billy joel

'Piano Man' Billy Joel Rocks Korea

Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Billy Joel performs for the first time in Seoul at Olympic Gymnasium, Olympic Park, Saturday.

/ Courtesy of B4H Entertainment

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

American music legend Billy Joel brought the ``New York State of Mind" to Seoul, Saturday evening.

Joel, also known as the ``Piano Man," performed for the first time in Korea at a packed Olympic Gymnasium, Olympic Park, southern Seoul.

The crowd roared with excitement as Joel appeared on stage. He showed off his renowned piano playing with the ``Prelude," before singing ``Angry Young Man."

``Annyonghaseyo, Korea," he shouted, as everyone in the audience cheered. There were initially some technical difficulties, but Joel tried not to let it affect his performance.

``I'm Billy Joel's father. Billy didn't make it tonight," the 59-year-old singer joked about his age. But during the two-hour concert, Joel didn't show signs of his age. He sang almost non-stop, and played the piano, guitar and harmonica with such passion and aplomb.

Joel tried to say a few Korean words like ``kamsahamnida," which he shortened to ``kamsa," but the Korean audience didn't seem to mind.

He gave heartfelt performances of his most successful songs such as ``Honesty," ``She's Always a Woman," and ``New York State of Mind."

For ``Just the Way You Are," one of the band members started whistling the melody as Joel played the piano. After finishing the song which he wrote for his first wife, Joel quipped ``then we get divorced, so much for that."

In the middle of the concert, dozens of fans converged in front of the stage. Organizers tried to disperse the crowd while Joel was performing ``The River of Dreams." When he saw the fans being asked to return to their seats, Joel suddenly stopped playing and got up. He went over to tell the organizers to let the fans remain in front of the stage, much to the delight of the audience.

Joel's backing band has to be given credit for their superb performance, especially saxophonist Mark Rivera, trumpeter Carl Fisher, keyboardist Dave Rosenthal and guitarist Tommy Byrnes.

Joel even passed the microphone to Chainsaw, a stagehand who wanted to sing a ``religious Australian hymn." Chainsaw surprised everyone by singing Australian heavy metal band AC/DC's rock classic ``Highway to Hell," while Joel played the guitar.

Joel's infectious energy had the crowd on its feet and clapping to the beat of songs like ``We Didn't Start the Fire," ``Keeping the Faith," and ``You Maybe Right." As Joel exited the stage, he shouted ``I love you Seoul, Korea."

But the audience started shouting for an encore, so Joel returned to perform ``Only the Good Die Young" and his signature song ``Piano Man." The lyrics to ``Piano Man" were shown on the big screen, allowing everyone to sing along with Joel. Joel played the piano, while alternately singing and playing the harmonica.

``Its a pretty good crowd for a Saturday, and the manager gives me a smile, 'cause he knows that its me they've been comin' to see to forget about life for a while," Joel sang.

For at least two hours on Saturday, the audience at the Olympic Gymnasium managed to forget about their lives and enjoy the wonderful music of the ``Piano Man."

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr

more spring fashion

SFAA's Turn to Show Spring Collection

Rubina’s 2009 spring/summer collection / YonhapBy Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

Autumn leaves were falling around Namsan Park last week but inside the Sky Theater at the National Theater of Korea, Korea's top designers unveiled their spring and summer 2009 collection.

Ten designer members of the Seoul Fashion Artists Association (SFAA) participated in the 37th SFAA Seoul Collection, from Thursday to Saturday.

The SFAA chose the theme ``Save Earth,'' reflecting on the issue of environmental protection and conservation. Each of the designers interpreted the theme in different ways, whether through neutral, earth-based colors, eco-friendly fabrics or ethnic prints.

Rubina, who is also the current SFAA president, kicked off the Seoul Collection with her Byzantine culture-inspired collection. She wanted to combine the exotic art and design from the Byzantine era with modern design.

At Rubina's show, models' heads were covered with Byzantine-inspired headdresses, as they wore luxurious, draped gowns. Her silk dresses had loose silhouettes, while other pieces were characterized by bold geometric prints and embellished with crystals. She also designed loose-fitting pants with tapered fits. Most of her designs utilized eco-friendly materials like silk, linen, cotton and organza.

Marc Chagall's vibrant painting ``The Bride and Groom of the Eiffel Tower'' was the inspiration for Park Youn-soo's collection. His theme was described as ``Loving Chagall: The magician of colors, drawing the deep love for his eternal bride.''

