply systems and schools.Nepal is also one of the countries where the organization has worked since 2008, building schools, a youth education center and social enterprises.“Last year’s earthquake in Nepal killed 8,700 and injured 22,000 people. A total of 1.6 million children lost their schools,” said Ven. Wolju.“I believe education is fundamental in fighting poverty and improving the economy. The Good Hands have thus far built one youth education center, two public schools and three elementary schools.”When the earthquake struck the country in April of last year, The Good Hands carried out six different relief projects to help 60,000 Nepalese in need.The goodwill organization has already spent over 900 million won ($758,000) to help stud

May 26, 2016
Monk helps Nepalese people in need
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