Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra,
the representative orchestra of Chopin's homeland, Poland
The Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra returns. On February 14, 2024, at the Seoul Arts Center
Concert Hall, the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, together with planist Seonwoo Ye-kwon,
will color the concert hall with their own rich colors in an ideal program which will include
works by Polish composers. The Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1901, quickly
rose to become a major European orchestra for its outstanding skills and exceptional work
as an ensemble. It has continued to be loved the world over, participating in the final round
and prize-winning tour of the 'Chopin International Plano Competition', one of the world's
three major piano competitions.
The first part of the performance features works by Polish composers, who can be said to be
representative of the orchestra's identity. These will include Lutostawskl's Little Sulte and
Chopin's Plano Concerto No. 1. This will be presented in collaboration with Seonwoo Ye-
kwon, a pianist representing Korea who has won a total of eight international competitions,
including the Van Cliburn International Competition. The second part of the concert, they
will deliver a resonant performance of Beethoven's much loved Symphony No. 7 with their
unique, refined tone.
Conductor | Andrzej Boreyko
The 2022/2023 season is Andrze) Boreyko's fourth as Music and Artistic Director of
the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. He also opened the season of the Orchestra Sinfonica di
Milano Giuseppe Verdi at the Teatro alla Scala as their resident director in September 2022.
He will return to the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra and London Philharmonic
Orchestra, as well as the Prague Symphony Orchestra, with which he will appear at
the Budapest Palace of Arts. Other orchestras he has worked with include the Berliner
Philharmoniker, Staatskapelle Dresden, Leipzig Gewandhausorchester, Wiener Symphoniker,
Royal Concertgebouw, and Orchestre de Paris.
As an advocate for contemporary music, Andrze) Boreyko continues to record world
premieres with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, most recently the music of Paul Kletzk1,
Jan Adam Maklaklewicz, Glya Kanchell and André Tchalkowsky.
Previous appointments include Music Director positions at the Jenaer Philharmonie,
Symphoniker Hamburg, Berner Symphonieorchester, Düsseldorfer Symphoniker, Winnipeg
Symphony, Belglan National Orchestra and Naples Philharmonic.
Piano | Yekwon Sunwoo
Yekwon Sunwoo has been halled for his "unfallingly consistent excellence" (International
Plano) and celebrated as "a pianist who commands a comprehensive technical arsenal that
allows him to thunder without breaking a sweat" (Chicago Tribune). A powerful and virtuosic
performer, he also, in his own words, "strives to reach for the truth and pure beauty in
music."
Yekwon, the first Korean Gold medallist of the Van Cliburn International Piano
Competition, also won first prizes at the 2015 International German Plano Award in Frankfurt,
the 2014 Vendome Prize held at the Verbler Festival, the 2013 Sendal International Music
Competition, and the 2012 William Kapell International Piano Competition.
In 2017, Decca Gold released Cliburn Gold 2017 two weeks after Yekwon was awarded the
Gold Medal and Includes his award-winning performances of Ravel's La Valse and
Rachmaninov's Second Plano Sonata. In 2020 Yekwon went on to release his first studio
album for Decca Universal Music Korea featuring an all-Mozart programme. His second
album featuring Rachmaninov solo works will be released in September 2023.
Sunwoo Yekwon selected as Ambassador for the Winter Youth Olvmdic Games Ganewon 2024
and Honorary Ambassador for the 140*™ Anniversary of Korea-Germ any Diplomatic Relations.
Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra
The first concert by the Warsaw Philharmonic took place on 5 November 1901 in a newly erected
building. The orchestra was directed by the Philharmonic's co-founder and first artistic director, Emil
Mlynarski. The soloist was Ignacy Jan Paderewski. The Philharmonic was a major music center in
Poland before World War I and in the interwar period, becoming one of the most important music
institutions in Europe. Nearly every famous conductor and soloist of the time has performed on its
stage.
The Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra has travelled on nearly 140 concert tours on five continents,
performing in the world's major concert halls. It regularly plays in the Chopin International Piano
Competitions and in the "Warsaw Autumn" Festivals. The Philharmonic Orchestra records for Polish
Radio and Television, for Polish and foreign record labels, as well as music for films. The Orchestra has
received many awards for its achievements, including a Grammy Award in 2013 and six other Grammy
nominations for its recordings of sacred vocal works by Penderecki and Szymanowski, the Diapason
d'Or, ICMA, the Gramophone award, the Record Geijutsu award, Classical Internet Award, the Cann
Classical Award and Polish Fryderyk awards.
