Kim Hong-park reflects on three decades with horn in debut album

After nearly 30 years as a horn player in South Korea and abroad, Kim Hong-park released his first album, "Schumann & Brahms," last Friday.

The 42-year-old musician, who is also a professor at Seoul National University, discussed his inspiration to produce an album highlighting the instrument, which is pivotal in an orchestra due to its versatile contributions to melody, harmony, dynamic range, rhythmic support, color, texture and signaling cues.

“Despite its significance and brilliance in the orchestra, the horn does not enjoy the same prominence as a solo instrument like the violin or piano. This disparity motivated me to release the album,” Kim said in an interview with The Korea Herald on July 5.

Kim also added that he wanted to return the inspiration he received from many CD recordings, as he has now accumulated almost 30 years of experience.

“During my time living and studying abroad, I gained a lot of inspiration and developed significantly through many CD recordings. This made me want to record my thoughts and the depth of my sound, and tangibly express my musical ideas,” Kim noted.

His debut album, on which he collaborated with pianist Park Jong-hai and violinist Kim Jae-won, includes representative horn works - Schumann’s Adagio and Allegro, Op.70, Fantasiestucke, Op.73 and 3 Romanzen, Op. 94, and J. Brahms’s Trio for Violin, Horn and Piano in E-flat Major, Op.40.

Brahms, whose father was a natural horn player, composed the “Trio for Violin, Horn, and Piano in E-flat Major, Op. 40” following the death of his mother. This piece, according to Kim, emphasizes the unique beauty of the natural horn.

The recording process offered Kim a fresh musical perspective.

"The sound I heard during the recording session differed significantly from the playback. This experience made me realize that the sound I perceive might not be the same as what the audience hears," Kim reflected.

Kim's journey as a hornist began unexpectedly when someone introduced him to the instrument. Until that moment, he had aspired to be a classical singer.

His career as an orchestra member began when he joined the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra under maestro Chung Myung-Whun from 2007 to 2010. Between 2012 and 2014, he worked as the second principal horn of the Royal Swedish Opera before taking up the position of principal horn with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, a position which he held until 2023.

He introduced the horn's role as embracing others with a very stable and soft sound. "So it requires us to always listen with open ears. We need to provide a strong foundation and be a good background so that the melodic instruments can paint their picture on top of it. In a way, because it controls the overall atmosphere, it needs to be very stable and unwavering. Through these experiences, I found a lot of joy and fulfillment," he added.

As a professor at his alma mater, he hopes to bring his experience to inspire horn students.

"While studying in Korea, I focused on technical skills and abroad I learned how to express various emotions with each tone. This new perspective led me to move away from practicing rapid and complex pieces. Instead, I began to focus on slowly and carefully infusing each sound with emotion and musical expression," Kim said.

He earned a master's degree and artist diploma at the Mozarteum University of Salzburg under Professor Radovan Vlatkovic and completed his soloist diploma at the Universitat der Kunste Berlin under Professor Christian-Friedirich-Dallmann.

As a result, he developed a deep appreciation for the Romantic era, particularly its lyrical and expressive compositions. This influence, he believes, was pivotal in shaping his musical approach and he hopes that his students can learn how to enrich their musical expression.