[Herald Review] Lang Lang returns to Seoul for solo recital

Pianist Lang Lang (Lang Lang official site)In his first solo recital tour in Korea in five years, international piano superstar Lang Lang received cheers and applause fit for a classical icon Tuesday night.With a sizable international fan following unheard of for most classical musicians, the 33-year-old Chinese pianist is certainly no stranger to having the welcoming fanfare of a rock star. Some ticket-less spectators could be seen watching the virtuoso’s concert from a TV screen in the lobby o

Dec. 9, 2015

Herald Phil honored at 2015 Korea Opera Awards

Winners of this year‘s 8th Korea Opera Awards, including the orchestra prize-winning Herald Philharmonic Orchestra, founded by Herald Corp., pose at an awards ceremony held at the Press Center in central Seoul on Monday. (Korea Opera Awards)The Herald Philharmonic Orchestra, founded by Herald Corp., was honored with an arts award for orchestras at this year’s 8th Korea Opera Awards, held at the Press Center in central Seoul on Monday.Still in its infancy having debuted last October, the Herald P

Dec. 8, 2015

Lucid Fall to sell album, tangerines on home shopping network

Singer-songwriter Lucid Fall (Antenna Music)As part of an unusual “A Night With Tangerines” music package deal, singer-songwriter Lucid Fall will be prereleasing 1,000 copies of his upcoming seventh studio album on a TV home shopping program, along with tangerines from his orchard on Jejudo Island.According to the singer’s management agency Antenna Music, Lucid Fall’s upcoming 15-track “For Somebody” album will go on sale at 2 a.m. on Friday on the CJ O Shopping TV home shopping network. The pre

Dec. 8, 2015

‘La Traviata’ brings Korea National Opera’s 2015 season to a close

A scene from the Korea National Opera‘s new production of Giuseppe Verdi’s ”La Traviata“ (Korea National Opera)Following its staging of Wagner’s “The Flying Dutchman,” the Korea National Opera is unveiling its latest production of one of Giuseppe Verdi’s best-known operatic tales -- “La Traviata.”The upcoming production will be staged from Dec. 9-12 at the Seoul Arts Center’s Opera Theater, marking the KNO’s final performance of the year.The three-act Italian opera masterpiece is the quintessent

Dec. 8, 2015

Exhibition reflects the ‘messiness’ of thinking

The day before the opening of South African artist William Kentridge’s solo exhibition “Peripheral Thinking” at the Seoul branch of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, everything was in disarray. Kentridge’s silhouette cutouts, used in his animation works, hung on spots of the wall that would not conventionally be considered exhibition space. There was a cacophony of sounds, some musical and some not, quietly but consistently playing in a ringing jumble throughout the halls. Ligh

Dec. 7, 2015

[Herald Review] ‘The Sherlock’ combines magic and musical theater

Famed local magician Choi Hyun-woo is presenting his latest stage production, “The Sherlock: Gravity 503,” a magic show with a live musical flair and a dash of unscripted comedy. Choi, 37, was the first Asian winner of the Originality Award at the International Federation of Magic Societies’ 2009 World Championship of Magic -- the world’s largest magic competition -- and was also selected as the youngest judge at the federation’s 2012 championships. Choi first launched his series of live magic p

Dec. 7, 2015

Lang Lang to tackle Tchaikovsky, Bach and Chopin in Seoul recital

Pianist Lang Lang (Mast Media)Following his concert in Busan on Sunday night, world-renowned pianist Lang Lang is gearing up for his Korea tour’s final performance with a solo recital at the Seoul Arts Center on Tuesday night. Lang Lang’s performances this month mark the pianist’s first solo concert in the country in five years. The pianist is slated to play Tchaikovsky’s “The Seasons,” Bach’s Italian concerto “BWV 971” and Chopin’s “4 Scherzos.” Lang Lang’s first taste of classical music stardo

Dec. 6, 2015

How pianist Kim Sun-wook recreated Beethoven’s sonatas

In recording his album of Beethoven sonatas, released last month, pianist Kim Sun-wook wanted to create a sound of “complexity,” he told reporters Friday.Nine years since he entered the international spotlight at the 2006 Leeds Competition as the youngest and first Asian winner, Kim, now 27, married and with a reputation as something of a Beethoven expert in Korea, has grown more mature and confident in his music.“In your late 20s, your tastes and opinions become more certain. I’m still working

Dec. 6, 2015

Roy Kim lays down guitar for 3rd album

Singer-songwriter Roy Kim is going without his trademark guitar for his third studio-length album “The Great Dipper.”“I didn’t put down (the guitar) on purpose,” Kim said at a press showcase held at the Hyundai Card Understage in Seoul on Thursday. “After my second album, I was arranging my new songs and realized that many of them sounded better with piano rather than guitar.”“I also have been receiving positive responses to the ballads I’ve been singing on drama soundtracks, so I decided to try

Dec. 4, 2015

[Herald Review] Shed tears, be enthralled by ‘Les Miserables’

Let others rise. To take our place. Until the Earth is free -- hear the words of one of the longest running productions in musical history, Les Miserables, which has found its way back onto the local stage.  The Korean-language production made its premiere in 2012 and sparked a craze that led to more than 40 million viewers flocking to the theater to experience the musical that won four awards at the 19th annual Korean Musical Awards in 2013. A scene from the Korean reproduction of the musical “

