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By Yun Suh-young
They did it again. Hyundai Card, a culture-leading financial services company, detonated another cultural bomb in the heart of Itaewon.
The Hyundai Card Music Library, which opened on May 22 on the main street of Itaewon, is the third library introduced by the company, following the first Design Library in Gahoe-dong, northern Seoul, and the second Travel Library in Cheongdam-dong, southern Seoul.
Even from a glance, the architecture is unique and eye-catching, luring passersby to step inside the space.
The building was designed by professor and architect Choi Moon-kyu of Yonsei University. Choi mapped out the open and empty design which has been realized as a hollow frame structure. Viewed from the front facade of the first floor, it looks as if viewers are looking outside from a window toward the Han River. Global architecture company Gensler took over the final interior design and finishing.
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The space aims to expand the realm of music and culture in the region. The library is where visitors can enjoy an analogue music culture while the "understage" is a hip cultural space for musicians of all genres.
The library on the second floor features rare collections of 10,000 vinyl albums of artists who left their mark on the music industry since the 1950s and onward. Visitors can select an LP album from the shelves and request a listening experience. There are also 3,000 music related publications that are difficult to find elsewhere.
Global curators such as DJ Scott Mou from New York and music journalist Hajime Oishi from Japan participated in the music selection along with Korean DJ Soulscape. The curators and Hyundai Card staff traveled to 11 countries over two years to collect rare albums from record shops and individual collectors.
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The rare collections include the "butcher cover" album, "Yesterday and Today" from The Beatles, limited editions of The Rolling Stones' albums and Led Zeppelin's earlier albums. The entire collection (1,161 editions) of Rolling Stone magazine ― from 1967 to today ― is also available.
At the Underground Stage on B2, various music concerts will be held of all genres. The space aims to hold a variety of performances not limited to music concerts but also plays and musicals.
The music concert hall accommodates up to 350 people for a standing concert and the Studio on B1 is equipped with three separate producing studios for indie musicians, who are collaborating with the company, to practice and record songs there.
The empty outdoor space will turn into an outdoor concert stage when young musicians perform on the busking stage created in the corner.
The outside wall of the building is a work of French street artist JR while the wall of the indoor stage is a creation of Portuguese graffiti artist Vhils.
Music Library info:
Address: 246 Itaewon-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
Operating hours: 12 p.m. - 9 p.m. (Tue-Sat); 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. (Sun) / Closed on Mondays, holidays
Admission: 8 free monthly admission for Hyundai card users
Understage info:
Ticket reservation:
Online: understage.hyundaicard.com
Offline: ticket counter on the first floor of the library
