22-Year Veteran Yiruma: "You Must Be Recognized in Korea to Be Recognized Anywhere"

Europe and Asia World Tour from the 26th this month to next year
Concert at Seoul Sejong Center for the first time in 7 years on January next year
'Winter Resembling Spring'... "The Highlight to Watch Is Me"

"I have never thought of myself as a performer. The piano was simply a means to express my compositions, and since I wrote the pieces, I believed I could express them best, which led me to where I am today."

Composer and pianist Yiruma is holding a press conference for the '2024 Yiruma World Tour in Seoul' on the 20th at Eugene On Music Ion Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Kim Heeyoon]

Composer and pianist Yiruma (45), who embarks on a world tour starting with a solo concert at the Seoul Sejong Center Grand Theater in January next year, shared his feelings at a press conference held on the 20th at Eugene On Music Ion Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, ahead of his first domestic performance in seven years, saying, "I am excited and looking forward to it."

Having made a huge impact worldwide with the KBS drama 'Winter Sonata' soundtrack 'When the Love Falls' and engaging in various activities, the Korean concert holds a more precious and meaningful stage for him. He said, "I always write music with the thought that I must perform and be recognized in our country first to be acknowledged anywhere else," adding, "No matter how popular I am overseas, if no one recognizes me in Korea, I feel discouraged. I think if Korean people like my music, it will be liked anywhere in the world."

Yiruma introduced the theme of his January concert as 'Winter Resembling Spring.' He plans to present pieces from his new album 'non e la fine,' including 'la bianca primavera' (White Spring) and 'non e la fine' (Not the End), as cello collaborations during the performance.

Additionally, he will perform newly arranged versions of his globally beloved signature pieces such as 'Kiss The Rain' and 'River Flows In You' on stage.

Regarding the concert theme, he said, "To me, seasons are memories and nostalgia." He emphasized, "Winter resembling spring is a season not only for me but for all of you. My music is incomplete; it is only completed when the audience's stories merge with the music."

Composer and pianist Yiruma [Photo by Oun Music]

Yiruma stated that the highlight of the world tour is "myself." "It's good to listen to the album, but I love improvising so much that I will present special performances that can only be heard at the concerts."

Debuting in 2001 with his first album 'Love Scene' and marking 23 years next year, Yiruma confessed, "I am always nervous. I had severe stage fright, and during my school days, I sometimes forgot the Beethoven and Mendelssohn pieces I used to play well on stage and ended up improvising freely." He continued, "At that time, I thought I wasn't suited for the stage, so I started taking composition lessons from middle school. One day, friends who heard my compositions asked me for the sheet music, and that's when I decided to become a composer."

He explained, "Although my major is composition, playing my own pieces made me like a performer, and through that process, I realized there was a reason for every step I took." He added, "Even now, I get nervous when I go on stage, but I control my mindset and hypnotize myself by thinking, 'Everyone here likes me, and this place is familiar to me.'"

Last month, he won a partial victory in the second trial of a lawsuit demanding the return of contract fees related to copyright issues with his former agency. "The lawsuit has lasted over five years, but fortunately, a good result came out. There aren't many management companies that properly support classical or instrumental musicians, and many sign contracts without fully understanding because they want to perform immediately. I hope younger musicians carefully review and examine contracts before signing."

Composer and pianist Yiruma is performing his signature piece at the '2024 Yiruma World Tour in Seoul' press conference held on the 20th at Eugene On Music Ion Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Kim Heeyoon]

Yiruma began playing the piano at age five and went to study abroad in the UK in 1988 when he was ten. He attended the prestigious Purcell School of Music and studied under Harrison Birtwistle, a master of contemporary music, at King's College London. Since releasing his first album in 2001, he has composed over 200 works.

When asked about the background of his prolific creativity, he said, "The older I get, the more time I need to write a single piece," adding, "I'm not actually someone who can write a huge number of songs."

His album 'Best Reminiscent,' released to commemorate his 10th debut anniversary, gained attention nine years later in 2020 through a YouTuber's video, achieving a 'reverse charting legend' by topping the US Billboard Classical Albums chart for 23 weeks.

Iruma Concert Poster [Photo by Oun Music]

Yiruma described his music as "closer to 'neo-classical' if categorized by genre, but I never wanted the label 'new age' that some have attached to it." He also mentioned, "One of my plans is to have classical performers play my pieces in the future."

"Whether it's classical or popular music, I want to write good songs. I am always open to composing film or drama music. As I get older, I also plan to present experimental music that satisfies me. But above all, I want to write pieces that my daughter can be proud of, thinking, 'Dad wrote this kind of music,' even after I am gone."

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