Kun-Woo Paik facts for kids

Kun-Woo Paik
Kun-Woo Paik (2014)
Quick facts for kids Korean name
Hangul	백건우
Hanja	白建宇
Revised Romanization	Baek Geonu
McCune–Reischauer	Paek Kŏnu

Kun-woo Paik (born March 10, 1946) is a famous pianist from South Korea. He has played music with many big orchestras, like the London Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. He is known for his amazing piano skills and for performing all over the world.

Early Life and Musical Start

Kun-Woo Paik was born in Seoul, South Korea. He started playing piano at a very young age. When he was just 10 years old, he played his first big concert. He performed with the Korean National Orchestra, playing a famous piece called Piano Concerto by Edvard Grieg.

After that, he played many important musical pieces in Korea. This included some pieces that were played for the very first time in Korea, like Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. Later, he went to study music in New York at the Juilliard School. He also studied in London and Italy with famous teachers like Rosina Lhévinne and Wilhelm Kempff. Kun-Woo Paik won awards in important piano contests, such as the Naumburg and Busoni International Piano Competitions.

A Career on the World Stage

Kun-Woo Paik has performed in many of the world's biggest music halls. These include places like the Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York, and Wigmore Hall in London. He has played with many famous orchestras. Some of these are the London Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic. He has also worked with well-known conductors like Mariss Jansons and Sir Neville Marriner.

Playing at Festivals and Around the World

Kun-Woo Paik is often invited to play at major music festivals. These include the Berlin Festwochen and the La Roque-d'Anthéron in France. He has traveled a lot, performing concerts in Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and Italy.

His Unique Music Choices

Kun-Woo Paik likes to play a wide variety of music. He often performs pieces that are not heard very often. For example, he has played Busoni's Piano Concerto. He also plays many pieces that were originally written for other instruments but were changed for the piano. A Korean composer named Suk-Hi Kang even wrote a piano concerto especially for him.

Recording His Music

Kun-Woo Paik has made many recordings of his music. He recorded all of Prokofiev's piano concertos. He also recorded all of Rachmaninoff's piano concertos. In 2000, he started recording exclusively with Decca Classics. One of his first recordings with them was of J. S. Bach's organ music, which was arranged for piano by Busoni. Between 2005 and 2007, he recorded all of Beethoven's piano sonatas.

Leading a Music Festival

For 21 years, from 1993 to 2014, Kun-Woo Paik was the Artistic Director of the Emerald Coast Music Festival in Dinard, France. He planned many different types of music for the festival. He included music from different time periods, from old baroque music to modern pieces. He invited top international artists to perform. The festival also had free outdoor concerts, concerts for children, and shows featuring young talented musicians.

In 2000, the French Government honored him by making him a "Chevalier de l'ordre des arts et des lettres." This is a special award for people who have done great things in art and literature. In September 2000, he was the first Korean artist to be officially invited to perform in China.

Personal Life

Kun-Woo Paik has lived in Paris, France, since 1974. His wife is the actress Yoon Jeong-hee. She was a very famous movie star in South Korea in the late 1960s. They have a daughter named Paik Jin-hi, who is a violinist.

Awards and Honors

• 1971 Winner of Naumburg International Piano Competition
• 1992 Golden Diapason Prize (for his album of Scriabin's music)
• 1993 Golden Diapason Prize (for his album of Prokofiev's music)
• 2000 Ho-Am Prize in the Arts
• 2009 Kyung-Ahm Prize
• 2010 Order of Cultural Merit

Images for kids

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  Kun-Woo Paik in 2014

See also

In Spanish: Kun-Woo Paik para niños