Violinist Yang In-mo, also known as In-mo Yang or sometimes “Inmonini” -- a nickname after the legendary violinist Paganini -- released a new album on Tuesday. The album, named “The Genetics of Strings,” is his second album following “Paganini: 24 Caprices for Violin,” in 2018 after winning the 2015 Paganini International Violin Competition. Yang was the first Korean to win the top prize at the competition. “After the Paganini album, I was searching

Performance March 10, 2021

Music from the hit video game League of Legends will be brought to life by an orchestra at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul. “League of Legends Live: The Orchestra” will be held at the Sejong Center in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, April 2-3. The concerts were originally to be held in November, but postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is the first time for the Sejong Center, a major performing arts venue in Seoul, to present a show with music from a video ga

Performance March 9, 2021

Though the COVID-19 pandemic continues to restrict many aspects of our lives, the local musical scene has been striving to bounce back. After the government relaxed the social distancing rules for performing arts venues in early February, local musical productions have been recording sell-outs with musical fans returning to theaters. According to the Korea Performing Arts Box Office Information System (KOPIS), aggregate ticket sales of performing arts productions recorded 16.7 billion won in

Performance March 9, 2021

While the main hall at Naejangsa, one of the country’s oldest Buddhist temples, burned down Friday in a suspected arson attack, a monk representing the temple denied the claim that there was a disagreement between the monks there. According to reports citing local police, the fire at Naejangsa in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province, was reported Friday at 6:37 p.m., a few minutes after it is believed to have started. A Buddhist monk reportedly called the fire authorities and was apprehended

People March 7, 2021

The 2021 Korean Orchestra Festival will be held from March 30 to April 22 at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. Though the COVID-19 pandemic presents new restrictions to classical music performances – especially for symphonic works which require large orchestras – this year’s festival will be held under a “new normal” theme, reflecting the virus-plagued times. The festival features the biggest lineup in nearly a decade with 21 orchestras participating. Las

Performance March 7, 2021

Jochiwon Spring Flower Festival The Jochiwon Spring Flower Festival will be held from April 1 to 11. The annual spring festival went online last year due to the COVID-19 virus pandemic. This year, the fesitval will be held both online and offline. The festival, usually held for three days, will be held over 11 days this year. Though the main festival area was the Jochiwon Station main street and along the Jocheon stream, it has been expanded across Sejong City this year to prevent overcrowdin

Travel March 5, 2021

Musical “Man of La Mancha” sings of the need to dream in the COVID-19 pandemic-hit era. The Korean-language version, licensed from the Broadway musical production, recently ran at the Charlotte Theater in eastern Seoul after the government relaxed social distancing rules for performing arts theaters with a middle-seat vacancy rule. Prior to the opening, it had been postponed three times. The plot is an adaptation of Miguel de Cervantes’ “Don Quixote.” Taking t

Performance March 3, 2021

The 2021 Tongyeong International Music Festival will take place from March 26 to April 4, presenting 23 performances under the title of “Changing Reality.” The annual music festival held in Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province commemorates the iconic Korean composer Yun I-sang. It features classical music to contemporary music, inviting performances from domestic and overseas artists and orchestras. For the opening concert on March 26, Venezuelan conductor Christian Vasquez will

Performance March 2, 2021

A series of claims accusing celebrities and sport stars of school violence is spreading like wildfire in Korea via social media. The claims, also being dubbed the “school #MeToo” movement, began with the controversy regarding volleyball athletes and twin sisters Lee Jae-young and Lee Da-yeong. After the Lee sisters admitted to the charges, accusations of school bullying by sport stars and celebrities followed swiftly. Actors Cho Byeong-kyu, Park Hye-su, Kim Dong-hee and K-pop s

People March 1, 2021

Following the epic win of “Parasite” last year, “Minari,” a film by a Korean American director, won for best foreign-language film at the Golden Globe Awards on Monday. A semi-autobiographical story by auteur Lee Isaac Chung, the film tells the story of a Korean American family seeking the American dream in rural Arkansas in the 1980s, featuring actors Steven Yeun, Han Ye-ri, Youn Yuh-Jung and more. In a virtual ceremony held in Los Angeles and New York on Sunday even

Film March 1, 2021

While the COVID-19 pandemic has nearly shattered the tourism industry around the world, it has sparked new changes to the domestic tourism scene. According to the Korea Tourism Organization’s big data platform (datalab.visitkorea.or.kr) which opened on Feb. 17, the number of visitors to other counties and cities in Korea went fell 18 percent in 2020 compared to 2019. However, some outdoor activity venues such as camping sites and parks near the Greater Seoul area, saw an increase of vi

Travel Feb. 27, 2021

Set to move to Magok, western Seoul, in 2022, the LG Arts Center released the program for its last season in Gangnam, southern Seoul, Friday. The center’s annual program CoMPAS21 will feature more domestic acts, as visits by international artists and art troupes are limited by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. Performances by foreign productions are to be available through screenings. Theater director Yang Jung-ung, who staged the opening ceremony for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic

Performance Feb. 26, 2021

Director Lee Joon-ik, a master of period films who directed “Dong-ju: The Portrait of a Poet,” “Anarchist from Colony” and more, is back with his latest work “The Book of Fish.” The film centers around the real-life character of Jeong Yak-jeon, the brother of scholar Jeong Yak-yong. Both brothers were leading scholars from the Joseon era. While living in exile on the remote southern Heuksan Island in South Jeolla Province, Jeong Yak-jeon meets a young fishe

Film Feb. 26, 2021

Haeundae Light Festival The Haeundae Light Festival is being held across the Haeundae area in Busan. Light decorations have been installed at the iconic Haeundae Beach and Haeundae Market, creating a spectacular nighttime view. Outdoor events and hands-on experiences and activities, however, have all been canceled. The festival will continue until March 28.  Jeju Canola Flower Festival Welcoming spring, the Jeju Canola Flower Festival will open April 9. During the festival, canola

Travel Feb. 26, 2021

After months of shutdown, the local performing arts scene has finally begun to return to a new normal. The comeback is led by a green-skinned witch, riding on a broomstick. The musical “Wicked” opened this month at Blue Square in Itaewon, central Seoul. Though still affected by the government’s social distancing rules, which require that every other seat be left vacant, the show is recording sellouts. Based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel “Wicked: The Life and T

Performance Feb. 25, 2021