Young piano virtuosos Cho Seong-jin and Lim Yun-chan thrilled classical music fans with near-simultaneous piano feasts. Attention intensified as the two performers' domestic concert schedules overlapped. Notably, on the 6th, Cho performed at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall while Lim took the stage at Lotte Concert Hall, each meeting audiences in their own distinctive colors.
Lim, returning to his first domestic recital tour in two years, came back with a somewhat unconventional program pairing sonatas by Schubert and Scriabin. "After a long period of silence and hesitation, I have finally arrived at music that is truly alive from deep within," he said of his intentions. "I put down all obsessions, inertia and habits, and wove the program with works I have loved for years and never wanted to turn away from."
Even at Lotte Concert Hall, known for its long reverberation and uneven acoustics depending on seating, Lim filled the entire venue with his densely packed sound. The first half opened with Schubert's Piano Sonata No. 17, the "Gasteiner." Completed in 1825 at the Austrian resort town of Gastein, three years before Schubert's death, the work weaves together the bright, clear spirit of the Alps with Schubert's signature melancholy and solitary lyricism. Lim reshaped the familiar Schubert in his own language, yet focused on revealing the essence of the music through restraint rather than overtly displaying his individuality.
In the second half, however, he revealed an entirely different face through Scriabin's sonatas. Scriabin's Sonata No. 2 is the work Lim performed at the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, drawing worldwide acclaim. For this performance, he placed Sonatas Nos. 2, 3 and 4 in succession, weaving all eight movements together as a single grand narrative.
In No. 2, he depicted a sea calm under moonlight stirred into tempestuous passion; in No. 3, he portrayed the struggle of the human soul cast into anguish and anxiety. He then closed the stage with No. 4 and its mystical climax, as if soaring toward the cosmos.
In the Scriabin works in particular, Lim played using not only his fingertips but his entire body. On top of flawless technique, he unleashed anxiety, ambiguity and frenzied energy, creating moments that shook even the audience's sense of time and space.
Lim continues his tour on the 8th at Daegu Concert House, the 9th at Busan Concert Hall, the 10th at Tongyeong International Music Hall, the 12th at Seoul Arts Center, and the 13th at Arts Center Incheon.
Cho Seong-jin, performing in Korea with the Munich Philharmonic, is showcasing a different kind of allure with peak technical command and profound interpretation.
In Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 on the 5th, Cho displayed his signature refined musicality through lucid yet dynamic flow and firm touch. His chemistry with Lahav Shani, a young conductor drawing global attention, was also impressive.
Still, the classical formality of Beethoven's early concerto left something to be desired in fully conveying Cho's energy and depth. That thirst was quenched at once by Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2, performed on the 6th.
Considered a masterpiece of 20th-century piano concertos, the work demands intense dissonance, an unconventional structure and virtuosity so extreme it has been called demonic. On top of his customary precision and transparent tone, Cho poured out unbridled, hurtling energy. At the climax, he nearly rose from his seat, throwing his entire body into the keys, yet never lost balance or control even amid the explosive sound.
Music critic Song Ju-ho praised the performance as "a stage that revealed a new side of Cho Seong-jin." He added, "Prokofiev's Second Concerto is a 'demonic piece,' so intense it is hard to perform with a sober mind. Rather than being swept up by its madness, Cho showed a performance that tamed and harnessed it."
Cho will alternate between the two programs in further collaborations with the Munich Philharmonic on the 8th at Incheon Arts Center and the 9th at Lotte Concert Hall.
