Jean-Efflam Bavouzet to show maturing pianism

In the world of music, some artists hit their peak fast and decline while others make incremental improvements throughout their career.French pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet is a good example of the latter. He won the International Beethoven Piano Competition in 1986 but it was in 1995 that he received the international spotlight by performing with the legendary maestro Georg Solti, who invited him to perform Bartok’s Piano Concerto No.1 with the Orchestre de Paris. Bavouzet holds the title of the

PerformanceOct. 14, 2013

Japanese breakdancer wins Asia-Pacific contest

FUKUOKA, Japan (AFP) ― A Japanese breakdancer has spun and somersaulted his way into the sport’s global finals to be staged in South Korea next month after winning a regional competition on home soil. Noritoshi “Nori” Kikuchi showed off a series of downrocks, power moves and freezes to emerge victorious at the “Red Bull BC One” contest held inside a historic Shinto shrine in the southern city of Fukuoka on Saturday.The knockout tournament featured 16 elite dancers from several countries, includi

PerformanceOct. 14, 2013

Parov Stelar Band to bring retro sounds for first time

One of the leading pioneers of mashing together new and old school music, DJ Parov Stelar, and his band will be returning to Seoul with the band’s unique style of swing-time pop and electronica in their first solo concert in Korea next month. The band has performed on a number of occasions in Seoul as part of the line-up for various jazz festivals, including the annual Seoul Jazz Festival. This time, however, the Parov Stelar Band is bringing its brass and rhythm infused electronic sounds in a f

PerformanceOct. 14, 2013

CJ’s Pan-Asian film in English opens Hawaii International Film Fest

Korean entertainment conglomerate CJ E&M’s English-language movie “Final Recipe” had its U.S. premiere on Thursday as the opening film of the Hawaii International Film Festival. Helmed by Korean director Gina Kim and starring singer Henry Lau and actress Michelle Yeoh, “Final Recipe” is one of CJ E&M’s international projects alongside Bong Joon-ho’s sci-fi flick “Snowpiercer” and Korea-China joint production “A Wedding Invitation.” The film, jointly written by Kim and Chinese-American screenwrit

FilmOct. 14, 2013

Zimbabwean baby with congential heart defect recovers health in Korea

A Zimbabwean infant with a congenital heart defect has received life-altering treatment in Korea.Seo Dong-man, a cardiothoracic surgeon at Konkuk University Medical Center in Seoul, recently performed an operation on Success Kudzaishe Zingombe, a one-year-old girl who suffered from severe respiratory distress due to a ventricular septal defect.The defect is located in the ventricular septum, the wall dividing the left and right ventricles of the heart. The baby weighed about 2 kilograms when she

PeopleOct. 14, 2013

U.N. chief wins alumni award from Seoul National University

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon received an alumni award from his alma mater in Seoul Monday for his contribution to world peace, the university said.Seoul National University (SNU) conferred the Distinguished Alumnus Award on Ban “for his decades of service to his home country and his contribution to global peace and the welfare of all mankind as the U.N. chief,” it said. The award ceremony was held Monday to mark the school’s foundation day. Ban did not attend the ceremony due to his tight

PeopleOct. 14, 2013

Lee Chun-soo accused of assault

South Korean soccer player Lee Chun-soo is suspected of assaulting a man at a bar and will be summoned for questioning later this week, Incheon Namdong Police Station said Monday.According to police officials, Lee got into a quarrel with a 30-year-old man surnamed Kim at 12:45 a.m. Monday at a bar in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul. Lee allegedly slapped Kim twice in the face and threw a bottle of beer at a table. The alleged victim said that he and Lee’s party ― Lee, his wife and two of hi

PeopleOct. 14, 2013

Wind succeeds pine in new Bae Bien-u collection

Ever since pine trees launched photographer Bae Bien-u to global fame, they always seemed to remain his signature pieces. But long before he began capturing pine trees, he had had a broad range of subjects in mind. Born in the southern coastal town of Yeosu, the artist was inspired by natural elements such as the sea, wind and trees.Having photographed diverse landscapes for more than 20 years, Bae gathered pictures under the title “Windscape” for the first time and showed them in Paris, Berlin

PerformanceOct. 13, 2013

Directing debuts, Tarantino and a typhoon: BIFF closes 18th edition

The 18th Busan International Film Festival closed on Saturday with the screening of “The Dinner” by Korean filmmaker Kim Dong-hyun.The 10-day festival sold over 217,000 tickets for the 299 films screened, in spite of a rare October typhoon that hit Busan four days before its closing day. BIFF was attended by more than 220,000 viewers last year during its 17th edition, which remains a record for the festival.This year’s edition was filled with highly anticipated directorial debuts by prominent Ko

