The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra will hold special concerts in three Russian cities early October. This will be the orchestra’s first time in Russia in nine years since they performed there in June 2010.
The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) will hold special concerts in three Russian cities early October. This will be the orchestra’s first time in Russia in nine years since they performed there in June 2010. The performances are to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Korea and Russia that falls on the year 2020.
The SPO’s Conductor-in-Residence Markus Stenz will lead the three performances, with pianist Lim Dong-hyek and traditional Korean janggu drummer Kim Woong-sik. Pianist Lim, one of the most-sought-after Korean pianists on the global stage, studied at the Moscow Central Music School and the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, winning prizes at various prestigious competitions, including the International Chopin Piano Competition and International Tchaikovsky Competition.
The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra’s Russia tour starts on Oct. 4 at Philharmonia Grand Hall in St. Petersburg, a historical venue where Mahler, Schumann, and Tchaikovsky performed over a century ago. The orchestra will present Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23” with pianist Lim Dong-hyek and Beethoven’s “Symphony No.3 ‘Eroica’ in E major, Op. 55.”
On the evening of Oct. 7, the SPO will perform at Sverdlovsk Philharmonic Hall in Ekaterinburg, presenting Scriabin’s “Piano Concerto in F-sharp minor, Op. 20” with pianist Lim Dong-hyek and Beethoven’s “Symphony No.3 ‘Eroica’ in E major, Op. 55.”
The Korean orchestra will open the stage of this concert with traditional percussion drum janggu performer Kim Woong-sik, as they together present Korean composer Cho Eun-hwa’s contemporary score of “‘Back into. Out of’ for Janggu and Orchestra.”
The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra will hold the final performance of the tour in Moscow on Oct. 8 at the city’s Zaryadye Concert Hall.