Held at Bucheon Art Center...
"Lowering Barriers to Classical Music"
Pilot Launch of "Dream Studio" Incorporating Webtoons
Bucheon City in Gyeonggi Province is running a variety of differentiated programs in fields such as music and visual arts to expand opportunities for young people to discover and enjoy their talents in culture and the arts. The goal is to support the younger generation in developing their cultural and artistic capabilities, thereby providing the driving force for the “cultural powerhouse” that the Lee Jaemyung administration aspires to build.
To begin with, the city introduced its first “open rehearsal” last month to make classical music more accessible to young people. On July 24, 81 sixth-grade students from Bumyung Elementary School visited the Bucheon Art Center Concert Hall. They were invited to the open rehearsal for the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra’s 328th regular concert, ROMA.
On stage, Senior Conductor Adrian Perignon of the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra provided commentary on the pieces, and Respighi’s “Pines of Rome” was performed. After the performance, there was also time for students to freely exchange opinions and ask questions with the conductor. The students experienced the entire process of preparing for a performance firsthand, observing the orchestra’s grand sound and collaborative efforts from the audience seats.
At the Bucheon Art Center, Adrian Perruchon, the principal conductor of the Bucheon Philharmonic, is explaining the concert hall and the pieces to the students during the Bucheon Phil Open Rehearsal. 2025.7.24 Bucheon City
Open rehearsals, where the audience can observe the rehearsal process and engage in discussions about the pieces, are rare in Korea because they require performers to reveal their work before it is fully polished.
It is especially meaningful that such an open rehearsal was held for young people at the Bucheon Art Center, a classical music venue known for its top-tier acoustics nationwide. Organizers expect that young people will naturally deepen their understanding of classical music and cultivate their artistic sensibilities through this experience.
Bucheon City also plans to hold an open rehearsal for students from Gyeonggi Arts High School at the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra’s 329th regular concert on September 12. Starting next year, the city intends to increase the number of sessions so that more young people can attend.
Additionally, the city is preparing an instrument rental program to reduce the financial burden of purchasing instruments and make music more accessible to everyone. The aim is to support children and teenagers in discovering their interests and talents by allowing them to rent instruments at low cost. The city plans to revise related ordinances to establish specific operational guidelines.
Bucheon City is also piloting the “Dream Studio” project, modeled after the “Dream Orchestra.” The Dream Orchestra is a Korean adaptation of Venezuela’s public music education program “El Sistema,” which produced world-renowned conductor Gustavo Dudamel, and is part of the flagship cultural and arts education policy, the “Dream Arts Group.”
Until now, the Dream Arts Group has focused on performing arts such as dance and theater, but starting this year, it is expanding into the visual arts. “Dream Studio” will be launched at seven regional hubs nationwide. The core concept is for children to experience the creative process by working alongside artists in their actual studios. Through this process, they naturally share the artist’s perspective and thinking, and develop their imagination and expressive abilities.
The second open workshop of "Dream Studio Bucheon" is being held at "Toontoy Studio," the workspace of webtoon artist Deokyoung Lim, who is active in Bucheon. August 2, 2025, Bucheon City
In Bucheon, the Bucheon Cultural Foundation proposed the “Dream Web Studio Art Project” with a webtoon artist and was selected as one of the seven hubs. The program will take place at “Toontoy Studio” in the Korea Manhwa Contents Agency Business Center, where students will create their own characters and participate in various hands-on activities.
The classes will be held every Saturday, both in the morning and afternoon, for a total of 13 sessions from August 30 to November 29. Participation is free, and any Bucheon resident aged 11 to 15 can apply.
In addition to the regular classes, participants will also take part in special programs such as tours of the Korea Manhwa Museum and participation in the Bucheon International Comics Festival, which will broaden their understanding of webtoon and character culture. The completed works will be exhibited at the lobby on the first floor of the Boksagol Cultural Center at the end of the year.
Bucheon Mayor Cho Yongik stated, “Bucheon is a city equipped with diverse cultural and artistic infrastructure, including classical music, webtoons, film, and comics. Based on this foundation, we will actively provide opportunities for young people to discover and develop their talents, contributing to the realization of the cultural powerhouse emphasized by the Lee Jaemyung administration.”
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