Dec. 3, 2015

Controversial figure appointed to lead public art museum in Korea

Bartomeu Mari, former director of the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art, has been appointed to lead the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Wednesday. Mari is the first foreign director to lead the state-run public art museum in Korea. He is currently president of the International Committee for Museums and Collections of Modern Art.  Bartomeu Mari (MMCA)“We expect Mari to help the MMCA to gain a concrete foundation to upgrad

Dec. 2, 2015

Iconic directors’ works brought to museums

Two legendary filmmakers -- Stanley Kubrick and Philippe Garrel -- are the subjects of museum exhibitions, exploring the film genre as a complex form of art.The Seoul Museum of Art, in partnership with Hyundai Card, is holding a retrospective of American film director Stanley Kubrick (1928-1999), a touring exhibition that began in Frankfurt in 2004. Drawing on the extensive archives from Kubrick’s home and workplace, the exhibition features some 1,000 photographs, shooting schedules, scripts, le

Dec. 2, 2015

Long-awaited Psy album sweeps local music charts

Singer Psy once again swept local online music charts with double lead tracks “Napal Baji” and “Daddy” from his seventh full-length album Tuesday. Other tracks from the album ranked highly as well. (OSEN)His new nine-track album “Chiljip Psy-da” dropped Tuesday along with music videos for the two lead tracks, breaking a hiatus of three years and five months since his sixth album “Psy 6-gap,” which contained worldwide hit “Gangnam Style.” In the “Napal Baji” music video, the singer appears enthus

Dec. 1, 2015

Psy releases long-awaited 7th album

Psy‘s seventh studio-length album “Chiljip Psy-da” (known simply in English as Psy 7th Album) comes three years and five months after his sixth album, “Psy 6-gap,” which included the global sensation “Gangnam Style.”“It’s been too long,” he began at a press conference at the Conrad Hotel in Seoul on Monday.“Maybe it was pressure, maybe it was stress,” he said about the wait. “I kept thinking, ‘This won’t do as well as “Gangnam (Style)”’ ... or if I changed it, ‘Overseas fans wouldn’t understand

Nov. 30, 2015

Psy’s new MV is 100% going to go viral

A captured image from Psy's "Daddy" music video. (The Korea Herald)Psy released music videos for his long-waited seventh album “Chiljip Psy-da,” and we think this is going to go viral worldwide, and live up to the “Gangnam Style” fame. During a press conference held in Seoul on Monday, Psy unveiled music videos to “Napal Baji” and “Daddy,” both of which have a bouncy techno beat and a wacky mix of Korean and English lyrics. The album title plays on the name of a popular beverage in South Korea,

Nov. 30, 2015

[Herald Review] BTS continues to ‘Run’ forward with new concert, album

BTS performs their concert “The Most Beautiful Moment in Life On Stage” at the SK Handball Gymnasium in Seoul. (Big Hit Entertainment)The arena at boy band BTS’ concert “BTS Live: The Most Beautiful Moment in Life On Stage” was lit more brightly than most K-pop concerts, and it was clear why.At their first concert in Korea in 11 months, the members of BTS gleefully ran around the main stage and the protruding T-shaped stage as well as the aisles between the audience floors, making it impossible

Nov. 29, 2015

[Herald Interview] Pianist Barakatt to present ‘visual’ symphony

Canadian pianist and composer Steve Barakatt and the Herald Philharmonic Orchestra are combing forces once again in performance of the musician’s new visually revamped 16-movement symphony “Ad Vitam Aeternam” in January. 　Canadian pianist and composer Steve Barakatt poses during an interview with The Korea Herald at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul. (Chung Hee-cho/The Korea Herald)Barakatt’s upcoming concert follows the pianist’s previous concert in March, in which he celebrated 20 years since his debut

Nov. 29, 2015

Rediscovering the beauty of Korean architecture

The snowy scenery of Buyongji viewed from Yeonghwadang in Changdeokgung Palace by Bae Bein-u (Leeum)A step inside Changdeokgung Palace at the heart of Seoul after sunset and the city of skyscrapers just seems to disappear. Moonlight illuminates Joseon era royal buildings standing harmoniously with the surrounding green and natural formations of gardens that reflect its original terrain. Subtle rays from lamps inside the buildings reveal details in geometric window bar patterns and the balanced b

Nov. 29, 2015

Artist Kim Chang-bae exhibits traditional Korean paintings

Artist Kim Chang-bae, this year’s recipient of the Korea Art Award, is holding an exhibition of his traditional Korean paintings at the Korea Art Center in Seoul from Nov. 26-Dec. 5.  “Kim has embraced the spiritual scent of tea in his work,” said Lee Il-young, director of the Korea Art Center, in a statement. “(His work) also highlights ... the destruction of nature and loss of humanity today, and the importance of a life in harmony with nature.” Kim’s work, painted with ink on traditional Kore

Nov. 29, 2015

[Herald Review] Musical ‘Gone with the Wind’ falls short

Undeniably the entertainment world’s most recognized tale of torrid love and romance, the epic war tale from the 1930s, “Gone with the Wind,” is one of the most beloved and enduring classics. The Korean-language musical rendition of this literary and cinematic masterpiece has made its way back to the Seoul stage, only this time, without the lure of flashy K-pop idols in starring roles. Although nowhere near the historic caliber of Margaret Mitchell’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel turned 10-time A

Nov. 26, 2015