[On Stage] "Feeling empty after conducting a performance... I fill it by playing the piano"

Kim Sun-wook Appointed Artistic Director of Gyeonggi Philharmonic
Conductor Begins Full-Scale Activities... Announces Concurrent Pianist Career
"Gyeonggi Philharmonic is a Formidable Ensemble... The Essence of Music is Long Breath"

"When I conduct, I pour all my energy into it, so my body feels very exhausted after the performance. But I can't feel that emptiness. That's because I don't create the sound myself (by playing an instrument). What fills that emptiness is the piano. I have no choice but to keep playing the piano."

Pianist Kim Sunwook said this on the 8th at a press conference held at the Plaza Hotel in Seoul to mark his appointment as the artistic director of the Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra. He stated that he plans to continue both conducting and performing as a pianist. He officially took office as the music director of the Gyeonggi Philharmonic for a two-year term on the 1st and has begun his full-fledged activities as a conductor. Typically, when a performer starts conducting, they inevitably neglect their instrumental performance because the amount of new music they need to learn as a conductor greatly increases. However, Kim Sunwook said he must play the piano and will continue his career as a pianist as well. He added that since his duties as the Gyeonggi Philharmonic music director take priority, he will limit the repertoire he performs as a pianist to about seven composers he likes. He also mentioned that he is postponing his opportunities to perform as a pianist until the 2024?2025 season.

Kim Sunwook dreamed of becoming a conductor since he was young. He believed that to see the overall music beyond the piano, orchestral music was necessary. He earned a master's degree in conducting from the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in the UK in 2013.

Kim Sun-wook, Artistic Director of the Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra, is answering reporters' questions at the inauguration press conference held on the 8th at the Plaza Hotel in Seoul.
[Photo by Gyeonggi Arts Center]

Kim Sunwook officially debuted as a conductor in January 2021. At that time, he conducted Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 with the Seoul Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra. Since then, he has occasionally appeared as a guest conductor and, upon becoming artistic director, he is leading an orchestra for the first time. There are also some concerns. Since Kim Sunwook was born in 1998, he is still only in his mid-30s and may be considered to have limited conducting experience.

However, Kim Sunwook expressed confidence, saying he believes he has covered as much repertoire as possible over the past three years. He also said that there is no such thing as a perfect musician and that age does not seem to be important.

"It's true that I still need more experience, but does being in your 50s necessarily mean you have more experience? I don't think so. Even masters continue to strive for development and growth."

Kim Sunwook emphasized that what matters is a firm will and philosophy toward music. He said he has his own stubbornness when it comes to music, and that stubbornness seems to have remained unchanged since he was young.

He already collaborated once with the Gyeonggi Philharmonic as a guest conductor in June last year, conducting Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5. Reflecting on that time, he said, "I remember telling the staff after the first rehearsal that it was a very formidable orchestra."

"The Gyeonggi Philharmonic was founded in 1997 and is not yet 30 years old. Like orchestras that are 100, 200, or 300 years old, it needs to develop its own unique color. The string section is very flexible, and the wind section is very powerful. Their concentration was remarkable, and their learning speed was fast. I felt that communication and coordination were better than expected. I thought it was an ensemble that could definitely show results depending on how you handle it."

The Gyeonggi Philharmonic's New Year's Concert celebrating Kim Sunwook's appointment as artistic director will be held on the 12th at the Gyeonggi Arts Center Grand Theater. Starting with the overture to Mozart's opera The Marriage of Figaro, it will be followed by Alexander Scriabin's Piano Concerto and Brahms' Symphony No. 1. Pianist Baek Geonwoo will perform Scriabin's piano concerto as a soloist.

Kim Sunwook emphasized, "The essence of music is long breath."

"It's about looking at the long term rather than thinking about a short period. You have to look 10 to 20 years ahead, not just one or two years, and I think I still have a lot ahead of me. Since I was young, I wanted to quickly reach 60 years old. I thought that when I am 60 or 70, I would be able to make much more mature music. Since I started performing in my late teens, I have often wondered what kind of music I will be making 40 or 50 years from now. Now I am 35 years old, and I am still on that path."