The Korean Cultural Society of Boston
한미예술협회
Classical Afternoon Concert
PROGRAM
G. Holst. Jupiter (arr. Samuel Adler)
J.S. Bach. Prelude, Chorale and Fugue (arr. Samuel Adler) - premiere
B. Britten. Three Divertimenti
L.v. Beethoven. Piano Concerto No.4 in G, Op. 58 (arr. Yoomi Paick)
New York City’s innovative young chamber orchestra, New York Classical Players (NYCP), is dedicated to the highest standards of artistry, collaboration, and virtuosity. Under the leadership of music director Dongmin Kim, NYCP performs across the United States, South America, and Asia.
Since its founding in 2010, NYCP has performed around 250 concerts. Prominent artists who have appeared with the orchestra include Miriam Fried, Donald Weilerstein, Kim Kashkashian, Pamela Frank, Charles Neidich, Sami Jo, Yeol Eun Son, Yekwon Sunwoo, Chee-Yun, Stefan Jackiw, Jasmine Choi, and Richard O'Neill.
NYCP is committed to presenting free performances of familiar masterpieces, bold new commissions, and unexpected musical treasures to the public. Each season, thousands of NYCP concertgoers experience both the dynamic power of the orchestral repertoire and the versatile intimacy of chamber performance. NYCP is under the direction of Founder and Music Director Dongmin Kim, with guidance and support from a dedicated board of directors.
Dongmin Kim is rapidly gaining recognition as an inspiring and versatile conductor. He serves as the Music Director of the innovative New York Classical Players (NYCP), a chamber orchestra composed of some of the most exciting musicians. Since founding NYCP in 2010, Mr. Kim has conducted approximately 250 concerts in the NYC metro area, undertaken three international tours across Asia and South America, and performed throughout the United States. He has collaborated with renowned artists such as Kim Kashkashian, Miriam Fried, Cho-Liang Lin, Pamela Frank, Charles Neidich, Carol Wincenc, HaeSun Paik, Sumi Jo, Jasmine Choi, and Richard O'Neill.
Mr. Kim led a series of concerts with NYCP, stepping in at the last minute to fill in for the canceled English Chamber Orchestra's US tour. His career highlights include guest appearances with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center, the Seoul Arts Center Festival Orchestra, the Texas Festival Orchestra at the Round Top Music Festival Institute, and a residency at Brown University. He has also conducted the Philadelphia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, and Winnipeg Symphony, among others.
A proud recipient of the prestigious Herbert von Karajan Fellowship, selected by the members of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, which resulted in a residency at the Salzburg Music Festival. He served as the Schmidt Conducting Fellow with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, working with notable figures like Raymond Leppard, Mario Venzago, Lynn Harrell, André Watts, and Lang Lang. A passionate advocate of contemporary music, Mr. Kim has performed with leading composers and recently recorded a series of chamber orchestra pieces by Samuel Adler for Toccata Classics, praised by Pizzicato Magazine Luxembourg.
Mr. Kim has held principal viola positions, including with the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra under Michael Tilson-Thomas. As a recitalist and chamber musician, he has performed extensively throughout the United States, South America, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
Born in Seoul, Korea, Mr. Kim studied Orchestral Conducting and Viola at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, mentored by Kurt Masur, Janos Starker, Alan de Veritch, Leonard Slatkin, Imre Pallo, Thomas Baldner, and David Effron.
Yekwon Sunwoo has been hailed for his “unfailingly consistent excellence” (International Piano) and celebrated as “a pianist who commands a comprehensive technical arsenal that allows him to thunder without breaking a sweat” (Chicago Tribune). A powerful and virtuosic performer, he also, in his own words, “strives to reach for the truth and pure beauty in music”.
The first Korean Gold medallist of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Yekwon’s 23/24 season includes appearances with the Macao, Armenian, Kalamazoo & Victoria Symphonies, Slovak Philharmonic, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris as well as a US tour with the Esme String Quartet.
In previous seasons, he has performed as soloist with the Munich Philharmonic and Valery Gergiev, Royal Danish Orchestra with Thomas Søndergård, Fort Worth and Tucson Symphonies, Washington Chamber Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony, National Orchestra of Belgium, Sendai Philharmonic and Royal Scottish National Orchestra amongst others. Recital appearances include Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall, Elbphilharmonie, Salle Cortot, Hong Kong Arts Festival and a tour of Japan.
An avid chamber musician, Yekwon’s collaborators include Benjamin Beilman, Linus Roth, Andrei Ioniță, Sebastian Bohren, Isang Enders, Tobias Feldmann, Gary Hoffman, Anne-Marie McDermott and the Jerusalem and Brentano Quartets. He has also toured Costa Rica, Guatemala and Panama with the Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation and performed at Chamber Music of Lincoln Center’s Inside Chamber Music Lectures.
In addition to the Cliburn Gold Medal, Yekwon won first prizes at the 2015 International German Piano Award, the 2014 Vendome Prize held at the Verbier Festival, the 2013 Sendai International Music Competition and the 2012 William Kapell International Piano Competition.
Born in Anyang, South Korea, Yekwon began learning the piano at the age of 8 and made his recital and orchestral debuts in Seoul at 15. His teachers include Seymour Lipkin, Robert McDonald, Richard Goode and Bernd Goetzke.
In 2017, Decca Gold released Cliburn Gold 2017 two weeks after Yekwon was awarded the Gold Medal and includes his award-winning performances of Ravel’s La Valse and Rachmaninov’s Second Piano Sonata. In 2020 Yekwon went on to release his first studio album for Decca Universal Music Korea featuring an all-Mozart programme. His second album featuring Rachmaninov solo works will be released in September 2023.