Busan Concert Hall Officially Opens on June 20
Jung Myung-whun Appointed Artistic Director
to Conduct Opening Concert
"Our goal is to be the best orchestra in Asia. I believe it is possible. The audience will be able to judge (the possibility) by listening to the opening concert on June 20."
Jung Myung-whun, Artistic Director of Classic Busan, expressed this ambitious aspiration at a press conference held on the 17th at Busan Concert Hall. Classic Busan is a Busan Metropolitan City agency responsible for operating the Busan Concert Hall, which officially opens in June. It will also manage the Busan Opera House, scheduled to open in 2027. Through the openings of Busan Concert Hall and Busan Opera House, Busan dreams of advancing as a classical music cultural city. As Artistic Director of Classic Busan, Conductor Jung Myung-whun has taken on the heavy responsibility of laying the foundation for Busan as a classical cultural city.
Jung Myung-hoon, Artistic Director of Classic Busan, is expressing his aspirations at a press conference held at Busan Concert Hall on the 17th. [Photo by Classic Busan]
Born in Busan in 1953, Director Jung said he took on this large project at a relatively late age, attributing his decision to a sense of responsibility. He emphasized that as Korea has transformed from a poor country to a prosperous one, culture and the arts must develop further for the country to become a great nation that contributes to the world.
He said, "The more culture and the arts develop, the more people gain leisure and think about living by sharing with others. In that sense, I believe the music I do has a special meaning."
At the opening concert on June 20, Director Jung will conduct the Asia Philharmonic Orchestra (APO). APO is an orchestra embodying Director Jung's dream of being "Asia's representative orchestra." It is composed of principal Asian musicians active in orchestras worldwide. A Classic Busan official explained that they have spent a long time assembling APO, recruiting members for over two years.
Director Jung mentioned his past experience of operating an orchestra composed of Asian musicians in Japan, which did not succeed, and said he intends to restart that dream anew in Busan.
The opening concert program will feature Beethoven's works. They will perform Beethoven's Triple Concerto and Symphony No. 9 "Choral." The Triple Concerto will feature cellist Jian Wang and violinist Sayaka Shoji as soloists.
Regarding the choice of the choral symphony, Director Jung said it was to demonstrate the power of music. "Music has the power to unite people around the world as one. Beethoven's choral symphony emphasizes in its final fourth movement that all people of this world must become brothers."
Busan Concert Hall, embodying the dreams of Director Jung and the Busan city government aiming to be the best in Asia, is a three-story building above ground with one basement level, featuring a large hall with 2,011 seats and a small hall with 400 seats. It is equipped with the first pipe organ outside the Seoul metropolitan area, boasting facilities on par with any classical music venue in Korea.
Director Jung expressed satisfaction with the concert hall's acoustics. He said, "We will have to see how the sound changes when the audience fills the seats, but the sound was very good and it is very comfortable to perform here when I first heard it." He also showed confidence in the acoustics by playing the piano himself. Before the press conference, he said, "You might be more curious about the sound of the concert hall than what I say..." and sat at the piano to perform Brahms' Intermezzo.
The pipe organ was made by the Freiburg company in Germany. It was manufactured locally in Germany over 22 months and arrived at Busan Port in October last year. Seven German engineers carried out installation work at Busan Concert Hall from November last year to February this year. The organ is grand in scale, with 4,406 pipes and 62 stops.
Busan Concert Hall plans to hold an opening festival from June 20 to June 28. Pianist Cho Seong-jin will hold a solo recital on June 22, and pianist Sunwoo Yekwon and Director Jung Myung-whun will each present chamber music performances with APO on June 23 and 25, respectively. On June 24, organist Cho Jae-hyuk's solo recital will showcase the true capabilities of the Busan Concert Hall pipe organ. Director Jung will return to the stage on June 27 and 28 to present Beethoven's only opera, Fidelio, in a concert opera format.
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