The chamber group Ensemble Ditto opens the fourth season of its annual summer classical music festival Tuesday through July 4. From left, violist Richard Yongjae O’Neill, violinist Shunsuke Sato, cellist Michael Nicolas, pianist Ji-Yong and violinist Stefan Jackiw. / Courtesy of Credia |
By Lee Hyo-won
Staff reporter
The fourth season of the annual Ditto Festival kicks off Tuesday evening, and is expected to bring a Bohemian flair to the East Asian classical music scene.
The event’s namesake Ensemble Ditto, led by violist Richard Yongjae O’Neill, was launched in 2007 and the male chamber group’s popularity spread like wildfire among the mostly young, female fans. What had initially been a chamber recital series quickly grew into a full-scale summer music festival.
This year’s edition, titled ``Bohemian,’’ has gotten larger in scope in terms of both repertoire and geography, with the group due to perform in sellout concerts not only here but also in Japan for the first time. It has also invited guest artists of international renown from Japan, France, Canada, Russia and the United States to take part in eight concerts through July 4 at Seoul Arts Center and Hoam Art Hall, downtown Seoul.
``I’m very honored and we’re very excited,’’ O’Neill told reporters Monday in Seoul about Ditto’s upcoming Japan debut. He added that all 7,000 tickets for the tour in Tokyo (June 28) and Osaka (June 29) sold out within a month. He shyly grinned and said ``maybe’’ when asked if the group plans to expand its tour to other countries in the near future.
O’Neill, 32, is the only one of the group's founding members to return, and also acts as the festival’s artistic director. Violinist Stefan Jackiw, 25, is joining the group for the third time while pianist Ji-Yong, 19, and cellist Michael Nicolas, 27, are making their second consecutive appearances.
``I play with chamber musicians all the time in Montreal, New York and all over, but I look forward to the summer because all my (Ditto) colleagues are each world-class musicians but also my good friends,’’ said Nicolas, who is a member of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra.
He added that the members tend to fool around during rehearsals but they are serious chamber musicians. And when asked to describe the musical color of the group, he said with a smile, ``White because white light has all the colors of the rainbow in it.’’
A newcomer is noted young Japanese violinist Shunsuke Sato, who was recruited by O’Neill. The 26-year-old had attended the Great Mountains Music Festival & School (GMMFS) in Gangwon Province several years ago with O’Neill and accepted the offer to participate.
``Each gathering has its particular kind of energy and I’m not sure how to put it, but there is a vibe in the air and musicians communicate verbally and non-verbally… It came off to a fine start,’’ Sato said about collaborating with Ditto.
``Why were such incredibly good looking young men grouped together?’’ Jackiw said with a grin when a reporter pointed out the group’s pop idol-like appeal.
``Sometimes it helps to present classical music in a way that attracts new audiences. I think some people come to the Ditto concert, not all of them, because they are drawn in the way we are presented _ the posters, the trailers. But once they are at the concert, the presentation doesn’t become as important as the music. This seed of interest and love for classical music planted by Ditto allows it to flourish on its own,’’ he said, emphasizing that Ditto is first and foremost about music.
For Jackiw as well as Ji-Yong, taking part of Ditto has opened new opportunities in Korea. Jackiw recently released his first recording with Sony Classical while Ji-Yong has been taking part in unique projects with dancers and artists, including impromptu street performances around Seoul.
Joshua Bell and St. Martin in the Fields will open the festival Tuesday evening at Seoul Arts Center. The Grammy Award-winning violinist will conduct and play the violin solo in Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with the world-renowned orchestra.
Pianist Lim Dong-hyek, who took part in Ditto in 2008, will appear with French cellist Gautier Capucon for a duo recital Saturday at the same venue. Sergei Nakariakov, dubbed ``the Paganini of the trumpet,’’ and Japanese violinist Ryu Goto will each make their Korea recital debut on June 29 and July 2 at Hoam Art Hall, respectively.
Lim and Ensemble TIMF will join Ensemble Ditto for ``Ditto Odyssey’’ on July 3 at Seoul Arts Center. Schumann’s ``Scenes From Childhood,’’ Ravel’s ``La Valse’’ and Holst’s ``The Planets’’ will be presented with spectacular visuals for a musical voyage through space.
The thematic finale concert ``Bohemian’’ on July 4 will feature central European jewels including Dvorak’s Serenade for Strings and Piano Quintet as well as Kodaly’s Violin-Cello Duo. For more information call 1577-5266 or visit www.clubbalcony.com.