Park took the dominant, earthy colors from Chagall's painting, purple, blue, white, yellow and green, and reinterpreted them in printed one-piece dresses and floating tops.

With their uniform vividly red wigs, models looked like clones of Milla Jovovich's character in the sci-fi film ``The Fifth Element.'' The contrast was very striking during the finale, when models wore bright pink outfits.

Jinteok once again presented an impeccable collection for spring and summer. With the theme ``New Cool,'' she created minimalist dresses with exaggerated sleeves, wide-legged trousers and unstructured jackets.

Jinteok's designs showed clean silhouettes and intricate details, especially at the backs of dresses. There were no flashy colors, just muted neutral shades of white and gray.

On the other hand, Sul Yun-young's collection featured a lot of black and white outfits exuding a sexy rocker vibe. There were also sexy sheer tops, shorts and mini-dresses.

Bakangchi gave a new interpretation of modern chic with fresh silhouettes. Kim Ji-woon used the theme ``up-town girl'' to come up with strong outfits in beige, navy blue and orange.

Seoul Collection ended Saturday with Haneza's ``Magical Color Feast'' show, which featured not just fashion but music, art and even juggling. True to the eco-friendly theme, the designer used organic cotton, linen and a bit of rayon for the colorful collection.

Other designers, such as Choi Yen-ok, Ro Sung-un and Kim Dong-soon, also presented their collections.

Unlike most fashion shows that have a long catwalk, the SFAA fashion shows featured mirrored floors placed in the center of the amphitheater.

Aside from the shows by established designers, Seoul Collection also gave young designers a chance to present their works at the Joongang Designer Collection.

The SFAA had previously participated during Seoul Fashion Week, but this fall, they decided to stage a separate event.

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr

over the rainbow

NY-Based Artists Present `Over the Rainbow'

``Suburban Fury'' bu SunTek ChungBy Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

New York is widely considered as the art capital of the world. This is why thousands of young artists head to the city, hoping to make a splash in the art scene.

Sixteen young New York-based artists are introducing their works in Seoul this month. ``Over the Rainbow,'' a group exhibit at Yoo Art Space in Cheongdam, features 60 works by artists from the United States, Korea, Mexico, Canada, Japan and China. Curated by Song Si-sun, the exhibit runs through Nov. 23.

``The `rainbow' in the exhibition title suggests the promise and possibilities of the multicultural society that is New York City. It conjures up visions of an `American Dream' that lies somewhere beyond that multi-colored arc, an illusory reality of lofty dreams, bitter promises, and dashed hopes: the collective dreams of New York City, the United States, and the world,'' organizers said, in an exhibition statement.

The theme covers some of today's biggest issues, such as the Iraq war, global financial crisis, environmental problems and xenophobia. However, the artists manage to create pop art works that are bright, colorful and witty.

Participating artists include Alexander Reyna, Annysa Ng, Douglas Ra, Erika Harrsch, Ginger Brooks Takahashi, Hiroshi Kumagai, Jamie Allen, Jaye Rhee, Karina Aguilera Skvirsky, Lisa Dahl, Mike Houston, Martin Mazzora, Aegi Changsuk Park, SunTek Chung, Thomas Doyle and Daniel Baltzer.

Reyna, who was born in N'Djemana, Chad, created the installation, mixed media collage ``Big Money Now.'' He takes familiar corporate and cultural images, but subverts their original intended meaning and creates his own.


``Big Money Now'' by Alexander Reyna is part of the exhibition ``Over the Rainbow'' at Yoo Art Space, Cheongdam, southern Seoul. /Courtesy of Mushroom Arts Chung, a Korean-American, takes photographs of himself in staged scenarios that challenge the stereotypical image of the Asian American. For example, in ``Suburban Fury,'' he is depicted as a suburbanite holding modern gardening tools while standing amid rice paddies.

``Over the Rainbow'' is the first group exhibit in Seoul organized by Mushroom Arts, a New York-based non-profit organization. Song and Kim Ji-yaang formed the organization in 2003 in Hoboken, New Jersey, recognizing the stiff competition among artists in New York.

``Mushroom Arts keeps discovering artists with spirit, and provides a fertile environment for them, and promotes them to the public. We actually started by promoting only young Korean artists, but later realized there are equal demands for artists with diverse ethnic backgrounds. Consequently we now think that curating with no such boundaries will help to promote Korean contemporary art better here in New York,'' Kim, co-director of Mushroom Arts, told The Korea Times in an email interview.

