Are there any male Gugak players? Sorea, Sookmyung Kayageum Orchestra, now Miji, the latest gugak girl band. The eight-member all-female ensemble hopes to become known as “the Girls’ Generation of traditional Korean music.” Their debut album, The Challenge, hits the stores this month. Source: JoongAng Daily. # [Read More]
Music (page 87)
Sulki Yu in the QEH foyer
Violinist Sulki Yu plays in a free foyer recital at the Queen Elizabeth Hall today, Friday 15 January, at 5pm. Programme as follows: Bela Bartok: Violin Sonata No.1 Witold Lutoslawski: Subito for violin & piano Sulki Yu violin Elizabeth Rossiter piano Part of the Park Lane Group Young Artists New Year Series LKL correspondent Colin … [Read More]
A belated look back at 2009
For the past 3 years LKL has concocted a quiz of the year as a way of gathering together some of the news stories which have most caught our eye. This year, as I came to draw up the list in mid December I found it hard to think of anything amusing or diverting: most … [Read More]
SNSD are National Assembly’s singers of the year
Korean National Assembly have refined tastes: Girl’s Generation named singers of the year by their popular culture and media study society. http://bit.ly/8EnyG7. [Read More]
Younee wins best songwriter at Musicaid awards
Congratulations to @youneelondon: Best Songwriter & nominated for best female solo artist in Musicaid 2009 Song Contest http://bit.ly/5azmbo. 9:14 PM Jan 4th from bit.ly [Read More]
LKL Critics’ Choice 2009: Philip
The editor provides an eclectic choice of albums from this year. 2009 has been a bumper year for new, innovative music and some welcome re-releases of the back catalogue. And anyone interested in the Korean contemporary music scene needs to be very grateful to Anna over at Indieful ROK for the work she does in … [Read More]
LKL Critics’ Choice 2009: Saharial
This year can definitely be marked down as one for the less inspiring years for discovering new musical talent. Korea is packed full of vocally gifted teens all eager to make the break into stardom and this year saw various girl and boy bands pop up from nowhere as companies vied for more of the … [Read More]
LKL Critics’ Choice 2009: Anna Lindgren
Anna Lindgren of Indieful RoK provides her pick of the best albums of 2009. Since finally giving up my life as a student to get out into the real world a couple of years ago my relation to new music has changed a lot. I see an interesting looking album or single, place an order … [Read More]
Cho Jung-yoon at St Dunstan-in-the-West
News of an upcoming lunchtime recital: Jung-Yoon Cho (violin) with Tadashi Imai (piano) Wed Dec 9th 2009, 1:15 pm St Dunstan-in-the-West, 186a Fleet St, London, EC4A 2HR Programme * J.S. Bach: Solo Sonata No. 2 – Grave and Allegro * Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonata Op. 12 No. 2 A major * Franz Schubert: Sonata (Sonatina), … [Read More]
Girl bands through the ages
A disappointing piece from the tabloids – Five Decades of Korean Girl Bands http://bit.ly/608Pro #. Fortunately Mark Russell over at Korea Pop Wars rectifies the situation. [Read More]
Honey Lee crosses over into musicals
Honey Lee on Her Love for the Gayageum – The Chosun Ilbo has a brief feature which mentions her latest outing as the Reese Witherspoon character in Legally Blonde http://bit.ly/4uTbW3 # [Read More]
Sulki Yu at the Wigmore
News of an upcoming recital at the Wigmore featuring talented Korean violinist Sulki Yu. PLG YOUNG ARTISTS Monday 30 November 2009 at 7.30pm Sulki Yu violin Chiao-Ying Chang piano Zalas Trio Carlota Amargós violin Beatrix Graf clarinet Nikolaos Stavlas piano PROGRAMME Ysaÿe: Sonata No. 3 ‘Ballade’ for solo violin Edwin Roxburgh: Sonata for violin and … [Read More]
Kim So-Ock at the Wigmore
Tuesday 1 December 2009 – 7:30 PM Wigmore Hall Performers So-Ock Kim violin Sunwook Kim piano Programme Beethoven Violin Sonata No. 10 in G Op. 96 Chausson Poème Op. 25 Elgar Violin Sonata in E minor Op. 82 Ravel Tzigane About this concert Both natives of South Korea, So-Ock Kim is a previous gold medallist … [Read More]
TVXQ’s “slave contract”
“K-pop fandom going batshit crazy today,” says @suzyinseoul. “Will someone tell me what’s going on with TVXQ and SM?” Source: AllKPop and, for background, Korea Times # [Read More]
Music, film and ancient maps in Nottingham
Nottingham Trent University has been developing an increasing range of collaborative activities with Korean government organisations. As a consequence of this, in collaboration with the Korean Cultural Centre UK, NTU are hosting in November 2009 an exhibition of Korean art (2nd – 22nd of November 2009), together with Broadway Cinema (Nottingham), a Korean Film festival … [Read More]
True to Younee – a review of Younee’s international debut album
“It’s not my kind of thing. Why don’t you have a listen?” So said a well-connected jazz buff to me a couple of months ago. He happened to have a promotional copy of Younee’s debut Western album. “She’s coming to London later this year to do some gigs at Pizza Express.” I was happy to … [Read More]