Heemoon Lee, the visionary vocalist of SsingSsing, takes us on a transcendental musical journey with his band OBANGSINGWA and their new album, SPANGLE. A powerhouse of Korean music, Lee injects fresh energy and new life into time-honoured Korean folk songs (minyo). Seamlessly blending minyo with a kaleidoscope of genres – including jitterbug, pop, dance, rock … [Read More]
Category: Festivals (page 2)
K-music 2024: Seoul Metropolitan Traditional Orchestra x No-Noise
Find yourself in the bustling centre of a town square with No-Noise’s energetic and distinctive blend of Korean and Western sounds and instruments. Performing with the outstanding musicians of the Seoul Metropolitan Traditional Orchestra (SMTO), No-Noise is a dynamic ensemble led by Lee Il-woo, the visionary behind the post-rock sensation Jambinai, and Sung Si Young, … [Read More]
K-music 2024: Black String
Extraordinary Contemporary Sounds from Ancient Instruments. The 2018 Songlines Music Awards winners Black String will premiere new music from their upcoming album set to be released this autumn, following their acclaimed albums Mask Dance (2016) and Karma (2019) on the German label ACT. ‘a spellbinding experience’ (The Guardian on Black String’s K-Music Show) ‘no boundaries … [Read More]
K-music 2024: Hera Hyesang Park with David Junghoon Kim
A Unique Blend of Korean Heritage and Vocal Mastery Soprano Hera Hyesang Park, renowned for her exceptional vocal mastery, makes her K-Music Festival debut with a fresh reinterpretation of traditional Korean songs following her appearance at the Edinburgh International Festival this summer. ‘It’s a celebration of vocal brilliance and cultural depth, promising a night of unforgettable music … [Read More]
K-music 2024: Seayool with Ligeti Quartet — Suite for Jeju Island
A master of the traditional Korean Piri, Seayool’s contemporary classical work Suite for Jeju beautifully expresses Jeju Island’s poignant narrative and beautiful scenery, reinterpreting traditional instruments’ diction while masterfully merging piri and string quartet. SEAYOOL will be joined in this special performance by the Ligeti Quartet to mark this UK premiere. Through the process of … [Read More]
K-music 2024: Youn Sun Nah with Bojan Z
Youn Sun Nah in A Tribute to Women’s Voices. Following the success of her 2022 album ‘Waking World’, Youn Sun Nah returns to the K-Music Festival with her new work ‘Elles’. To mark the 30th year of her jazz career, Yoon Sun Nah’s 12th album Elles pays tribute to women’s voices, and to some of … [Read More]
K-music 2024: National Changgeuk Company — Lear
Discover this visionary restaging of one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies into a spellbinding traditional opera from some of South Korea’s leading creatives, performers and musicians. This major new production, critically acclaimed at its premiere in 2022, retells a familiar story in the form of Changgeuk. This culturally significant and artistically rich theatrical form in Korea, blends … [Read More]
Korean performers at the 2024 Edinburgh Festival and Fringe
Seongjin Cho returns to the International Festival for a solo morning recital, while the Fringe contains a strong line-up of at least six Korean productions. Do try Black and White Tea Room – a really powerful play which we’ve seen a couple of times before and would unhesitatingly watch again. Also, while you’re in Edinburgh, … [Read More]
Korean films at Queer East 2024
After the Korea focus in last year’s festival it was perhaps a little bit to be expected that this year there would be less in the way of Korean content. So we have one South Korean feature film from 1967 (directed by Choi Eun-hee) and a handful of shorts; plus a 2016 feature by Korean … [Read More]
2024 Festival of Korean Dance programme details announced
Last year, the Festival of Korean Dance for the first time played to audiences in Salford, Coventry and Brighton. The year the festival extends its reach into Scotland, with its first performance in Glasgow. Salford, Newcastle and Bournemouth will also get to experience one of the productions. The full press release follows, with links at … [Read More]
K-Dance 2024: Cheok, by Ae-soon Ahn
Cheok is the traditional Asian standard of measurement, meaning ‘span of the hand.’ Resisting the uniform standardisation of society, this personal and individual measurement is the guiding principle of renowned Korean Choreographer Ae-soon Ahn’s visually enticing reflection of the nature of precision. Mysterious and virtuosic solos and groups connect and communicate in a rich and sensuous landscape of … [Read More]
K-Dance 2024: Burnt Offering, by 99 Art Company
A sublime evocation of life; a danced ritual for our times. Most dances from all over the world originated from ‘religious rites’. Burnt Offering, winner of the Best Production award at the 2nd Seoul Arts Awards at the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, invites us to consider what new rituals we need, what we might … [Read More]
K-Dance 2024: Kontemporary Korea – a double bill of K-Dance
Kontemporary Korea is a double bill of contrasting works, introducing one of Korea’s leading choreographers Cheol-in Jeong who creates virtuosic and emotive works as Melancholy Dance Company, and audience favourite Sung Im Her, offering her high energy and engaging personality to another edition of A Festival of Korean Dance. TomorrowIsNowTodayIsYesterday (TinTiY) Sung Im Her’sTiNTiY looks at the impact of (social) media on … [Read More]
Korean crafts at Collect 2024
Collect, now in its 20th year, offers collectors an opportunity to acquire new, museum-quality handcrafted artworks from some of 21st Century’s finest craft talent. As in previous years, there is a strong Korean representation, with five Korea-specialist galleries exhibiting. You will also find individual Korean artists in galleries without a country focus: Gallery Sklo Booth: … [Read More]
Korean films at BFI Flare 2024
Last year BFI Flare had a Korean focus, giving us four feature films and a short. It’s only natural that this year’s offering won’t quite match up to last year’s feast, but still we have one feature and a short: Heavy Snow (폭설) Dir: Yun Su-ik (2023, 77 mins) Cast: Han So-hee, Han Hae-in Monday … [Read More]
A look back at LEAFF and LKFF 2023
We didn’t get around to writing any detailed reviews of the films that screened at the two big festivals in the autumn of 2023, so it’s time to try to pull some thoughts together before the memories fade entirely, jostled sideways by new ones. There were some sparkly new films which were fun to watch … [Read More]