Performer: Myung-whun Chung

Yunchan Lim seldom seeks the spotlight in a reflective, conversational account of Schumann's Piano Concerto, conducted by Myung-whun Chung. 

In Myung-whun Chung’s first concert as the orchestra’s tenth Music Director, Leonidas Kavakos’ account of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto is built on exposure rather than varnish. 

The Tokyo Philharmonic visits the Berlin Philharmonie to bring finesse to a catchy programme featuring Bernstein, Gershwin and Prokofiev.

An evening at the Seoul Arts Center in which clarity matters as much as volume and the most telling virtuosity comes from a refusal to grandstand.

At the final stop of its European tour, the China NCPA Orchestra, led by Myung-Whun Chung with Bruce Liu, deliver luminous precision, refined Ravel and cinematic Prokofiev at the Elbphilharmonie. 

Like the grainy intensity of a high-contrast black-and-white photograph, these rugged edges accentuated Mahler’s expressive extremes, reaffirming the conductor’s innate flair for crafting a grand aesthetic narrative within the symphony’s expansive architecture.

How is the classical music world changing? Looking back on a dizzying year, we pay particular attention to performers’ international connectedness. Documenting more than 30,000 events, Bachtrack’s statistics provide valuable insight into an unstable world.

The appointment coincides with the orchestra’s 70th anniversary in 2026, and will see Chung take overall responsibility for the ensemble’s artistic planning and direction.

Ahead of their European tour this autumn with Myung-whun Chung, we discover the history of one of Japan’s most important classical music institutions.