From Baik Kunwoo to Sunyul... Mapo M Classic Festival Highlights 'Pianism'

A Colorful Lineup of Pianists Including Igosina and Dohyun Kim
Cellist Yang Sungwon, Soprano Sumi Hwang, and Violinist Jiyoon Lee Also Featured

'The Seeker at the Keyboard' Baik Kunwoo, Russian pianist Valentina Igosina, who has released a complete album of Chopin’s waltzes, Dohyun Kim, who won second prize at the 2021 Busoni International Competition, and Sunyul, a next-generation pianist who took first place at the 2024 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition, will all take to the stage for the M Classic Festival hosted by the Mapo Cultural Foundation.

The Mapo Cultural Foundation announced on August 10 that the 11th M Classic Festival would run until December 23. The M Classic Festival is an unprecedented and large-scale pure arts festival organized at the level of a local government, continuing for more than a decade. Over the past 10 years, the festival has featured more than 600 performances, with over 9,000 artists participating and an audience totaling more than 700,000 people.

Main performers of the 11th M Classic Festival. From the top left: pianist Dohyun Kim, harpist Subin Lee, pianist Taehwan Kim, Haeun Kim, Dai Jung, Yeongyeong Ko, violinist Jiyoon Lee, pianist Enrico Pace, cellist Sungwon Yang, violist Sumin Lee, concert guide Yongbae Kim, pianist Seonyul, haegeum player Miyoung Kim, soprano Sumi Hwang, pianist Valentina Igosina, Eunhyun Bang, saxophonist Youngjun Song, conductor Kwanghyun Kim.

This year’s festival, themed “Pianism,” will spotlight the piano’s most delicate resonances along with its dramatic range, shining a light on the diverse facets of classical music. The event comprises three series: the Piano Series, the Special Concerts, and the Matinee Series, each focused on revealing the piano’s various charms. The Special Concerts will feature top-tier artists such as cellist Yang Sungwon and soprano Sumi Hwang, who will convey the profound resonance of chamber and vocal music. The Matinee Series opens up unique classical mornings, blending expert commentary by concert guide Yongbae Kim with the orchestral performances of Orchestra M.

Pianist Baik Kunwoo, celebrating the 70th anniversary of his debut, will inaugurate the festival on September 10 with masterworks by Schubert and Brahms. He will perform Schubert’s Piano Sonatas No. 13 and No. 20, as well as Brahms’ “Four Ballades,” offering an in-depth experience of a master approaching the essence of music.

On September 11, Valentina Igosina will present the essence of Romantic piano music, spanning Beethoven, Liszt, and Chopin’s waltzes and nocturnes. After performing Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 17 “Tempest,” Liszt’s “Les jeux d’eaux à la Villa d’Este” and “Rhapsodie espagnole,” she will offer a selection of works by Chopin.

September 16 will see the second solo recital by 2026 M Artist Sunyul. 'M Artist' refers to a resident musician of the Mapo Cultural Foundation. Sunyul will continue his deeply personal exploration of music with performances of Chopin’s “Four Scherzos” and Schubert’s Piano Sonata No. 20.

On October 22, the festival will present a special duo concert with Dohyun Kim, the inaugural M Artist, and harpist Subin Lee, the first-prize winner of the Italian International Harp Competition. They will showcase familiar masterpieces by Rachmaninoff, Debussy, and Saint-Saens in newly arranged versions for piano and harp—arrangements the two performers actively participated in creating.

The intimate venue Playmac will offer relaxed performances suitable even for newcomers to classical music. On October 27, pianist Jeon Sujin, joined by pianists Gowoori and Choi Hyuna, will deliver a broad repertoire from Bach’s “Goldberg Variations” to a medley from the film “La La Land.” The stage will expand from solo performances to four hands by two pianists and even six hands featuring all three, allowing them to display the piano’s multidimensional appeal.

On October 28, the popular classical YouTube channel 'Muravel,' with about 200,000 subscribers, will interact with the audience through approachable commentary while performing all four of Chopin’s ballades and Saint-Saens’ “Danse Macabre,” among others.

The Special Concerts will also feature vocal and chamber music stages. On September 17, soprano Sumi Hwang—who shone at the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics and is a Queen Elisabeth Competition winner—will give a recital. Her program covers a wide range, including arias by Handel and Mozart, Schubert lieder, and Gershwin classics performed with saxophone, highlighting genre-spanning and era-crossing diversity.

On October 14, renowned Korean cellist Yang Sungwon, violinist Jiyoon Lee, violist Sumin Lee, and pianist Enrico Pace will all share the stage. Centering their performance on pieces by Kodály and Brahms, the quartet will deliver the essence of chamber music, in which strings and keyboard deeply resonate in conversation. The addition of haegeum performer Miyoung Kim as a guest artist brings a modern composition to the set, resulting in a stage where traditional chamber music and new musical colors coexist.

This year, the newly introduced Matinee Concert Series forms a new pillar of the festival, with four concerts scheduled in total.

On September 30, conductor Kwanghyun Kim, pianist Jinwoo Park, and double bassist Hyoil Kwak will take the stage; on October 28, conductor Hankyul Jeong, pianist Youngmi Choi, and jazz vocalist Hyemi Kim will perform. On November 25, the final performance from the 2026 M Artist series will feature a collaboration between pianist Sunyul and violinist Bora Kang, conducted by Jongjin Lee with Orchestra M. On December 23, the grand finale will be conducted by Kwanghyun Kim, joined by cellist Taeyeon Kim—the second prize winner at the 2026 Queen Elisabeth Competition.

CEO Younggeun Ko commented, “This year’s M Classic Festival will be a stage that broadly showcases the full range of emotions and resonances that classical music can offer—originating from the piano’s delicate dynamics and dramatic expressiveness.” He added, “From the profound interpretations of master performers to the fresh perspectives of rising artists, audience-friendly commentary concerts, and matinee performances, the festival will capture the many charms of classical music.”

Tickets and further information about the 11th M Classic Festival 2026 can be found on the foundation’s official website.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.