Most Popular
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[Weekender] Geeks have never been so chic in Korea
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N. Korea says it test-fired tactical ballistic missile with new guidance technology
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NewJeans members submit petitions over court injunction in Hybe-Ador conflict
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[News Focus] Mystery deepens after hundreds of cat deaths in S. Korea
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S. Korea's exports of instant noodles surpass $100m for 1st time in April: data
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[Herald Interview] Byun Yo-han's 'unlikable' character is result of calculated acting
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US military commander in S. Korea during Gwangju uprising dies
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[Photo News] Seoul seeks 'best sleeper'
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US expert says N. Korea might ignore Trump if he returns to White House
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Yoon vows to advance freedom, welfare to uphold spirit of 1980 pro-democracy uprising
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Young, talented musicians to play in Muse On Day
2022 Muse On Day, an indoor music festival, will take place on upcoming weekends starting this Saturday at Watcha Hall in Mapo-gu, western Seoul. The festival is making a return after a two-year break as South Korea continues to lift its COVID-19 social distancing restrictions. Organized by the Korea Creative Content Agency and terrestrial broadcaster MBC, the annual music festival offers an opportunity for rookie artists to take the stage and perform live in front of music fans. Ten musicians
Oct. 7, 2022
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[Herald Review] The Kid LAROI cranks out mega-hits at first Korea show
Dramatic drum rolls, electric guitar riffs and flashing lights built an electric atmosphere at KBS Arena Thursday night ahead of Australian singer-songwriter and rapper The Kid LAROI bursting onto the stage. As the crowd roared, the singer jumped onstage with a beaming smile on his face. The 90-minute set jumped back and forth through the musician’s three-year musical journey, switching from an upbeat ballad to several unreleased tracks, showing off what it felt like to return to pre-pande
Oct. 7, 2022
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Annual performing arts festival explores changes in our times
The Seoul Performing Arts Festival, in its 22nd edition this year, will explore changes in our times with domestic and overseas projects that test the boundaries of performing arts, the organizers said during a press conference on Tuesday. The SPAF is an annual festival held in the Daehangno neighborhood of Seoul, considered the mecca of performing arts in Korea. It is co-organized by the Korea Arts Management Service under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Seoul Foundation for
Oct. 5, 2022
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Lim Yun-chan's 'Emperor Concerto' live recording to be released November
A live performance recording of Beethoven’s “Emperor Concerto” by Lim Yun-chan, the youngest winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, will be released in November, Universal Music announced Tuesday. Lim will take the stage with the Gwangju Symphony Orchestra, led by conductor Hong Seo-kwon, on Saturday at Tongyeong Concert Hall to perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73, known as the "Emperor Concerto." The album, to
Oct. 4, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Versatile flutist Choi Na-kyung discovers new adventures during pandemic
On July 13, 2011, South Korean flutist Choi Na-kyung, also known as Jasmine Choi, played at a recital for the celebration of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s re-election. There she met people she considered to be truly selfless, people who live their lives for the purpose of tackling famine, climate change, improving women's rights and other pressing global issues. Unexpectedly, the joyful event made her depressed for months. “I love music so much, but I couldn’t help
Oct. 4, 2022
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New SAC president vows to focus on 'pure art' like opera and ballet
The new president of the Seoul Arts Center on Thursday unveiled plans to focus on “pure art," such as opera and ballet, as the organization seeks to return to its original goals. Chang Hyoung-joon, who was appointed in June as the 17th president of South Korea’s top art complex by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, "The Opera Theater, which was built as an opera and ballet theater, will regain its original position by presenting pure art works centered on op
Sept. 29, 2022
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K-Music Festival in London to offer rich Korean flavor beyond K-pop
The 9th edition of K-Music Festival, hosted by the Korean Cultural Centre UK, is set to bring an experience beyond K-pop with a lineup of artists that use traditional Korean music to find new sounds during the eight-week event. K-Music 2022 will kick off Oct. 5 with a joint concert by Dal:um and ReMidas at the Barbican Centre in London. Dal:um, a musical duo featuring gayageum player Ha Su-yean and geomungo player Hwang Hye-young, made their London debut at the Purcell Room last year. This time,
Sept. 28, 2022
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National Gugak Center to unveils cantatas of 'Jongmyo Jeryeak,' 'Arirang'
The National Gugak Center, a state-supported organization that aims to foster Korean traditional music, is set to perform a set of cantatas featuring Korea’s "Jongmyo Jeryeak" and "Arirang." The concert, conducted by Lee Yong-tak, the artistic director of the Contemporary Gugak Orchestra, will present a harmonious sound created by 123 performers. The first part, which will run for 45 minutes, will premiere a new rearrangement of "Jongmyo Jeryeak" by Suwon Un
Sept. 27, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Im Chang-jung on learning from "mistake of his life"
Actor Im Chang-jung's worst nightmare came true when he returned to the musical stage for the first time in 10 years: He forgot his lines. Im, who played the role of Daniel in the musical "Mrs. Doubtfire," called it the "mistake of his life" over and over again during an interview with reporters on Thursday. “I’d never made that kind of mistake in my life. Forgetting an entire line of a scene. I felt terribly sorry for the audience and still think about h
Sept. 26, 2022
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Can 'Crash Landing on You' musical repeat success of original TV drama?