Korean contemporary art is gaining ground in New York, because of its distinctive characteristics compared to Chinese and Japanese contemporary art.

``It is almost impossible to define Korean contemporary art in a word or a sentence. Of course diversity and variety are good virtues in art, but in today's commoditized art world, we need representative images of our art. Star artists need to come out to the major art cities in the world. I suppose we lack it so far,'' Kim said.

Since 2005, Mushroom Arts has moved its base to Chelsea, New York City, and has produced over 30 art events including exhibitions, experimental music concerts, film festivals and performances.

To get to Yoo Art Space, get off at Cheongdam Station Line 7, Exit 9. It is a 15-minute walk from the station. A map and information are available on www.yooartspace.com.

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr

Yo-Yo Ma is funny

Yo-Yo Ma Brings 'Joy' in New Album

World-famous cellist Yo-yo Ma holds a press conference to promote his new album ``Songs of Joy and Peace'' at the J.W. Marriott Hotel, Gangnam, Wednesday.

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

World-famous cellist Yo-Yo Ma wanted to recreate and share the ``joy'' of the holidays with his latest album ``Songs of Joy and Peace.''

``I'm happy this album has come out at this particular moment because for me, music is a personal thing that we all share, but sometimes I feel there's a distance between what goes on stage and what happens at home when we listen to music,'' Ma said, during a press conference at the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Gangnam, Wednesday.

Ma said his family and friends usually spend the holidays at home having fun and playing music, which includes him ``playing the piano badly.'' He wanted to recreate these special moments on an album, but this time with his ``best musical friends, who feel like family.''

As a result, ``Songs of Joy and Peace'' features collaborations with top artists like Dave Brubeck, James Taylor, Renee Fleming, Chris Botti, Diana Krall, Pacquito D'Rivera and the Assad family.

``This is an album that can never tour. It's impossible to bring everyone together to do five minutes of music each. I think recording the album was like watching all the Korean athletes at the Beijing Olympics… Every day, there would be one extraordinary artist like Krall coming in the studio, and I'd say, `this is the best thing ever.' The next day, someone would come in, and I'd be wide-eyed and amazed at so much talent and generosity that came in the room,'' Ma said.

There were no difficulties while recording the album in New York last June. Ma asked each of the artists to choose a song that represented joy. Taylor chose the Beatles classic ``Here Comes the Sun,'' which they recorded in a barn.

Another special collaboration is ``Joy to the World,'' featuring jazz legend Brubeck and Cuban musician D'Rivera. Ma admitted he always wanted to perform with the 87-year-old Brubeck, so he asked his friend and Brubeck's son Matt to help him. Fortunately, Brubeck agreed and D'Rivera also joined the project.

Ma personally picked the song ``Dona Nobis Pacem'' (Give Me Peace),'' which was always performed during a community winter event held in Cambridge, Mass. ``It's amazing when the entire hall is doing something together, and the focus is music. It becomes a moment of joy and I wanted to capture it and put in on the CD,'' he said.

He even started an online contest in which anyone could create their own variation of ``Dona.'' The winner of the contest will have a chance to record with Ma.

``My job with the CD is not over when you buy it. It's when you open it and play it and hopefully like it enough to remember something about it. For young and old people, nothing makes it more memorable than if you're a participant,'' he said.

Throughout the press conference, Ma showed his sense of humor. He even elicited giggles with his antics during the photo call, as he struck funny poses as the photographers clicked away.

Ma also collaborates with several Korean musicians including Kim Dong-won and Kim Ji-hyun in the Silk Road Ensemble, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary.

``We've taken Korean traditional music all over the place. People are moved by the music because it's so strong,'' he said.

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr

'Once' stars to perform in Seoul

'Once' Stars to Perform in January

The stars of the hit film "Once" Glen Hansard and Markleta Irglova will perform in Seoul in January. / Courtesy of Private CurveBy Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

The low-budget independent film ``Once" was a surprise hit around the world, including Korea, last year, thanks to its romantic storyline and hauntingly beautiful songs.

Glen Hansard and Markleta Iglova, the stars of ``Once," will perform as The Swell Season in a concert in Seoul, January. Two concerts are scheduled on Jan. 17 and 18 at the Grand Theater, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, Gwanghwamun, downtown Seoul.

