Most Popular
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[AtoZ into Korean mind] Humor in Korea: Navigating the line between what's funny and not
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[Exclusive] Korean military set to ban iPhones over 'security' concerns
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Yoon seeks rebound, taps 5-term lawmaker as chief of staff
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Korean, Romanian leaders discuss defense tech, nuclear energy
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Medical standoff deepens as doctors reject new med school plan, talks
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[Graphic News] 77% of young Koreans still financially dependent
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[Herald Interview] Why Toss invited hackers to penetrate its system
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S. Korean envoys convene to navigate strategy amid Middle East tensions
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North Korea fires several short-range ballistic missiles into sea: JCS
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S. Korea calls on Japan to confront history amid Yasukuni Shrine visit
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N. Korean pianist’s quest for musical freedom
If music is a universal language North Korean pianist Kim Cheol-woong found perhaps one of its best uses.On Saturday, Kim illustrated his spoken account of his journey in pursuit of musical freedom with a mix of compositions at a concert at Haechi Hall in Seoul, organized by the Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights (NKHR), for which Kim is a cultural ambassador.Kim, who comes from an elite North Korean family, entered the stage exuding modesty and a warm sense of humor.In between pla
July 14, 2013
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Guitarist Shin Joong-hyun to play at Hyundai ‘City Break’ festival
Korean rock legend Shin Joong-hyun will be joining the all-star line-up at this year’s Hyundai Card Super Concert 19 City Break festival in August. Going head-to-head with rival summer music festivals such as Ansan Valley and Incheon Pentaport Rock Festivals, the two-day City Break event will feature the 75-year-old guitarist alongside headliners Metallica, Muse, Iggy and The Stooges and Limp Bizkit. They will be joined by local acts including Jang Ki-ha and the Faces and Kwon Soon-kwan. Shin st
July 14, 2013
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Calendar
Dance“Onegin”: Korea’s Universal Ballet Company is presenting John Cranko’s three-act ballet using Tchaikovsky’s music in an arrangement by Kurt-Heins Stolze. It is based on Alexander Pushkin’s 19th-century novel “Eugune Onegin,” which features the tragic love story of a young, but selfish and arrogant man. Two American Ballet Theater dancers ― Korean-born Seo Hee and Roberto Bolle ― have been invited to perform the leads. Meanwhile, the show on Saturday will be the troupe’s long time principal
July 12, 2013
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Eyelike: Roy Kim’s 1st album showcases soothing vocals
Roy Kim’s 1st album showcases soothing vocals Roy Kim “Love Love Love”(CJ E&M)Roy Kim’s first album, “Love Love Love,” shows off his soft, calming vocals with a mix of gentle acoustic sounds and soft rock. The album includes a total of nine tracks, including “Spring Spring Spring,” which was released in the spring as a single. The title track “Love Love Love” is one of the more fast-paced songs on the album, starting with a simple guitar and voice melody that builds up to a five-instrument ensem
July 12, 2013
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Verdi’s ‘Othello’ makes triumphant Venice return
VENICE (AFP) ― St Mark’s Square in Venice on Wednesday was the spectacular backdrop to a tragic opera in the first open-air performance in 43 years by the famous La Fenice theater ― a new must on the global culture calendar.La Fenice is staging Italian maestro Giuseppe Verdi’s interpretation of Shakespeare’s “Othello, the Moor of Venice” ― with South Korea’s Chung Myung-whun conducting La Fenice’s orchestra and choir.The performance, which coincides with the 200th anniversary of Verdi’s birth, i
July 11, 2013
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Czech Alphonse Mucha’s paintings show modern art’s beginnings
The lavish and decorative paintings of Alphonse Mucha, the master of Art Nouveau, are on exhibit in Seoul for the first time, shedding light on the first era of modern art and its development in the late 19th century. The “Alphonse Mucha: Art Nouveau and Utopia” exhibition at Seoul Arts Center introduces 235 works of Mucha, one of the most celebrated artists in the Czech Republic, which are leading examples of the Art Nouveau style. “Mucha is regarded as an artist known for his decorative poster
July 11, 2013
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Son Seung-yeon: ‘I don’t want to be called only a ballad singer’
Son Seung-yeon, the winner of the debut season of the “Voice of Korea” reality audition program last year, captivated the public with her powerful and wide-ranging vocal skills. Son sang a revamped version of 2NE1’s popular hit “Go Away” during her blind audition, and landed herself a place on iconic singer Shin Seung-hun’s team where she flourished and eventually walked away with the first-place crown. In hindsight, it is almost shocking to imagine that the talented 19-year-old singer nearly th
July 11, 2013
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2 exciting premieres enliven New York ballet season
NEW YORK (AP) ― It may be sweltering summer out there, but the spring ballet season has just officially ended in New York, with the last frothy performances of “The Sleeping Beauty’’ at American Ballet Theater. And while dance fans often seek out the same classics, again and again, this season’s highlights included brand new productions by two of the most exciting choreographers working today: Alexei Ratmansky at ABT and soloist Justin Peck at NYCB. A look back at these and other standout moment
July 10, 2013
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House Concert to feature 65 performances
A nationwide “One Day Festival,” hosted by The House Concert, will hold 65 music performances at 65 venues on July 12. More than 290 big-name musicians will perform classical music, Korean traditional music, jazz, performance art and more. The House Concert is a music appreciation trend that was introduced in Korea when pianist Park Chang-soo, now president of The House Concert, held a recital in his living room on July 12, 2002. Since then Park has organized more than 350 concerts featuring som