The musical version of "Crash Landing On You," based on the 2019 megahit TV series of the same title, was unveiled Friday. The musical features familiar names from both the TV and theater scenes in the iconic lead roles of Ri Jung-hyuk and Yoon Se-ri. Lee Jang-woo, Lee Kyu-hyung and Min Woo-hyuk take the role of Ri, the North Korean officer, while Im Hye-young, Kim Ryeo-won and Na Ha-na portray Yoon, the heiress to a South Korean conglomerate. The actors and the creative team alike s
Sept. 21, 2022
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Emerging pianist, lifelong Bach specialist and more set to visit Korea this year
Evgeni Koroliov, Alim Beisembayev, Andras Schiff, Francois-Frederic Guy, Igor Levit and Eric Lu. These are pianists who are set to perform in South Korea later this year, offering a wide-ranging repertoire by Bach, Beethoven and Chopin, among others. Russian pianist Evgeni Koroliov, known as a specialist in the Bach keyboard repertoire, will take the stage with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra on Friday for an all-Bach concert. The program consists of Bach Concerto for 3 Harpsichords in D mino
Sept. 21, 2022
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Seoul Metropolitan Opera to perform Gounod's ‘Romeo and Juliette’
Seoul Metropolitan Opera will stage Charles Gounod’s French opera “Romeo et Juliette” at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in central Seoul, from Thursday to Sunday. Inspired by Hector Berlioz’s dramatic symphony of the same title, Gounod wrote the opera based on Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet." The opera premiered at Theatre Lyrique in Paris in 1867. The troupe is set to perform the tragic love story of a son and daughter from two rival fam
Sept. 21, 2022
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Korean National Symphony Orchestra embarks on European tour
The Korean National Symphony Orchestra is embarking on a European tour for the first time under its new name. Known as the Korean Symphony Orchestra until March this year, it added "National" to its name to reflect that it is supported by the national budget. The tour will visit three countries in Europe, celebrating the 130th anniversary of the establishment of the Korea-Austria relationship, the 10th anniversary of the foundation of the Korea Culture Center in Poland and newly foun
Sept. 21, 2022
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Pianist Paik Kun-woo's search for musical freedom brings us 'Goyescas'
Pianist Paik Kun-woo saw Alicia de Larrocha performing Granados’ “Goyescas” when he was in New York as a student. That was likely a concert on Dec. 7, 1967, that took place at Carnegie Hall to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Granados. Even now he remembers vividly how deeply impressed he was by the performance and how the music filled the hall with warmth on a chilly night, thinking that he wanted to play it himself someday. That “someday” came half
Sept. 21, 2022
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Circus Caravan invites audience to contemporary circus feast
A man throws a woman in the open air and catches her with one hand. Then she carefully balances herself upside down with one hand holding his other hand. Getting a sneak peek into the performance “Enva” by Spanish artist group Amer i Africa Circ Cia, the hand-to-hand circus is sure to provoke “oohs” and “ahhs” from the audience with their compelling acrobatics. With music adding a mischievous mood to the act, the pair perform awe-inspiring acrobatics between 2
Sept. 15, 2022
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[Eye interview] Understanding Korea through its classical musicians
On May 29, violinist Yang In-mo, the first ever Korean to win the Paganini International Violin Competition in 2015, won the top prize at the jean Sibelius International Violin Competition. A few days later, cellist Choi Ha-young won the first prize at the Queen Elisabeth Competition held in Belgium. And two weeks after that, pianist Lim Yun-chan won the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, becoming the youngest winner at age 18. Lim quickly became a household name -- even those who have
Sept. 15, 2022
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Bursting with local flavor, “Mrs. Doubtfire” hits the spot
The previews of the musical adaptation of “Mrs. Doubtfire” opened on Broadway at an unfortunate time -- on March 9, 2020 -- right as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in New York. Like most theaters and productions around the world, it only ran three performances before going on an uncertain hiatus. The previews returned in October last year, but had to close again in January. In May, the show was closed again, just one month after reopening, due to the spread of the omicron vibran
Sept. 14, 2022
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[Herald Review] Songolmae reunion concert takes audience on '80s nostalgia trip
There's a saying that new things are always better than old, but the power of a classic is something to hold on to. It brings back old memories and allows us to reminisce on the good old days. To revive Korean listeners’ memories of the 1980s, renowned rock band musicians Bae Cheol-soo and Koo Chang-moo gathered for a nationwide concert tour after 38 years apart. The rock 'n' roll event was the ticket to an adventure back in time for both the artists and audience of some 9,5
Sept. 13, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Blending old and new: SMMT on what makes timeless music
Comfortable in a pair of sneakers and a T-shirt, SMMT has been soaking up the spotlight as a globe-trotting DJ. Not much is known about him, but concertgoers will see him mixing live sessions for local rappers pH-1 and Sik-K and taking over the deck at parties. He’s also a member of Yelows Mob, a music crew helmed by Sik-K. Born Jung Sung-min, SMMT is one of the faces under H1ghr Music with a unique background. He kicked into gear as a DJ at 20. In 2020, he earned his first credit as a p
Sept. 5, 2022
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Dutch conductor named Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra music director
The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra has appointed Dutch conductor Jaap van Zweden as its new music director. The orchestra announced Sunday that the Dutch conductor, 61, will begin his five-year tenure in January 2024. The search for the new music director began earlier this year as the current music director Osmo Vanska decided not to renew his contract, which ends at the end of the year. Vanska was appointed in January 2020. Guest conductors will be sought for the orchestra's 2023 performa
Sept. 4, 2022