The participating ensembles come from Seoul, Daegu, Suwon and Bucheon -- both in Gyeonggi-do (Gyeonggi Province) -- Daejeon, Ulsan, Wonju in Gangwon-do, Busan and even from as far away as Jeju Island. During the festival, they will bring back to life masterpieces by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Rachmaninoff, Mahler, Verdi, Ravel and Brahms, among others.
The opening concert will be given by the Korean Symphony Orchestra, from Seoul. Led by conductor Lim Hun-joung, the orchestra will shower concert-goers with some of the greatest songs in its repertoire, consisting of pieces by Schumann and Tchaikovsky.
The continuing series of shows will then shine the spotlight on other regional orchestras: the Daegu Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Bulgaria-born maestro Julian Kovatchev, the Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gunpo Prime Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gwacheon Symphony Orchestra, the Chungnam Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gwangju Symphony Orchestra, the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gangnam Symphony Orchestra and the Ulsan Symphony Orchestra.
The KBS Symphony Orchestra (top), led by Romania-born conductor Yoel Levi, and the Daegu Symphony Orchestra, led by Bulgaria-born conductor Julian Kovatchev, will be part of the 2015 Orchestra Festival.
Musicians, from both Korea and from around the world, will be part of the festival, too. Cellist Chung Myung-wha, pianist Lee Kyung-sook, violinist Pi Ho-young, violist Kim Sang-jin and horn player Lee Seok-jun will all collaborate either together or separately with many of the featured orchestras.
There will be another special collaboration when soprano Hwang Sumi, the winner of Belgium’s Queen Elisabeth Competition last year, will sing on April 18 accompanied by the Busan Philharmonic Orchestra, led by Chinese conductor Li Xincao.
On April 18 the Busan Philharmonic Orchestra (top) will perform pieces by Strauss, Puccini, Stravinsky and Gounod, under the baton of Chinese conductor Li Xincao (bottom, right). Last year’s winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition held in Brussels, Belgium, Hwang Sumi (bottom left) will join the ensemble.
In addition, four domestic compositions will be premiered, including composer Kim Taek-su’s “Spin Flip” to be showcased on the first day of the festival, Jin Gyu-young’s symphonic poem “Namhae” on April 2 and, finally, Yoo Beom-seok’s “Concerto for Viola” on April 5.
The Wonju Philharmonic Orchestra from Gangwon-do and the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra from Gyeonggi-do will perform on April 15 and 19, respectively, part of the upcoming 2015 Orchestra Festival.
The orchestra festival, launched in 1989 to mark the first anniversary of the opening of the Seoul Arts Center, comes every April. Please click here to find more information about this year’s festival.
The official poster for the 2015 Orchestra Festival, slated to be held at the Seoul Arts Center from April 1 to 19.
By Sohn JiAe
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos: Seoul Arts Center
jiae5853@korea.kr
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