The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra’s “Unsuk Chin: 3 Concertos” has bagged the best “Contemporary Music” album award at this year’s International Classical Music Awards. It is the first time a Korean orchestra has ever won at the ICMA.

According to an announcement by the SPO on Tuesday, the album went up against 15 other competitors, including the LA Philharmonic Orchestra and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Released in June last year, the nine-track album features movements from three concertos ― piano, cello and orchestra ― and highlights renowned Korean composer Chin, along with soloists Alban Gerhardt, Kim Sun-wook, Kim Wu Wei and the SPO led by conductor Chung Myung-whun.

Shin has numerous classical music awards to her credit for her compositions, including the Arnold Schnberg Prize in 2005 and the Prince Pierre Foundation’s Music Composition Prize in 2010. Since 2006, she has held the position of composer-in-residence at the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)