Cellist Yang Sung-won to head Music in Pyeongchang

Music in Pyeongchang, an annual music festival held in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, has appointed cellist Yang Sung-won as its fourth artistic director, festival organizer Gangwon Art and Culture Foundation announced Thursday.

Yang will lead the 20th edition of the music festival, which will take place from July 26 to Aug. 5.

Yang, a cello soloist and chamber musician who performs worldwide, has worked with renowned musicians, such as pianists Christoph Eschenbach and Pascal Devoyon, and composers Chung Myung-whun, Peter Eotvos, Johannes Kalitzke and Laurent Petitgirard.

He also teaches at Yonsei University School of Music in Seoul as a professor and the Royal Academy of Music in London as a visiting professor.

Born in Korea, Yang graduated from the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Paris. He has received the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, an order of merit, from the French government. He is also the artistic director of the Festival Beethoven a Beaune, in France.

Launched in 2004 by professor Kang Hyo of the Juilliard School, celebrated musicians have served as Music in Pyeongchang's artistic director, including cellist Chung Myung-wha and violinist Chung Kyung-wha. Pianist Son Yeol-eum led the festival from 2018 to 2021.