Composer Choi Jaehyeok Wins First Prize at Italy East Ovest Festival Competition

"Good Music Can't Be Defined in One Word, But We'll Do Our Best"
On October 6, Performing at Lotte Concert Hall's 'Maeil Classic' Stage

Composer and conductor Choi Jae-hyuk won the composition competition at the East-Ovest Festival in Italy.

Composer Choi Jae-hyeok.
[Photo by Lotte Concert Hall]

The organizers of the East-Ovest Festival introduced Choi Jae-hyuk, the winner of the competition held on the 20th (local time), as a composer with outstanding talent in the field of contemporary creative music, who has achieved success in major international competitions and has shown remarkable activities at prestigious festivals.

The East-Ovest Festival, held in Turin, Italy, is a contemporary music festival that has continued for over 20 years. It has gained fame by inviting composers such as Helmut Lachenmann and the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Camerata. This year's competition was held in the composition category.

Choi Jae-hyuk said, "I am grateful to have a good opportunity to continue making music," adding, "Good music cannot be defined in one word, and I am still searching for what good music is, but I want to do my best within music."

Choi Jae-hyuk graduated from Walnut Hill School for the Arts in the United States and completed both his bachelor's and master's degrees at The Juilliard School. He then received an Artist Diploma from the Barenboim-Said Academy. In 2017, he gained worldwide recognition by becoming the youngest first-place winner in the composition category at the Geneva International Music Competition. He made his conducting debut leading the London Symphony Orchestra at the Lucerne Festival and served as guest assistant conductor for Ensemble Intercontemporain. Since 2015, he has been the artistic director of Ensemble Blank, a chamber music group founded with Juilliard alumni.

On October 6, Choi Jae-hyuk will present a variety of contemporary music with Ensemble Blank at the 'Maeil Classic' concert held at Lotte Concert Hall. Notably, he will premiere his own 'Organ Concerto (Ensemble Version)' in collaboration with organist Choi Gyu-mi on this stage.

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