Hansard and Irglova are expected to perform their signature acoustic songs from the film, such as ``If You Want Me," ``When Your Mind's Made Up," and, of course, the Grammy and Academy Award-winning song ``Falling Slowly."

Hansard will also play the guitar, while Irglova will play the piano. The band also includes bassist Joe Doyle, violinist Colm MacConIomaire, guitarist Robert Bochnik and drummer Graham Hopkins.

Hansard was the frontman for the Irish rock band The Frames when he was asked to play the role of a struggling street singer in Once by his onetime band mate and director John Carney in 2006. Carney also cast Irglova, a young Czech singer and classically trained pianist, in the female role.

After filming, the duo's collaboration album ``The Swell Season" was released in 2006.

But it was ``Once" that catapulted Hansard and Irglova into the mainstream. The film was released in 2007, and became one of the most successful independent films of the year. The simple story about two musicians who fall in love in Dublin touched audiences around the world. But one of the main reasons for its success was the simple but beautiful melody written and composed by Hansard and Irglova.

With the film's success, Hansard and Irglova started performing together as The Swell Season around the United States and Europe. Millions watched on TV as they gave a stirring performance at the Academy Awards in February.

Hansard, 38, and Irglova, 20, also became a couple in real life. They collaborated on a cover version of Bob Dylan's ``You Ain't Goin' Nowhere," which was included on the 2007 soundtrack of the film "I'm Not There."

There is much interest and anticipation for The Swell Season's first performance in Seoul. The ``Once" soundtrack was one of the best-selling foreign albums of 2007 in Korea.

The concert is part of Private Curve's Beautiful Singer Songwriter Series. Sejong Center for the Performing Arts is located near Gwanghwamun Station Subway Line 5. Tickets are 99,000 won, 77,000 won, 55,000 won and 33,000 won. Call (02) 563-0595 or visit ticket.interpark.com. For ticket reservations in English, send an e-mail to info@privatecurve.com.

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr

MOMA's humble masterpieces

MoMA's Humble Masterpieces in Seoul

The Post-it Note, developed by 3M in 1977, is part of the “Humble Masterpieces” exhibit at Hangaram Design Museum, Seoul Arts Center.

/ Courtesy of Hyundai Card

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

What do a pair of chopsticks, a Swiss Army knife, a yellow Post-it note, M&M's chocolates, pasta noodles and Bic ball-point pens have in common?

All of these are everyday objects that despite being imbued with simple, timeless, innovative design, are often overlooked. These ordinary items are shown in a new light at The Museum of Modern Art's (MoMA) ``Humble Masterpieces: Everyday Marvels of Design'' exhibit which is currently in Seoul for the first time.

Held at the Hangaram Design Museum, Seoul Arts Center, the ``Humble Masterpieces'' exhibit shines the spotlight on 100 items which may be modest in size and price but are considered ``true masterpieces of the art of design.''

Paola Antonelli, senior curator of the MoMA's department of architecture and design, said design is ``one of the highest expressions of human creativity.'' She was in charge of the exhibit when it was first presented in New York in 2004.

Antonelli, who was in Seoul for the opening of the exhibit, said the toughest part of the exhibit was choosing which objects would be included.

``The objects that we acquired had to be inexpensive, can be purchased somewhere in the world, and they have to be examples of great design. They had to be elegant, functional, environmentally friendly and all together a good addition to the world. … The difficult part was when to stop (choosing),'' she said.

The exhibit may seem quite modest, with the items placed in a glass case in the middle of the room. Among the objects on display are Lego building blocks, Q-tips ear buds, waffles cones, glass marbles, sugar cubes, Tampax tampons, Chinese take-out boxes, flip-flops and Tupperware.

``The concept of design started with beautiful objects that are outstanding in elegance and function, and designed by a human being. Whether there's a name or not, it doesn't matter. I don't care about the signature,'' Antonelli said.

All of the objects in the exhibit can be found anywhere, but it's the stories behind them that hold one's attention.

One of Antonelli's favorite stories is about the ``I love New York'' logo T-shirt, which just like many objects in the exhibit, came out of necessity.

``It was the 1970s, New York was in a crisis. There was high crime, high unemployment, the city was dirty and tourists were not coming. The mayor was worried and decided to launch an ad campaign. By chance, the advertising company was talking with Milton Glaser, a famous graphic artist, who just wrote on a napkin, `I Heart NY', and it became such a powerful symbol. But what I find as the most beautiful thing of all is that its not limited. People can use it for free all over the world. It's a great example of a symbol that is invented and released out to the world for free,'' she said.

