Seoul Arts Center International Music Festival "Filled with Rare Performances"

From June 6 to 11 at the Seoul Arts Center
Baritone Duo Kim Tae-han & Park Joo-sung on Stage
Janacek & Bartok String Quartets Also Featured

German art songs performed by a baritone duo, and string quartets by Czech composer Leo? Jan??ek (1854?1928) and Hungarian composer B?la Bart?k (1924?2020).

The 2024 Seoul Arts Center International Music Festival, held from the 6th to the 11th at the Seoul Arts Center, is set to feature stages that are rarely accessible to the public. At a press conference held on the 2nd at the Incheon Art Hall of the Seoul Arts Center, the artists preparing for the festival unanimously stated that they have prepared the stage with music that is not often performed.

Baritone duo member Kim Tae-han said, "A baritone duo performance is rarely seen in Korea," adding, "Usually, operatic arias are performed a lot, but this time we plan to present a program consisting solely of art songs." Kim Tae-han further explained, "I believe that art songs, when performed with piano, are more persuasive and have advantages in conveying stories compared to operatic arias, so we chose to build the program around art songs."

Performers participating in the 2024 Seoul Arts Center International Music Festival are taking a commemorative photo at the Incheon Art Hall of the Seoul Arts Center on the 2nd.
Photo by Seoul Arts Center

Kim Tae-han, together with baritone Park Joo-sung, will perform art songs by Schubert, Schumann, Beethoven, and Richard Strauss. Both are young vocalists gaining attention on the global stage. Kim Tae-han was the youngest winner in the vocal category at last year's Queen Elisabeth Competition, and Park Joo-sung placed third in the 2021 Operalia Competition hosted by tenor Pl?cido Domingo. Kim Tae-han introduced Park Joo-sung as a close senior and mentioned that he has been a long-time fan of Park.

Kim Tae-han and Park Joo-sung will perform on the 7th at 7:30 PM at the IBK Chamber Hall of the Seoul Arts Center. The piano accompaniment will be provided by Professor Ilya Rashkovsky from Sungshin Women's University.

The Arete Quartet, winners of the 19th Lyon International Chamber Music Competition in the string quartet category last April, will perform Jan??ek's String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata" and No. 2 "Intimate Letters," as well as Bart?k's String Quartet No. 5 on the 9th at 7:30 PM at the IBK Chamber Hall.

Park Sung-hyun, leader and cellist of the Arete Quartet, said, "Jan??ek and Bart?k's string quartets may feel unfamiliar in Korea, but we selected these pieces hoping to increase interest in their music." He added, "Jan??ek and Bart?k are composers representing Eastern Europe who use a lot of folk rhythms, and their music also has a distinctly Korean feel, so it won't feel entirely unfamiliar."

The opening and closing concerts, held on the 6th and 11th at the Concert Hall of the Seoul Arts Center, are expected to be distinctive performances. The conductor for both concerts is Dan Ettinger, music director of the Israel Symphony Orchestra and the Tel Aviv Israel Opera.

The opening concert will feature Francis Poulenc's (1899?1963) Concerto for Two Pianos and Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 4 "Romantic." Dutch piano duo brothers Lucas and Arthur Jussen will return to Korea after 10 years to perform the Concerto for Two Pianos.

Conductor Ettinger said he asked the Jussen brothers to choose between Mozart's Concerto for Two Pianos and Poulenc's Concerto for Two Pianos, and they chose Poulenc's piece.

Ettinger said, "I have often conducted Bruckner symphonies together with Mozart's Concerto for Two Pianos, so I thought performing Poulenc and Bruckner's works together would be very refreshing."

The opening concert will feature concertmaster Moon Barani, principal second violinist of the WDR Symphony Orchestra. Moon recalled his experience performing with conductor Ettinger 10 years ago.

"Ten years ago, I performed a very special Mozart piece with conductor Ettinger. It was a passionate and very impressive performance. Sometimes I can't remember performances I did just last week, but I still remember the performance with Ettinger from 10 years ago. I longed to see him again, so I am very glad to meet him now. Although I have performed Bruckner's works many times in Germany, I am very much looking forward to hearing Ettinger's interpretation of Bruckner."

Dan Ettinger, who conducted the opening and closing performances of the 2024 Seoul Arts Center International Music Festival, is sharing his thoughts at a press conference held on the 2nd at the Incheon Art Hall of the Seoul Arts Center.
Photo by Seoul Arts Center

The closing concert will be uniquely structured, featuring symphonies and opera arias. In the first part, tenor Baek Seok-jung will perform famous arias such as "Celeste Aida" from the opera Aida and "The Princess is Sleepless" from Turandot. The second part will feature Rimsky-Korsakov's symphonic suite "Scheherazade."

Conductor Ettinger said, "The closing concert is very exciting. It is my first time performing a program combining symphonies and opera arias." He added, "The arias in the first part and Scheherazade in the second part are all story-based pieces, so we can contrast the performance styles by playing them like an opera or like a symphony."

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