FilmOct. 13, 2013

Singer Shin Seung-hoon to release new album

The “King of Ballads” Shin Seung-hoon will be back on the pop scene for the first time in four years with the release of a new mini album, “Great Wave,” on Oct. 23. Shin, who has 10 regular and two mini albums, on Friday said he has finished the mastering of the new album. “Shin has been exploring different genres of music lately. The ‘Great Wave’ is the final part of his experimental trilogy: ‘Radio Wave’ (2008), covering modern and alternative rock; and ‘Love O’clock’ (2009) featuring R&B,” sa

PerformanceOct. 13, 2013

Preparing ground for future hip-hop artists

This is the 10th in a series on producers, MCs, DJs and artists working in the Korean underground hip-hop scene. ― Ed.Producer and owner of hip-hop club In2Deep Onesun considers himself lucky. Back when he first became interested in hip-hop ― in the ’90s ― there was almost none to be found in Korea. Because of its explicit nature, hip-hop wasn’t imported to the country. But, Onesun listened to the Armed Forces Network and went to France in middle school. Through that he was exposed to popular mu

PerformanceOct. 13, 2013

Seoul City plans to pass bylaws to preserve modern heritage

The Seoul Metropolitan Government is seeking to preserve modern historic sites at risk of being damaged or lost ― such as Korea’s oldest restaurant, first apartment and first power plant ― as heritage of the capital.Officials said Sunday that the municipal authorities would pass bylaws to protect modern landmarks of Seoul from rapid urban development. Seoul heritage of the past century includes a house habited by Ham Seok-heon, an independence fighter, publisher, columnist, Christian civil right

PeopleOct. 13, 2013

[Photo News] Reenacted Joseon exam

PeopleOct. 13, 2013

At U.N., Minister Cho demands Japan apologize for sex slavery during WWII

Gender Equality Minister Cho Youn-sun on Friday urged the Japanese government to officially provide an apology and compensation to surviving sex slaves from World War II.“I urge that the responsible government recognize its legal liability and take appropriate measures acceptable to the victims, as recommended by UN human rights mechanisms,” the minister said at a meeting of the United Nation’s Third Committee held in New York. Cho also presented testimony of wartime Korean comfort women and exp

PeopleOct. 12, 2013

Korean craft beer coming of age

Scout, a small 28-seat drink-and-dine spot in Hannam-dong, serves Magpie Brewing Co.’s unfiltered Pale Ale and Porter straight from the tap along with great eats.(Lee Sang-sub/The Korea Hearld)These days, craft beer, the heady stuff brewed in small batches by independent-minded folks, flows freely from taps throughout Seoul. Locally-produced, unfiltered and potent to the palate, these brews have been attracting a great deal of press recently, mainly because only a decade ago the craft beer marke

FoodOct. 11, 2013

Calendar

Dance “Chum, Chunhyang” and “Giselle”: The Korean National Ballet and the National Dance Company of Korea are presenting the romantic ballet “Giselle” and traditional Korean dance “Chum, Chunhyang” at the National Theater of Korea from Oct. 17 to 23. It is the first time that the two dances will be performed at the same venue, the National Theater of Korea, on alternate days. “Chum, Chunhyang” will be performed on Oct. 17, 19, 23, while “Giselle” will be staged on Oct. 18, 20, 22. For more infor

CultureOct. 11, 2013

Eyelike: Rookie artist shines on ‘Jackasoul’

Rookie artist shines on ‘Jackasoul’Mayson The Soul“Jackasoul”(KT Music)Mayson The Soul’s first creation “Jackasoul” is a soulful start for the up-and-coming rookie R&B artist. The 8-track album starts strong with “Holiday,” featuring Beenzino’s smooth rapping. The song has a neo-soul buzz, mixing in different effects for a multi-layered sound enhanced with Mayson’s quality vocals. “Lost” is one of the heavier-sounding songs on the album, with distorted guitar riffs that run throughout in-between

PerformanceOct. 11, 2013

Box Office: Hwa-yi, Rush, Runner Runner

Hwa-yiOpened Oct. 9Action. Thriller. Directed by Jang Joon-hwan. A five-member crime organization lives on a deserted farm in the middle of a forest. A plan-gone-wrong leaves the gang with a kidnapped boy, and the five members -- Seok-tae (Kim Yoon-seok), Ki-tae (Jo Jin-woong), Jin-sung (Jang Hyun-sung), Dong-beom (Kim Sung-kun), and Beom-soo (Park Hae-joon) -- raise the boy as their son. The boy, named Hwa-yi (Yeo Jin-goo), longs for an ordinary life but is deprived of his childhood, forced to

FilmOct. 11, 2013

Hanks and his co-star: An encounter at sea

It’s a moment rife with dread, surprise, panic, suspense. In “Captain Phillips,” Paul Greengrass’ white-knuckle re-enactment of the 2009 hijacking of a U.S.-flagged freighter in the Arabian Sea, four Somali pirates take the bridge of the Maersk Alabama.It is the first time that Muse, the lean, stone-eyed leader of the marauders, and Richard Phillips, the mariner in charge of the giant container vessel, meet.And for Greengrass, it was a doubly crucial moment. He had cast Barkhad Abdi, a Somali-Am

FilmOct. 11, 2013