Yellow Lounge to marry classical music with club scene

Classical music doesn’t always have to be enjoyed in a sedate concert hall. On Oct. 3, Oct. 31 and Nov. 12, Seoul nightclub Octagon will be filled with the sounds of string and wind instruments delivering classical tunes under flamboyant lighting, along with drinks, cheer and laughter.

The 2013 Yellow Lounge Seoul, aimed at bringing more people to classical music by visiting the trendiest venues, will present The Philharmonics, composed of members of the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra on Oct. 1, followed by Lithuanian accordionist Martynas Levickis on Oct. 31 and clarinetist Andreas Ottensamer on Nov. 12. 

The Philharmonics will be joined by a pianist from the Roby Lakatos Ensemble, one of the most famous gypsy music ensembles, in presenting not only classical pieces but original soundtracks of famous films.

Accordionist Levickis, the 2004 recipient of the Queen Morta awards, will play some K-pop songs during his performance. He previously gained much attention by releasing video clips of himself playing songs by Daft Punk, Lady Gaga and Psy on YouTube.

The up-and-coming star clarinetist Ottensamer shot to fame when he was named the solo clarinetist with the Berlin Philharmonic in 2011 after serving the same position at the Deutsch Symphony Orchestra from 2010-2011. He is expected to present classical music.

The internationally acclaimed musicians and noted Octagon-based DJ Pascal Dior along with VJ Shin Jeong-yeop will take turns performing, starting at 8 p.m. The German-born DJ will give a modern twist to classical music.

“The DJs and musicians will take turns performing for 30 minutes twice. Their performances will clearly inspire one another and harmonize, though they will not jam,” said an official from Universal Music, the organizer of the event.

The Yellow Lounge was launched in 2004 in Berlin to break the prejudices about “boring and difficult” classical music and blend contemporary youth culture with the traditional musical genres.

Korea was the first Asian country to adopt the event in 2012, with cellist Mischa Maisky and guitarist Milos performing at club Ellui Seoul.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)