The programme for the 2024 K-Music Festival is quite possibly the best yet. For LKL, the real gems are the opening and closing events. We hear that the National Changgeuk Company‘s Lear, which opens the festival, is every bit as good as their Trojan Women, which we raved about; and for the closing event pretty … [Read More]
Musician: Youn Sun Nah (나윤선)
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 2018: Youn Sun Nah + Hyelim Kim & Alice Zawadzki, 20 November @QEH
The final concert of K-music 2018 is a double bill. After their amazing debut collaboration at K-music 2017, Hyelim Kim and Alice Zawadzki have a well-deserved reunion. Youn Sun Nah opened K-music 2016 with her regular on-stage partner Ulf Wakenius, and we look forward to her return this year. Youn Sun Nah + Hyelim Kim … [Read More]
A Review of London Korean cultural year 2017
It feels like it’s been an incredibly busy year, and as I come to write this review I realise that, much more so than in previous years, many of the things that have been memorable I haven’t had time to write about – and maybe won’t. I’ve written separately about the films it was possible … [Read More]
Event news: Nah Youn Sun at Ronnie Scotts
A live performance from Youn Sun Nah is always a very special event. For her past couple of performances in London she has been with virtuoso guitarist Ulf Wakenius, who used to play with the Oscar Peterson Quartet. This time, she has a four-piece band, performing tracks from her album that was released this month, … [Read More]
A review of the London Korean year 2016
As is traditional at this time of year, we look back at some of the highlights of the London Korean Year. Exhibitions Is it my imagination, or was there less going on this year? Certainly from the perspective of contemporary art, we have been through a lull this year. With HADA Contemporary gone, Mokspace reborn … [Read More]
Gig review: Youn Sun Nah + Ulf Wakenius @ Union Chapel
It’s been too long since Youn Sun Nah performed in London: five long years. Last time was a small, intimate venue – Pizza Express in Soho – and the time before was the Queen Elizabeth Hall – more generous in terms of space but one that made the performers work hard to create the atmosphere. … [Read More]
LKL at 10 years: the best of the past decade
Well, if you can’t reminisce on your website’s 10th birthday, when can you? Here’s a collection of some of my favourite London memories of the past 10 years (and one or two from slightly further afield). Some of the moments lived up to expectation: a front row seat at a performance by K-pop ballad diva Lee … [Read More]
Looking back at 2014: Entertainment news
In the second of four retrospective articles, we recall some of the entertainment stories that caught our eye in 2014. Good year for: Popular TV drama My Love from the Star had an impact beyond its 21 episode span. The lead female character, played by Jeon Ji-hyun, managed to boost sales of trenchcoats in Korea, … [Read More]
No medals for the BBC’s Sochi closing ceremony coverage
As the Olympic flag was passed from Sochi to the mayor of Pyeongchang, it was time for a brief preview of the 2018 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony. The BBC voiceover was done by sports commentator Hazel Irvine, who had been handed a press briefing but no more. Helpfully, she identified that the bird characters on … [Read More]
A reason to watch the Sochi closing ceremony
A reason to watch the closing ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics as they hand over to Pyeongchang 2018: LKL’s favourite jazz singer Nah Youn Sun will perform Arirang with classical star Jo Sumi and former Boohwal lead singer Lee Seung-cheol. Sounds like a variation on President Park’s inauguration ceremony. Source: Chosun Ilbo You can … [Read More]
The London Korean Links Awards 2013
Now in its eighth year, here are the LKL Awards 2013. The year has been both good and bad from LKL’s perspective. Good because there seem to have been more events, more books, more films and more music than ever before as Korean culture gets more and more public attention. And bad because our day … [Read More]
CD review: Nah Youn Sun — Lento
Nah Youn Sun: Lento ACT Records, April 2013 Nah Youn Sun’s collaboration with Swedish guitarist Ulf Wakenius continues to bear fruit. This is her third album with Wakenius on the ACT label (and her 8th studio album overall), and like her previous ACT releases they are supported by Lars Danielsson on bass and Xavier Desandre-Navarre … [Read More]
Nah Youn Sun on reducing an audience to tears
LKL’s favourite jazz singer, Nah Youn Sun, fresh from singing at Park Geun-hye’s inauguration talks to the JoongAng Daily about her career, about her new album, Lento, which will be released in the UK in April, and about singing Arirang to foreign audiences: To my surprise, audiences, regardless of their nationality, shed tears while listening … [Read More]
The London Korean Links Awards 2011
The sixth of LKL’s annual unscientific and very personal recognition of the best things of last year. And in the field of film, books and CDs what is encouraging is that there is so much to choose from. There were also plenty of good Korean cultural events in London, Edinburgh and elsewhere, but there was … [Read More]
German Jazz award for Nah Youn-sun
Nice to see Nah Youn-sun getting more recognition: Best International Female Singer in German Echo Jazz Awards http://bit.ly/fXSiv2 #. “I’m surprised but thrilled,” she says. [Read More]