[On Stage] 'Karayan Award' Yoon Han-gyeol "I am a huge fan of Stravinsky's 'The Rite of Spring'"

First Domestic Stage After Award... Conducting National Symphony on the 9th
"I Want to Be a Conductor Recognized by Conductors"

Symphonies by Anton Bruckner (1824?1896), Igor Stravinsky's (1882?1971) "The Rite of Spring," and B?la Bart?k's (1881?1945) "The Miraculous Mandarin."

These are the works that Yoon Han-gyeol (30), who won the 2023 "Karajan Young Conductor Award," mentioned at a press conference held at the Seoul Arts Center on the 4th, saying, "I really love them and want to make them my main conducting repertoire."

Yoon Han-gyeol will appear on a domestic stage for the first time since receiving the Karajan Award last August. On the 9th, he will conduct the National Symphony Orchestra at Lotte Concert Hall. The program includes Stravinsky's "The Firebird" suite and "Pulcinella" suite, as well as Maurice Ravel's "Piano Concerto" and "Piano Concerto for the Left Hand."

Conductor Yoon Han-gyeol [Photo by National Symphony Orchestra]

Although two works by Stravinsky will be performed, "The Rite of Spring" is notably absent. He described himself as a "huge fan of 'The Rite of Spring.'" However, he explained that "'The Rite of Spring' is a challenging piece where even if the orchestra and conductor give their all, success is not guaranteed," and that for this performance, he chose another famous Stravinsky work, "The Firebird," which is less demanding than "The Rite of Spring." The two piano concertos by Ravel are also demanding pieces.

The French pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (62) will collaborate on Ravel's two piano concertos. Bavouzet is a distinguished performer known for his interpretations of his native composers Ravel and Debussy. Yoon Han-gyeol praised Bavouzet as "one of the top three pianists worldwide in interpreting Ravel," adding, "I have collaborated with many young pianists, but since Bavouzet is performing, there is pressure to meet those expectations."

Yoon Han-gyeol revealed that although he received several offers from domestic orchestras after winning the Karajan Award, he chose the National Symphony Orchestra, with which he has a special connection. This is due to their relationship formed during the 1st International Conducting Competition hosted by the National Symphony Orchestra in 2021. At that time, Yoon placed second and won the Audience Award.

"Young musicians, especially young conductors, find it difficult to get stage opportunities. So I was grateful for the National Symphony's conducting competition. After the competition, I had many performance opportunities. Through those performances, I felt my skills improved quickly and I gained experience."

Various stage experiences also led Yoon Han-gyeol to find an agency. Most of the performance opportunities he received as prizes from competitions were recorded, which led to contact from Askonas Holt, a leading British classical artist management company, where he is currently signed. He explained that a decisive moment was the video of him conducting the National Symphony at the Seoul Arts Center Symphony Festival in April 2022. Yoon sent Askonas Holt a video of him conducting Stravinsky's "Petrushka," and they immediately contacted him to sign a contract. Yoon Han-gyeol signed with Askonas Holt in November 2022.

Conductor Yoon Han-gyeol [Photo by National Symphony Orchestra]

The Karajan Young Conductor Award, which Yoon Han-gyeol received, is an international competition named after the legendary conductor Herbert von Karajan (1908?1989) and is regarded as a gateway for young conductors.

Yoon Han-gyeol is skilled in both conducting and composing, like Karajan. In fact, he studied composition longer than conducting. He focused on composition not only in middle and high school but also at the Munich Conservatory. He competed twice in the Geneva Composition Competition in 2015 and 2017. In 2015, he composed a string quartet, and in 2017, a clarinet concerto, placing second and third respectively. However, he said, "I was in my early twenties at the time, and since I didn't win first place, I was naturally disappointed." After not achieving his desired results in conducting, Yoon began focusing on conducting, which he found enjoyable, starting in 2018, and with the Karajan Award, he emerged as one of the most prominent young conductors worldwide.

Yoon Han-gyeol said he wants to be a conductor recognized by other conductors. Among the many virtues necessary to become a good conductor, he considers technique the most important. "There is one conductor whom I think has the best conducting technique. That conductor keeps rehearsals short and doesn't talk much. Yet, with simple gestures alone, the orchestra understands what the conductor wants and adjusts the subtle timing, tempo, and sound of the music."

He named Austrian-born Carlos Kleiber (1930?2004) as his favorite conductor. "He showed many magical moments where just one gesture completely changed the orchestra's sound and the flow of the music. I like conductors like that."

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