July 10, 2013
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Vladimir Urin: Theater visionary with nerves of steel
MOSCOW (AFP) ― Vladimir Urin, the man who was appointed Tuesday as the new Bolshoi Theatre director, is a respected manager who turned a small obscure music theater called Stanislavsky into a must-stop venue for the art scene.The 66-year-old now faces an uphill battle after being placed at the helm of Russia’s historic theater and charged with rescuing its reputation following a string of scandals and infighting of the vast troupe.Urin won respect from colleagues by quietly revamping Moscow’s 90
July 10, 2013
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Like father, like son in art
More than 60 percent of Korean artists earn less than 1 million won ($878) per month, according to government figures. A 2009 Korea Culture and Tourism Institute report shows the average income of artists at 820,000 won and more than 30 percent reporting no income. All in all, pursuing art is a hard task without financial support from others ― more often than not, parents. This doesn’t change unless an artist hits the jackpot or sells works for record prices at auction. In the lifelong journey o
July 10, 2013
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National troupes unveil new programs
It’s been a year since the National Theater of Korea introduced its “repertoire season” system, where the state-run organization announces its troupes’ schedules ahead of the start of its yearly season.A total of seven troupes belong to the NTOK, including the National Theater Company of Korea, the Korea National Ballet, the Korea National Opera, the National Dance Company of Korea, the National Changgeuk Company of Korea, the National Orchestra Company of Korea, and the National Chorus of Korea
July 9, 2013
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Art exhibition pays tribute to baseball hero Park Chan-ho
Park Chan-ho, the first South Korean baseball player to play in Major League Baseball in the U.S., was hailed as a hero during the gloomy days of the Asian economic crisis in the late 1990s. Despite retiring last year, Park still remains a sensational figure in the history of Korean baseball, having won 124 games in the majors during his 19-year professional baseball career.A new art exhibition at Seoul Museum pays tribute to the baseball hero, displaying his game-winning baseballs, uniforms, gl
July 9, 2013
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Mariah Carey hospitalized with shoulder injury
NEW YORK (AP) ― Mariah Carey is in the hospital for a shoulder injury.The pop star’s representative says the singer went to the hospital in New York late Sunday after injuring her shoulder while filming a music video.Her rep adds Monday that “doctors reset her shoulder’’ and that “she is fine.’’Carey was filming a video for a remix version of her song “Beautiful’’ with rapper Young Jeezy. The video was being directed by her husband Nick Cannon.The singer will still perform Saturday with the New
July 9, 2013
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Rain finishes scandal-hit military service
K-pop superstar Rain, or Jung Ji-hoon, was officially discharged from his mandatory military duties on Wednesday after nearly two years of service. The entertainer entered the military in October 2011 and served as a PR officer for the Defense Media Agency. As a celebrity soldier, Rain was caught in a string of controversies during his service that raised the question of whether disciplinary actions would force the entertainment solider to be discharged later than originally scheduled. The milit
July 9, 2013
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Prodigies offer hope for future of Korean classical music
Twelve-year-old Han Yeo-jin won the 18th Biwako International Flute Competition in May, beating much older competitors to become the youngest-ever winner with her performance of complex pieces such as Theobald Boehm’s “Grand Polonaise.” The elementary school student from Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, started playing the flute when she was 5 years old, inspired by her mother who was a flute teacher. Her mother Oh Hyun-suk was hesitant about her daughter’s direction at first, knowing that pursuing m
July 9, 2013
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Unlikely partners: Artworks used to create slush funds
The chairman of CJ Group, Korea’s largest food and entertainment company, was arrested for alleged tax evasion and the creation of slush funds in late June. Chairman Lee Jae-hyun is under suspicions of dodging millions of dollars in taxes by stashing secret funds and misappropriating company funds. Some of the money was alleged to have been laundered through the purchase of artworks. For years, art transactions have been means for Korean conglomerates to create slush funds or evade taxes. Samsun
July 8, 2013
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Professor discovers new use for laser in art world
DURHAM, North Carolina (AP) ― A U.S. professor who developed a laser to study melanoma has discovered a new use for it: uncovering what’s underneath artwork without damaging the pieces.Dr. Warren S. Warren was at the National Gallery in London, looking at an exhibit on art forgeries, when he realized that the art world used imaging technologies that were 30 or 40 years old. So he began investigating whether lasers could be used to safely uncover the mysteries underneath layers of paint.So far, t
July 8, 2013
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Mexico’s female mariachis defy macho culture
MEXICO CITY (AFP) ― With her hair tied back, large hoop earrings and high heels, Isabel Aguilar stood confidently in front of her five fellow mariachi musicians, all men, and sang to a mostly male crowd in a Mexico City square.Aguilar, a violinist, is among the few female musicians in Plaza Garibaldi, a tourist spot famous for its roving mariachi bands, crowded restaurants and booze-fueled nightlife.For the past 16 years, the 32-year-old mother-of-two has defied the quintessentially macho cultur
July 8, 2013
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Drawing traces of light and time
Gallery DOS presents a solo exhibition of artist Choi Eun-hyea this week as part of the gallery’s special exhibitions for up-and-coming artists it selected for this year. Choi, one of the five selected artists, explores a subject that is rarely dealt with in painting ― the journey of light. Light, which largely remained an auxiliary element determining the tone of paintings, has emerged as an independent subject in paintings as contemporary artists explore diverse subjects for their works. The a
July 8, 2013