'Due to Coronavirus...' Boston Symphony's First Korea Tour Concert Canceled

Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra
[Photo by Vincero (c) Marco Borggreve]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] The Boston Symphony Orchestra's first-ever visit to Korea has been canceled due to concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus.

On the 31st, the Boston Symphony announced that performances in China and Hong Kong were consecutively canceled due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, and that they had made the difficult decision to cancel the entire Asia tour in order to ensure the safety of the artists and audiences involved in the tour.

The Boston Symphony had planned an Asia tour with a total of eight performances, starting in Seoul on the 6th of next month, then moving on to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and finally Shanghai, China. The Boston Symphony's concerts in Korea were scheduled for the 6th and 7th at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall. Especially, this was to be the first visit to Korea by the Boston Symphony and music director Andris Nelsons, raising great expectations among classical music enthusiasts.

However, as performances in Hong Kong and China were successively canceled due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, the entire Asia tour was ultimately canceled, and the Korea concerts were also called off.

Boston Symphony music director Nelsons released a statement saying, "On behalf of everyone involved with the Boston Symphony, I feel great regret that we are unable to perform for audiences in Seoul, Taipei, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Since Seoul, Taipei, and Hong Kong, which are much less affected by the virus, may also face uncertain impacts in the coming weeks, we unfortunately had to cancel the entire Asia tour. We hope to perform again in the cities and venues we could not visit this time in the near future."

The Boston Symphony was also scheduled to make its first visit to Korea as part of an Asia tour including Japan and Korea in 1960, but the concerts were canceled just before the Korea performances due to the April 19 Revolution.

Vincero, the concert planning company hosting the Boston Symphony's Korea concerts, announced that all tickets will be fully refunded. They also emphasized that if ticket holders cancel directly, cancellation fees may apply, so they should wait for guidance from the planning company's phone support.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.