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PEOPLE & ARTS Wednesday 15 May 2019

North, South Korean musicians hold rare joint performance

By DAKE KANG ity concert, “Love in the
HYUNG-JIN KIM City, Pyongyang Shanghai
Associated Press Seoul,” held to raise aware-
SHANGHAI (AP) — South ness for autistic children.
Korean violinist Won Hyung In response to questions by
Joon took the stage, nod- The Associated Press last
ded once to his North Ko- week, South Korea’s Unifi-
rean soprano partner, and cation Ministry said it ap-
placed his instrument on his proved Won’s contact with
shoulder. Kim as part of efforts to sup-
With a flick of the conduc- port civilian exchanges be-
tor’s wrist, she began to tween the rivals.
sing, and he began to bow The South Korean govern-
— the beginning of a rare ment is led by President
joint performance Sunday Moon Jae-in, a liberal
that they hope will bring who espouses greater rap-
the Koreas closer amid prochement with North
deadlocked nuclear diplo- Korea and has shuttled
macy. between Pyongyang and
“Until today, I was thinking, Washington ahead of the
will this really happen? Will two summits between
it suddenly be canceled?” Trump and Kim Jong Un.
Won said. “Today was the Kim Song Mi, a graduate
day my dream finally came of Pyongyang’s prestigious
true.” Kim Won Gyun University of
Won, donning a white shirt, Music, is the Korean Asso-
and Kim Song Mi, sport- South Korean violinist Won Hyung Joon and his North Korean soprano partner, Kim Song Mi perform ciation for Art Exchange’s
ing a sparkling red dress, at the Shanghai Oriental Arts Center in Shanghai on Sunday, May 12, 2019. North Korean representa-
performed Antonin Dvor- Associated Press tive in China, where she has
ak’s “Songs My Mother cians from both Koreas to There have been no pub- massage before the perfor- lived since 2010.
Taught Me” together with perform together. Contact lic high-level meetings be- mance finally happened. Known for her classical
a Chinese orchestra at the between the two sides is so tween Pyongyang and “I really felt then we were crossover singing tech-
Shanghai Oriental Art Cen- restricted that North and Washington since then. part of the same nation, nique, she has also released
ter. After the last notes, they South Koreans can’t ex- While Sunday’s concert because we like the same several music albums with
held hands and bowed to change phone calls, letter is unlikely to cause a dip- foods and speak the same North Korean and well-
thunderous applause from or emails without special lomatic breakthrough, it language,” Kim said. known pieces of classical
the mostly Chinese audi- government approval. could still “establish an envi- Won hopes that the fact music. South Korea media
ence. Last year saw an unusual ronment” that could make that the performance was reported that she is the first
Kim later reappeared in wave of cross-border ex- it easier to improve ties held despite the stalled North Korean sent abroad
a traditional multicolored changes after North Ko- between the Koreas, said talks shows the desire for as a singer.
Korean dress to sing “Ari- rean leader Kim Jong Un Cho Han Bum, an analyst better relations. Won said that when he first
rang,” a Korean traditional abruptly agreed to begin at Seoul’s Korea Institute for “We couldn’t have had met Kim last spring, he felt it
folk tune beloved in both talks over the future of his National Unification. this kind of music concert if was easier for him to bond
countries. nuclear arsenal. A group Inspired by the West-East- politics hadn’t helped,” he with her and explain his
The concert came three of North Korean dancers ern Divan Orchestra, which said. dream than when he dealt
days after South Korea and singers performed in was founded in 1999 to “It was a small perfor- with North Korean diplo-
said North Korea fired two South Korea during the Py- bring together Arab and Is- mance, but I hope people mats.
suspected short-range mis- eongchang Winter Olym- raeli musicians to promote will look at the meaning it “When I talked about music
siles toward the sea, the pics, and South Korean mutual understanding, has.” with the diplomats, I had to
second such weapons test K-pop stars later flew to Won, 42, has been pushing Sunday’s performance explain why we need mu-
by Pyongyang in less than Pyongyang and sang in for the establishment of an appeared less difficult to sic and why music is good,”
a week. the presence of Kim and his inter-Korean orchestra for achieve because it in- Won said. “But I didn’t
For both Won and Kim, it wife, Ri Sol Ju. Both events nearly a decade, contact- volved just one person from need to do that when I met
was their first concert with were the first of their kind in ing both governments on each Korea, not dozens of Kim, and we could just get
a musician from the other over a decade. numerous occasions. musicians required for an to the point.”
side of the Korean border, But such exchanges are But his push for such an or- orchestra, and it happened Won said he’s hopeful he
the world’s most heavily now becoming rare again chestra performance has in China — the North’s ma- can continue to work to-
fortified. as North Korea resumes never been realized and jor ally but also the South’s gether with Kim to orga-
They met several times last provocative weapons was often scrapped at biggest trading partner. nize larger concerts in cit-
year in Beijing and agreed tests, an apparent protest the last minute due to the Won said that the U.S. took ies across the world — in
to perform together to pro- against stalled nuclear ne- delicate nature of ties be- notice, and that he had Pyongyang, Seoul or per-
mote peace on the Korean gotiations with the United tween the Koreas, which talks with high-level State haps even Washington.
Peninsula. States. are still technically at war Department officials be- “Although today’s perfor-
“My heart is too full for Kim returned home emp- because an armistice that fore the performance. mance was only for a short
words,” Kim said in a dress- ty-handed from his sec- ended the 1950-53 Korean The Shanghai City Sympho- while, at least it’s possible
ing room after the concert, ond summit with President War has yet to be replaced ny Orchestra, the biggest to come together to play
her first-ever interview with Donald Trump in Vietnam with a peace treaty. amateur symphony orches- music for this moment,”
a foreign media outlet. in February after Trump re- This time, Won and Kim, tra in China, performed Won said.
“For the moment, at least, buffed his calls for major 33, spent days together in with the two Koreans. “I can’t help but think may-
I feel like unification has sanctions relief in return for Shanghai rehearsing and Kim and Won’s perfor- be, just maybe, it’ll bring
come.” his promise to conduct par- chatting, sharing meals, mance was part of the more opportunities like this
It’s extremely rare for musi- tial disarmament measures. coffee and even a foot orchestra’s annual char- in the future.”q