Kim Daejin and Lee Jinsang Present “The Piano Odyssey”

Kim Daejin and Lee Jinsang, professors in the Department of Instrumental Music at the School of Music, will take the stage as conductor and pianist, repectively. On November 25 at the Lotte Concert Hall, “The Piano Odyssey” will feature three beloved piano concertos. The evening’s program will take audiences on a journey through Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2,” Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto No.1,” and Edvard Grieg’s “Piano Concerto in A Minor.”

At the age of 18, pianist Lee Jinsang first performed Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2” with an orchestra, a piece that has since become his signature repertoire.

Pianist Park Jonghai, an alumnus of the Department of Instrumental Music, described Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto No.1” as “a piece that allows a pianist to display everything  he has.” He will offer his own fresh interpretation of this iconicwork, known for one of the most famous openings in classical music.

Meanwhile, pianist Kim Dohyeon, performing Grieg’s only piano concerto, is internationally acclaimed for his deeply expressive and captivating musical style.

The collaboration between the conductor and the orchestra is also drawing great attention. Kim Daejin – a celebrated pianist, mentor, and conductor with a profound insight into the piano – will lead the orchestra with the three pianists. Known as a refined virtuoso and an influential pedagogue who has trained many of today’s leading musicians, Kim has also earned acclaim as a conductor who brings deep emotional resonance in his performances.

Kim Daejin was elected president of K-Arts through its first direct vote system and served in the position for four years until August of this year. Now returning to the stage, his true artistic home, he continues to share the essence of piano music. “I’m very excited to perform some of the most beloved piano concertos of all time with these outstanding pianists,” Kim said. “It will be a journey through masterpieces, each colored by the pianist’s unique interpretation.”