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| ▲ This photo, provided by Wikipedia, shows Sergei Rachmaninoff. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ This photo, provided by Vincero Art Management & Entertainment, shows pianist Kim Sun-wook. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ This photo, provided by Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, shows pianist Yim Yunchan. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) – Celebrating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943), eventful stages are to be set up in Korea this year to commemorate his music and life.
Rachmaninoff made a name for himself as a pianist in his lifetime with skill and power emanating from his 190cm height and long fingers, leaving behind a number of piano masterpieces full of rich colors and lyricism.
A notable performance is the "Ritual Rachmaninoff" series, the theme concert of the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra.
Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra will present songs that are indispensable in the world of Rachmaninoff's works through four concerts from June to December, led by symphonies and piano concertos No. 1 to 3.
First of all, Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Piano Concerto No. 1 and Symphony No. 1 collaborating with pianist Kim Hye-jin at the "Ritual Rachmaninoff I," a concert commemorating the opening of Bucheon Art Center on June 23. Then, on July 7, at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul, Piano Concerto No. 2 and Symphony No. 2 will be presented with pianist Aviram Reichert.
The performance at the Bucheon Art Center on September 22 is the highlight of the "Ritual Rachmaninoff" series. Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 3 and Symphony No. 3 in collaboration with pianist Kim Do-hyun, who has been attracting attention for his unique performance.
On December 7, the last stage, the Seoul Arts Center will showcase Rachmaninoff’s “Vocalise,” pianist Lim Hyo-sun’s “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini” and “Symphonic Dances” in turn.
On March 23, Kumho Art Hall Yonsei prepard a stage for pianist Kim Hong-ki’s entire Rachmaninoff Prelude
Kim Hong-ki, who received attention by winning first place in the 2013 International ISANGYUN Competition and winning several competitions, will perform Rachmaninoff’s entire piano prelude, including the first prelude to the piano.
Pianist Park Jae Hong, who won the 2021 Busoni International Competition in Italy, will also perform the second Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto with Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra at Lotte Concert Hall on May 11 and 12.
KBS Symphony Orchestra and the Korean National Symphony Orchestra are also preparing for Rachmaninoff.
At the 790th regular concert at Lotte Concert Hall on May 25, KBS Symphony Orchestra will present Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and Symphony No.2 with pianist Anna Vinnitskaya. Rachmaninoff Symphony No.2 will also be performed by Korean National Symphony Orchestra in Seoul Arts Center on September 17 and Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra in Gyeonggi Art Center on October 21 and in Lottle Concert Hall on October 22.
Rachmaninoff will also appear as a major repertoire on the stage of this year's Tongyeong International Music Festival.
Pianist Kim Sun-wook will perform the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Tongyeong Festival Orchestra at the Tongyeong International Concert Hall on April 1. The Tongyeong Festival Orchestra will also perform Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 1 under the direction of David Robertson.
Pianist Sergei Babayan, one of the Armenian masters, will also meet Korean audiences on April 2 at the Tongyeong International Concert Hall with Rachmaninov's "Moment Musicaux" and "Etudes-Tableaux." Babayan, a renowned pianist known as the successor of “Russian Pianism” and professor at the Juilliard Conservatory of Music, is also teacher of Kim Do-hyun who plays Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 at the Bucheon Art Center in September.
Although it is not a local performance, attention is also drawn to pianist Lim Yunchan's performance in New York.
Lim Yunchan will perform Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 3 with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by James Gaffigan at David Geffen Hall in New York for three days from May 10-12.
The song, which will be played by Lim Yunchan and Kim Do-hyun this year, is called “The Devil’s Concerto” or “Pianist’s Tomb” since it requires extremely high-level of techniques. Lim Yunchan made headlines around the world last year when he performed the song with a inspired performance at the finals of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in the U.S.
Lim Yoon-chan's live performance video of Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 3 posted by the Cliburn Foundation on June 20 last year is currently set to reach 10 million views, recording more than 9,345 million views on YouTube. It is the record for the most views on YouTube as a video of the song's performance.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Yunhee Cho.)
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