The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra's incoming music director Jaap van Zweden, will lead the opening concert of 2023 with his signature repertoire, Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68, at the Lotte Concert Hall, on Jan. 12 and 13. Van Zweden will lead the SPO six months earlier than originally scheduled. The Dutch conductor was scheduled to conduct regular SPO concerts in July, November and December in 2023. The Brahms' masterpiece took the German composer 21 years to complete

Performance Dec. 25, 2022

It’s getting colder come evenings, but the crosswalks are bustling with people taking photos. Christmas decorations and lights illuminate the streets and alleys. People flock around the seasonal attractions, enjoying the holiday spirit with friends, lovers and family. Hotels and department stores are in a fierce competition to see who puts up the best, brightest and biggest decorations. Social media is bursting with suggestions on the perfect spot to take photos of popular decorations as w

Culture Dec. 24, 2022

The Paris Opera Ballet is set to perform in Korea for the first time in 30 years, presenting “Giselle,” as part of the LG Arts Center’s signature program “CoMPAS23.” The LG Arts Center, which reopened in Gangseo-gu, western Seoul, in October after its relocation from southern Seoul, unveiled the lineup for next year on Wednesday. Contemporary Music and Performing Arts Season, or CoMPAS, is a specially curated series of eight performances by top Korean and internatio

Culture Dec. 22, 2022

The Seoul Arts Center’s New Year’s Eve concert is scheduled to return Dec. 31, the first time that the concert that marks the end of the year for many classical music lovers will be back on the stage since the last three years prior. Conductor Hong Seok-won, the artistic director of the Gwangju Symphony Orchestra, will lead the Korean National Symphony Orchestra for the SAC’s year-end concert, an annual tradition that started in 1994. Joining onstage are pianist Shin Chang-yong

Performance Dec. 21, 2022

KBS Symphony Orchestra and music director Pietari Inkinen unveiled a new program for the 2023 season with a list full of acclaimed soloists. The piano is at the forefront with half of the 12 regular concerts in the next season featuring internationally renowned pianists, including Van Cliburn Piano Competition-winning pianist Sunwoo Ye-kwon, Pascal Roge, Alexei Volodin and Queen Elisabeth Competition-winning Anna Vinnitskaya, Alice Sara Ott and Fazil Say. Violinist virtuoso Gidon Kremer, Japanes

Performance Dec. 20, 2022

Today, dance is not solely an art to be enjoyed on stage or through videos. The movements of dancers can be a source of many different online media, said choreographer and contemporary dancer Ahn Eun-me. A one-day exhibition presenting seven media art pieces in Ahn’s six-month project, “Eun Me Pong Festival,” was held at Insa-dong, central Seoul, on Friday. “We wanted to celebrate and have an offline exhibition to have them all in one place,” said Ahn. The celebrate

Culture Dec. 20, 2022

The year 1902 was a turbulent time for the Korean Empire. King Gojong declared a change of name for the country from Joseon to Daehan Empire, or Korean Empire, in 1897, in what would turn out to be a futile effort to protect the country's sovereignty against foreign powers. Emperor Gojong oversaw partial modernization and westernization of the country but the Daehan Empire was weak among the world’s great powers. Hoping to consolidate the imperial rule and dignity through a demonstrat

Culture Dec. 19, 2022

The “Organ Odyssey” -- an annual flagship concert series exploring the sounds and mechanisms of a pipe organ -- is set for the last concert of the year at 11 a.m., Wednesday at the Lotte Concert Hall, Songpa-gu, southeastern Seoul. For the special Christmas-themed concert, pianist and organist Cho Jae-hyuck, who also played in the 2017 edition, will perform signature music pieces for the organ, such as those by Bach and Dupre, highlighting the various tones of the instrument. Tenor K

Performance Dec. 19, 2022

A modern twist on one of the most beloved folk tales in Korea, “Chunhyang” has put a mother and daughter’s quest for individuality at the forefront, rather than the well-known romance between Chunhyang and Yi Mongryong in the original “Chunhyangga,” or “Tale of Chunhyang.” Written by Jin Renshun, an acclaimed ethnic Korean author in China, the novel was first published in Chinese in 2009. It revolves around Chunhyang, the daughter of a courtesan, and her

Books Dec. 17, 2022

Celebrated gugak musician Ahn Sook-sun is scheduled to perform pansori “Chunhyangga” at the National Theater of Korea, in Jung-gu, central Seoul, Dec. 31. The best-known pansori “Chunhyangga” tells a love tale between Chun-hyang, daughter of a courtesan, and Yi Mong-ryong, son of a magistrate. Ahn and four other pansori singers will perform the entire "Chunhyangga," which will take about 210 minutes. Coming on stage as the third pansori singer, Ahn will perform

Performance Dec. 16, 2022

If you can't make it to New York to see American figurative artist Alex Katz’s eight-decade retrospective at Guggenheim Museum, you have a chance to view some of the artist’s works in Seoul at the exhibition “Reflection” at Espace Louis Vuitton Seoul. The exhibition is the third presentation of the renowned artist’s works at the exhibition space located on the fourth floor of Louis Vuitton Maison Seoul, the French luxury brand’s flagship store in Gangnam-gu, s

Culture Dec. 16, 2022

Two Korean winners of the prestigious Queen Elisabeth Competition will perform a special recital in Belgium on Saturday. Violinist Lim Ji-young, winner of the competition in 2015, and cellist Choi Ha-young, this year's winner, will take the stage at Queen Elisabeth Hall in Antwerp, Belgium, according to the Korean Cultural Center in Brussels. Both took the highest honors at one of the most prestigious competitions for up-and-coming classical musicians. Held in Brussels, it alternates each y

Performance Dec. 15, 2022

Dancer and choreographer Lip J, who rose to stardom in Mnet’s dance survival show “Street Woman Fighter” last year will perform a special collaboration with an orchestra. Lip J will show off a waacking dance performance of Sarasate’s “Zigeunerweisen” by violinist Cho Jin-joo and Hankyung arte Philharmonic at a year-end concert held at the Lotte Concert Hall in Songpa-gu, southern Seoul, on Dec. 31. “It will be a performance where the beauty of music is e

Culture Dec. 14, 2022

Four foreign literary works that have not made the jump to Korean due to difficulty in translation or lack of commercial interest have been selected for the 2022 Translation of World Classics. The Daesan Foundation announced Monday four novels to be translated and introduced for the first time in the country. The selected novels were: “Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life” (1848) by Elizabeth Gaskell, “The Forty Days of Musa Dagh” (1933) by Franz Werfel, “Reeds in

Books Dec. 13, 2022

The iconic ballet “The Nutcracker” returns for year-end magic on the stage this month. This year, one of the most beloved and widely performed classical ballets celebrates its 130th anniversary, first premiering at the Mariinsky Theater in Russia in 1892. Based on the children’s story “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” (1816) by German writer Ernst Hofmann, the heroine receives a nutcracker as a Christmas gift from her godfather. On Christmas Eve, she falls asleep

Performance Dec. 12, 2022