Leading female voices in K-pop today are gearing up for comebacks later this month, closing off the first half of the K-pop industry's 2020 release calendar largely shaken up by the new coronavirus pandemic.   Solo artist Sunmi plans to make a comeback with her new single, "Pporappippam," on June 29. The song marks Sunmi's first new material in 10 months since her hit single "Lalalay" from last year. For her new song, the ex-Wonder Girls member partnered with DJ and pro

Returning to the stage after a four month virus-mandated absence, Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra’s reunion with its audience was full of emotion for both sides. The SPO performed “Related Giants – Mahler & Sibelius” at the Lotte Concert Hall in eastern Seoul on Thursday. It was the first time the SPO had performed in front of a live audience since February. Though the concert had been much anticipated, the concert hall was relatively empty, as the SPO limited the nu

Violinist Clara Jumi Kang and pianist Son Yeol-eum are to embark on a tour of South Korea in September. The seven-city tour will run Sept. 2-10 and take them to Jeju, Suwon, Goyang, Daegu and more. It will mark the two virtuosos’ first performances together in four years. Having attended the Korea National University of Arts together, the two debuted as a duo at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2012. They held a national tour in 2013, followed by another in 2016 celebrating the release

A violinist will perform the solo repertoires of Bach and Ysaye, to take the audience on a “music trip” to Europe in July. Violinist Lim Ji-young, 25, will present the unaccompanied violin sonatas by Bach and Ysaye at central Seoul’s Seoul Anglican Cathedral on July 1 and the Seosomun Shrine History Museum on July 11. Lim rose to stardom in the classical music scene as the first Korean violinist to win the 2015 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, Belgium. Since then,

Collaboration is in the works between K-pop and K-classic. The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and S.M. Entertainment signed a memorandum of understanding Wednesday to spread K-pop and K-classic worldwide by creating content that is not defined by a single genre. Lee Sung-soo, co-CEO of S.M. Entertainment, and Kang Eun-kyung, CEO of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, signed the memorandum, marking the first time a leading orchestra has joined hands with an entertainment company. This is also the

Music concert hall operator Stradeum announced Thursday that it will hold the “Stage 30” concert series from June 16 to July 10 jointly with performance-planning company United Producers. The Stradeum, a 100-seat venue, will only seat 30 concertgoers to comply with social distancing guidelines. Stradeum added that everyone in the audience must go through temperature checks and wear masks. “This concert is part of the musician’s process to find ways to meet with audienc

The lead track of “D-2,” released in May by Suga of K-pop sensation BTS, has sparked global fans’ interest in traditional Korean music. The title of the piece, “Daechwita,” refers to a genre of traditional Korean music that was performed at a king’s parade and other military ceremonies. The music consists mainly of wind instruments and percussion instruments. The new hip-pop track, which was created based on the traditional sound source provided by the Na

The prolonged COVID-19 crisis has been pushing the performing arts scene to search for new ways to share their art, and the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra has found a way to perform together onstage while complying with the social distancing measures. The SPO, a Seoul City-funded orchestra, had originally planned to perform onstage with an in-person audience at the Seoul Arts Center on Friday. The plan, however was canceled due to renewed concerns about COVID-19 community spread. The orchestr

The music video of K-pop boy band BTS' "Fake Love" has drawn more than 700 million clicks on YouTube, the band's management agency said Sunday. The lead track of BTS' 2018 release "Love Yourself: Tear" surpassed the 700 million mark at around 6 p.m., according to Big Hit Entertainment. This is the group's third music video to hit this number of views on the global video-streaming site, after "DNA" and "Boy With Luv." (Yonhap)

Unlikely team of acclaimed violist and hospital CEO come together to stage special concert

Though the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra had been looking into putting on an onstage full orchestral performance in front of the audience for its May 29 concert, the show was canceled late Wednesday afternoon following renewed concerns about the CVOID-19 spread. The Seoul City-funded orchestra had been looking into getting its 95 players tested for the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 before rehearsals begin for the May 29 concert at the Seoul Arts Center, as it was considering to performing t

Musical ‘Story of Kim Duk-soo’ looks back on percussionist’s career of more than 60 years

Singer Rain is unfazed by the sudden popularity of his old music video, knowing full well the less than flattering reason behind it. “Gang,” from Rain’s mini-album “My Life” (2017), came back into the spotlight six months ago when a high school student uploaded a 27-second dance cover video of the song on YouTube. The cover video, which has over 2.2 million views, brought attention to the original. Rain’s iconic performance style -- exaggerated motions, int

The Lotte Foundation for Arts is set to launch artist support program “Music Keeps Going,” hoping to invigorate the stagnant performing art scene and help audiences and performers communicate through music. The foundation received applications from late-April to early-May from artists or acts under 10 persons. The applicants were limited to Korean nationals residing in the nation.  According to the art foundation’s announcement Wednesday, four acts were selected: Spec

Drama soundtracks lead the newtro trend