Pianist Kim Sunwook to Make Conducting Debut on the 12th with 'Beethoven Symphony No. 7'

Conducting KBS Symphony Orchestra at Lotte Concert Hall... Piano Recital on the 11th & Duo Concert with Jeong Kyung-Hwa on the 19th

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] Pianist Kim Sunwook will officially debut as a conductor on the 12th. On that day, Kim Sunwook will conduct the KBS Symphony Orchestra's performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 at Lotte Concert Hall.

Kim Sunwook originally planned to debut as a conductor in December last year. However, the performance was postponed due to the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). At that time, the piece he was going to conduct was Brahms' Symphony No. 2. Due to the 2.5-level social distancing measures in the metropolitan area, which made it inevitable to reduce the orchestra's size, the repertoire was changed to Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.

This performance will apply seating with two seats left empty between audience members to prevent and contain the spread of COVID-19.

Kim Sunwook has long dreamed of becoming a conductor. He entered the conducting master's program at the Royal Academy of Music in the UK in 2010 and completed his studies. In 2015, while working as a resident artist with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, he briefly took the baton for an official performance at the suggestion of principal conductor Kirill Karabits. At that time, after finishing his collaboration on Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3, Kim Sunwook received the baton from Karabits and conducted the encore piece, the Pas de Deux from Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker. This connection continued, and Kim Sunwook initially prepared for his conducting debut during the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra's tour to Korea in April last year, but the performance was canceled due to the spread of COVID-19 in Europe. Instead, Kim Sunwook prepared his conducting debut stage with the KBS Symphony Orchestra.

In the performance on the 12th, Kim Sunwook will first perform Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 2 as a soloist. He plans to play the piano while conducting the orchestra. Then, in the second half, he will take the podium to conduct Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.

Kim Sunwook also plans to hold a duo concert with violinist Jung Kyung-hwa, originally scheduled for December last year, on the 19th at Lotte Concert Hall. Kim Sunwook and Jung Kyung-hwa will perform the complete Brahms Violin Sonatas. This performance will also apply seating with two seats left empty between audience members.

Jung Kyung-hwa received the Diapason d'Or award for her complete recording of Brahms Violin Sonatas released in 1997. Last year, she completed a Brahms duo tour after 24 years by performing the complete Brahms Violin Sonatas with pianist Kevin Kenner for audiences in Incheon, Chuncheon, and Gumi. Kim Sunwook has also shown special affection and strength in Brahms' music. Recently, he released a live recording of Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Dresden Staatskapelle and conductor Chung Myung-whun.

Before these two performances, Kim Sunwook will also hold a piano recital at the same venue on the 11th. The recital will begin with Beethoven's "Andante Favori" and include Beethoven's Piano Sonatas Nos. 30, 31, and 32.

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