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Suwon Civic Chorale in Kingston

Suwon Civic Chorale

Earlier this week the Suwon Civic Chorale were participating in the convention of the Association of British Choral Directors in Lincoln. Friday night saw a gala concert in the cathedral including other world-class choral groups such as the Orlando Consort.

Tonight the Suwon choir come to All Saints Parish Church in Kingston market place, KT1 1JP. The concert starts at 7:30 and admission is free.

The Suwon Civic Chorale, is a group consisting of professional vocalists who have majored in vocal music and is one of the top professional choruses in Korea, striving to create world-class choral music. Founded in 1983, the Chorale has staged 115 regular performances and over 800 tour and invitational concerts and made TV and radio appearances which have delighted the citizens of Suwon City. Now, the group is broadening its stage to include the whole world, and in the process fostering Suwon as an international city of music.

In August 1996, the chorale was invited to the 4th World Symposium on Choral Music held in Sydney, Australia as one of a number of choruses chosen from around the world. Appearing after choruses from Israel and France, the Suwon Civic Chorale received a standing ovation for its performance and was praised as a world-class chorus. In June 1997, the chorale was invited to headline the Oregon Bach Festival, which is led by maestro Helmuth Rilling and is well known for its tradition and reputation. The group demonstrated its musical caliber perfectly. The local press and music critics acclaimed the performance saying, “The harmony of Suwon Civic Chorale was heart touching and sounded beautifully. The quality of the sound was flawless and well-orchestrated. The perfect ensemble and blending and the exquisite and sophisticated harmony were marvelous enough to captivate souls.

As a messenger bringing Korean choral music to the world, The Suwon Civic Chorale served as a cultural ambassador promoting the 2002 Soccer World Cup and Suwonm, a city of culture and art, to the world. It successfully completed tours to the US and Mexico in May 2001, and China in March 2002. Additionally, in August 2003, the chorale was invited by the Association of British Choral Directors to perform at the Birmingham Symphony Hall and held workshops for the members of the Association of British Choral Directors with the theme “Korean Choral Music and its tradition” by Music Director In-Gi Min. The chorale also performed at Saint Augustine Cathedral Church, Vienna and performed together with the Prague Symphonietta Orchestra at Prague, singing Mozart’s Requiem under Dr. Min’s direction. The whole audience applauded and the choral directors concluded that it was ‘The tremendous and unbelievable choral sound !’, ‘They play our choral music better than us’, ‘Korea’s choral music is just surprising !’.

Suwon Civic Chorale’s performances are praised by many musicians and choral music fans for their unique and experimental presentation. The group has introduced dynamics and visual elements to the choral music stage by mixing choral music with ballet or contemporary dance. In its constant quest for innovation, the group identifies new pieces for its repertoire which have not yet been introduced in Korea.

Music Director In-Gi Min, born in Seoul, majored in composition at the College of Music, Yonsei University in Korea. He received a Master of Music in choral conducting from New York University. He subsequently commenced a doctorate on choral conducting under Prof. William Dehning and choral conducting pedagogy under Prof. David Wilson. Mr. In-Gi Min was awarded a Doctor of Musical Arts in choral conducting .

During his period studying in the US, he performed as a guest conductor at a number of music festivals and concerts including the Long Beach Bach Festival, the LA Inter-Cultural Choral Festival and served as a music director for Gloria Musica Chorale.

Since his return to Korea after over 10 years of studying in the US, In-Gi Min served as a guest conductor for Moodeung Soloist Ensemble, The Korean Students’ Glee Club, the Jeju Men’s Choir, Sinwon Ebenezel Choir, Daejeon Soloist Diva, Gwangju Civic Chorale, and Suwon Civic Chorale and has been highly acclaimed as “a conductor with accurate interpretation and emotion.”

Currently, he is serving as a professor of choral conducting in the Music Department of Honam Theological University & Seminary and its graduate school, teaching choral conducting. Prof. Min also lectures on conducting and choral literature at The Korean National University of Arts.

Dr. Min also performs as a choral conductor at Hoshin Concert Choir, Hoshin Symphonic Choir, and CBS Oratorio Chorale. In addition, he serves as a leading lecturer and a choral conductor at choral music seminars organized by universities and in choral music or church music seminars organized by the Korean Church Music Association, Hosanna Music Publications, the Korean Women Conductors Association, and the Korean Choral Directors Association, etc.

He is also in charge of directing the Somang Presbyterian Church Zion Choir. In April 2002, he was appointed as a music director and principal conductor of Suwon Civic Chorale, one of the top professional choruses in Korea, and along with the 42 members he is working hard to make it a world-class choir producing the best choral music.

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(automatically generated) Read LKL’s review of this event here.