Another surprising story is about how the fortune cookie was invented. Contrary to the common belief that the fortune cookie was a Chinese invention, Antonelli said it was actually created by a Japanese chef in San Francisco in 1914.



Not many are also aware the Chupa Chups lollipop's logo was designed by the candy maker Enric Bernat's friend, the artist Salvador Dali. Or that M&M's chocolate candy, invented by Forrest Mars Sr., was initially a convenient snack for soldiers during World War II.

When asked about the inclusion of numerous Japanese-designed items such as the bamboo whisk or chasen, the Kikkoman soy sauce dispenser and Kadokeshi plastic eraser, Antonelli said the Japanese have a long tradition of outstanding design.

During her short stay in Seoul, she has already seen some beautiful designs at a furniture museum, and even the ``T-money'' subway card caught her attention. She said the MoMA is always open to suggestions for the addition of new items from the Korean audience.

Many of the stories behind the objects can be found in Antonelli's book ``Humble Masterpieces.''

The exhibit, jointly organized by the MoMA, Hyundai Card and Seoul Arts Center, runs through Dec. 31. Admission is free. Hangaram Design Museum is located near Nambu Bus Terminal Subway Line 3, Exit 5.

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr

Arashi in Seoul (AAA 2008)

The newspaper treatment was BIG (at least for KT).

 

 

arashi in seoul

Arashi Whips Fans Into Frenzy

Japanese idol group Arashi returned to Seoul over the weekend, staging four sold-out concerts at the Olympic Fencing Stadium in southern Seoul.

/ Courtesy of J-Storm

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

Popular Japanese pop group Arashi whipped thousands of Korean fans into a state of frenzy, as they staged four sold-out concerts in Seoul over the weekend.

It has been two years since Arashi performed in Seoul, but judging from the deafening screams at the Olympic Fencing Stadium, their fans are as crazy about them as ever. The group is in the middle of a three-city Asian tour, ``Arashi Around Asia 2008."

Arashi, composed of Masaki Aiba, Jun Matsumoto, Kazunari Ninomiya, Satoshi Ohno and Sho Sakurai, opened the concert with ``Love So Sweet." The song was the theme song for the popular Japanese drama ``Hana Yori Dango Returns (Boys Over Flowers)."

Throughout the nearly three-hour concert, Arashi performed many of their hit songs ``Step and Go," ``Happiness," ``Kitto Daijoubu (You'll Definitely be Okay)," ``We Can Make It," and ``Truth."

Each of the members had solo performances, showing off their distinct personalities and talents. Sakura rapped and danced to ``Hip Pop Boogie, while Aiba sang a cheerful number ``Hello Goodbye." Ninomiya played the piano while singing ``Niji (Rainbow)," and Ohno showed off his smooth vocals and dance moves to ``Take Me Faraway."

Matsumoto grabbed attention when he walked upside down on the ceiling, before flipping down and performing ``Yabai Yabai Yabai."

Arashi definitely knew how to please the Korean audience. Even though they spoke mainly in Japanese, group members sprinkled their comments with Korean phrases throughout the concert. They even included Korean lyrics in some songs, such as ``A-RA-SHI."

Sakurai even showed off the Wonder Girls' dance steps for the hit song ``Nobody," while the crowd sang the lyrics.

At their last concert Sunday evening, Arashi gave four encores before finally ending with the upbeat ``Fight Song."

Fans could not seem to get enough of the Japanese group. Matsumoto promised to return for a third ``Arashi Around Asia" tour.

An estimated 30,000 fans watched the four concerts Saturday and Sunday, including several hundred Japanese fans.

Even with little promotion about the concerts, tickets sold like hotcakes, with all three concerts being sold out on Auction.com in 30 minutes. Organizers had to add another concert, which once again sold out immediately.

Arashi is one of the most popular Japanese pop groups in Korea. Matsumoto is best known for his lead role in ``Boys Over Flowers." Ohno recently appeared in the Japanese drama remake of the Korean drama `The Devil."

Aiba appears on a popular Japanese variety show. Ninomiya received critical acclaim for his role in Clint Eastwood's war movie ``Letters From Iwo Jima." Sakurai starred in the film ``Honey & Clover."

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr