LONDON (AFP) ― His ballad “Yesterday” is one of the most covered songs in history ― but as he turned 70 on Monday, ex-Beatle Paul McCartney showed no signs of settling back to reflect on his extraordinary past. Fresh from wowing huge crowds at Queen Elizabeth II’s diamond jubilee concert and with another headline gig ― the London Olympics opening ceremony ― booked for next month, retirement look...

Visual artist invites viewers to a world of fantasy and tests their beliefs The Miami-born Cuban-American artist Hernan Bas is a prominent young artist in the contemporary art world who has attracted worldwide attention lately with his dreamy, imaginary paintings with expressive and bold brushwork. His first exhibition in Korea, also his first in Asia, at PKM Trinity Gallery in Seoul features f...

Composer of Girls’ Generation songs offers musical cure for broken hearts This is part of a series featuring new hallyu stars. ― Ed. K-pop from the ’90s is back. Songs with sentimental lyrics and melodies are enjoying a quiet revival in Korea’s music scene. My Afternoon, a duo of star composer Hwang Hyun and singer Agnes, is one of several outfits trying to deliver a different aspect of K-pop ...

‘Chicago,’ ‘Hairspray’ to offer stirring entertainment This summer Seoul’s musical scene is packed with more top-name shows than ever. One of the most anticipated shows “Wicked” had a successful opening last month, while local production “Bungee-Jump” and the 1983 Broadway musical “La Cage aux Folles” are slated to kick off their first runs next month. Adding to the excitement is the opening o...

‘Architecture 101’ and ‘Fashion King’ actor shares his thoughts on movies, and taking on different challenges No one on Korea’s film scene has been busier than actor Lee Je-hoon in the last few months. The 28-year-old actor has been involved with two movies and one drama since last year. One of the movies, “Architecture 101,” in which Lee played a shy university student who suffers heartbreak o...

NEW YORK ― Luke Folger was in a mild state of panic. His one-man-band contraption had gone dead in front of three rows of judges, and time was ticking by. Folger knelt on the floor of Grand Central Terminal and rummaged through a jumble of cables and plugs, trying to figure out what was wrong. A violinist-juggler act was waiting to take the stage. So were an urban-acid-jazz guitarist and a oneti...

Classical artists explore dramatic and passionate life of Beethoven There is apparently no specific reason why many classical artists have chosen Beethoven sonatas for their recitals and recordings this year. Starting with pianist Kim Sun-wook’s two-year-long project to perform all 32 of Beethoven’s piano sonatas, the so-called “Beethoven fever” continued with rookie Lim Hyun-jung releasing her...

Gugak-themed theater fest features Lee Ja-ram, Yang Bang-eon Our music is here, our music is here. Yeowoorak, which is an abbreviation for the Korean sentence “Yeogi Woori Eeumagee Itda,” meaning “our music (gugak) is here,” is kicking off its third edition with some of today’s most acclaimed artists. The gugak-themed festival is directed by Korean-Japanese pianist Yang Bang-eon this year. A t...

The recent Lady Gaga brouhaha in Indonesia has been seen as a conflict between Muslim conservatives and the decadence of the West, represented by the music and stage antics of the American female performer. No one, however, seemed to notice that in the midst of this fierce battle dangdut got caught in the crossfire. (Dangdut is a genre of Indonesian popular music that is partly derived from Mala...

Secretary-general of UNESCO Korea speaks on various conflicts including Arirang Prize controversy In October of 2009, the Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea officially announced it would abolish the UNESCO-Arirang Prize, terminating its funding for the prize. The award, first established in 2001, was created to honor individuals or groups who protect spaces or forms of traditional cultu...

“The Amazing Spider-Man,” the latest addition to the Spider-Man franchise, is not just about an action hero and large-scale computer graphics on 3-D screen, according to its director Mark Webb. Speaking at a press conference last Thursday at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Seoul joined by Spider-Man actor Andrew Garfield, Garfield’s on- and off-screen love interest Emma Stone, actor Riys Ifans who pla...