🎻 From the Daejeon Music Festival Opening to the Seoul Philharmonic's 2027 Season, This Week's Classical News! - 2026.10.19 | Classical Music

Hello, fans! 🎹

As autumn deepens, classical news keeps getting richer. This week we have the Daejeon Music Festival, the Seoul Philharmonic's 2027 season lineup, Park Hee-young's hometown concert, and KBS Classic FM news. Let's chat! 😆

🎶 'One Resonance' Fills Daejeon

Now in its 12th year, the Daejeon Music Festival runs every Sunday from the 25th through November 15 at the Daejeon Arts Center and the Daejeon Museum of Art ^[2]. Its theme is 'UNISON (One Resonance)', and it is structured in four performances covering international exchange, rising talents, veteran musicians' interpretations of classics, and a large-scale collaboration ^[2]. Since its debut in 2015, it has grown by providing performance opportunities for local musicians. Isn't that heartwarming? 🥹

The opening performance, 'Friendship', takes place on the 25th at 5 PM in the Ensemble Hall of the Daejeon Arts Center ^[2]. It marks 16 years since Daejeon and Sapporo formed their sister-city bond in 2010, and the 61st anniversary of Korea-Japan diplomatic normalization ^[2]. Cellist Lee Hyang-ra opens with the prélude from Bach's 'Cello Suite No. 1', followed by Fauré's 'Élégie'. Bach building rich harmony from a single cello, and Fauré's wistful melody contrasting with its passionate middle section... Just thinking about it gives me chills! 😭 Japanese performers will play Hirai Kozaburo's 'Sakura Sakura' and Rachmaninoff's 'Lilacs', while Daejeon performers will play Chopin's 'Variations brillantes' and Sarasate's 'Zigeunerweisen'. The finale is a 'Japanese Four Seasons Medley' featuring flute, violin, and piano ^[2]. Admission is free by invitation, on a first-come, first-served basis, so hurry! 🏃

The second series, 'Bloom', takes place on the 1st at 3 PM in the special performance space at the lobby of the Daejeon Museum of Art. Six promising young local musicians will perform, opening with Strauss II and Grünfeld's 'Wiener Nächte' and closing with Ravel's 'La Valse' ^[2]. The third series, 'Maestro', follows on the 8th at the same venue, where violinist Kim Mi-young and pianist Min Kyung-sik will perform Bach's Chaconne and Brahms' 'Violin Sonata No. 1, Regenlied' ^[2]. Curious about Kim Mi-young's interpretation, after she recorded all of Bach's solo violin works? 🎻

🎼 Seoul Philharmonic's 2027 Season: The Keyword Is 'Freedom'

On the 19th, the Seoul Philharmonic held its 2027 season opening press conference and unveiled its regular concert program ^[1]. The theme is 'Freedom', with plans including commemorative performances for the 200th anniversary of Beethoven's death, a complete recording project of Mahler's symphonies, and new contemporary works ^[1].

The most eye-catching performance is Cho Seong-jin's collaboration on June 24 and 25 ^[1]. Cho returns to the Seoul Philharmonic's regular concerts for the first time in 11 years, performing Shin Dong-hun's Piano Concerto under the baton of music director Jaap van Zweden. The work premiered worldwide with the London Symphony Orchestra last November, and this will be its Asian premiere ^[1]. I can't sleep just thinking about it! 🤩

The orchestra has revived its 'Artist of the Year' program, which had been suspended since 2022, after five years. Shin Dong-hun has been chosen as the first featured artist for the 2027-2028 season ^[1]. In 2028, he will also perform a new work co-commissioned with overseas orchestras including the LA Philharmonic, and a composition fellowship will nurture emerging Korean composers ^[1].

The Beethoven 200th anniversary lineup is rich too. Symphonies No. 3 'Eroica', No. 5 'Fate', No. 7, and No. 9 'Choral' will be performed, and on October 1 and 2, Beethoven's only opera, 'Fidelio', will be presented in concert form. Soprano Jennifer Holloway and Hwang Su-mi, and tenor Simon O'Neill, are among the performers ^[1]. Korean musicians also shine. Pianist Park Jae-hong performs Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 on January 14-15, and Sunwoo Yekwon performs Piano Concerto No. 2 on April 29-30. Conductor Choi Soo-yeol teams up with violinist Randall Goosby for Korngold's Violin Concerto on August 27 ^[1].

Overseas performances are also noteworthy. On May 12, the Seoul Philharmonic will become the first orchestra from outside Europe to open the Czech 'Prague Spring International Music Festival', performing Smetana's complete 'Má vlast' ^[1]. Before that, the same work will be presented in Seoul on April 22-23 ^[1]. Van Zweden said it is the first time he will perform the complete 'Má vlast', calling it a new experience ^[1].

Mahler's Symphony No. 5, 'Fidelio', and Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 will each be performed three times to meet growing audience demand ^[1]. The Mahler recording project continues, with Symphony No. 5 recorded in March and Symphony No. 3 in November, with live recordings planned for release ^[1].

🌿 Park Hee-young's Music Resonates in Her Hometown

World-renowned contemporary composer Park Hee-young left a deep impression at her hometown, Cheongju ^[3]. The main concert 'Homeward' was held on the 16th, conducted by Im Hun-jung, artistic director and a leading Korean conductor from Cheongju. The 'Cheongju Park Hee-young Festival Orchestra', made up of musicians born in Cheongju or with ties to the city, took the stage ^[3]. Performing at home must have been especially moving. 🥲

📻 This Week's Classical Picks on KBS Classic FM's Chulbal FM

On the Monday, October 19 broadcast of KBS Classic FM's Chulbal FM, Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 21 'Waldstein' third movement (performed by Bruce Liu) and Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23, second and third movements (performed by Khatia Buniatishvili) will be featured ^[4]. The monthly feature 'Classical of the Month' focuses on October's 'Listening to Christmas Music in Advance', including Canadian Brass's Christmas album ^[4]. Don't miss the fourth movement of Tchaikovsky's 'Pathétique' and Satie's 'Gymnopédie No. 1' too! 📻

Have a wonderful week filled with classical music! Which performance are you most looking forward to? Let's chat in the comments! 💬🎻