Conductor: Hogen Yun
Born in South Korea, Hogen Yun first successfully studied piano in Seoul before he came in 1993 to Germany and graduated with distinction courses in orchestral conducting led by Professor Arp and choral conducting led by Professor Bernius at the Musikhochschule Mannheim. First he was employed 1999 at the Stadttheater Gießen, where he led “The Merry Widow“, “Dido and Aeneas“ as well or premiered many contemporary pieces. At the Opera Frankfurt, Hogen Yun earned a solid, comprehensive repertoire and conducted among others “La Traviata”, “Die Zauberflöte” and “Hänsel und Gretel”. Furthermore he took over the musical direction of works such as “Rigoletto” at this time the Kammeroper Frankfurt and “Knight Bluebeard”. After the change in 2009, he assisted under the artistic direction of Daniel Barenboim at the Berlin State Opera and also worked together with Sir Simon Rattle and Zubin Mehta. In 2011, he conducted the performance “Messa da Requiem” by Verdi with the Norddeutsche Philharmonie Rostock in the Berlin Cathedral. In the same year he also directed the Deutsche Symphony Orchestra of Berlin in a recording. Invitations take Hogen Yun regularly to South Korea since 2012 where he among others directed at Seoul Metropolitan Opera “The magic flute” and the Korean National Opera “La Bohéme”. He performs regularly at the Sejong Culture Center in Seoul since 2014 as a guest and performed works such as “Der Freischütz” or the world premiere “Arriving on the waters like the moon” on. In 2015, he entirely dedicated himself the subject of “Faust” by Gounod and conducted this opera in autumn in Seoul.
Orchestra: Korean Symphony Orchestra
Since its establishment in 1985, Korean Symphony Orchestra(KSO) has been working to elevate the standing of Korean symphonic music for the past 30 years both domestically and abroad through more than 90 performances annually. Since concluding an exclusive contract with the National Theater of Korea in 1987, KSO has held regular joint productions with the Korea National Opera, the Korean National Ballet, and the National Chorus of Korea as part of its repertoire. And from 2001, following its designation as the resident orchestra of Seoul Arts Center, it has established itself at Seoul Arts Center as Korea’s leading theater resident orchestra. Like the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, it is the only house orchestra in Korea to possess the know-how and performance experience to stage professional opera house performances such as ballet and opera music. Having held more than 40 annual ballet and opera performances over the years, it continues to solidify and expand its repertoire every year while maintaining an unrivaled reputation in music for ballet and opera in Korea. As the leading performance ensemble in the field of orchestral music, it continues to play regular concerts and special program concerts on the main stages of Seoul Arts Center’s concert hall. Formally recognized as a non-profit foundation by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism(MCST) in 2001, KSO has since been incorporated as a professional artistic organization and is now affiliated with the MCST, thus making it eligible to receive government budget support for its operations. In this way, it has become a model for governance in the field of arts and culture. More recently, with the appointment of Lim Hun-Joung as Artistic Director and Permanent Conductor in January 2014, and currently numbering 100 orchestra and staff members, including two composers-in-residence, KSO continues to work together for the advancement of Korea’s performing arts and concerts.