[Curtain Call+] begins with the story of pianist Yunchan Lim.

In the future, I plan to mainly talk about artists who go on stage and people who make performances.

I think you can call it the 'extra' of the SBS newsroom podcast 'Choose Newsroom'.

'Curtain Call' is a podcast specializing in performing arts that has been uploaded once a week since 2019. It is a format where people from the performing arts are invited every week to comfortably chat for a long time without any special formality.

There seem to be a lot of interesting stories that I couldn't hear in other interviews in a comfortable atmosphere. Listening to these stories, I like the audio and video, but I want to record them in writing and share them with more people.



There are many people who like pianist Lim Yun-chan, right?

In fact, two years ago, I discussed Yoonchan Lim's agency, Mok Production, about appearing on his podcast.

But at the time, he wasn't used to doing interviews with the press yet, so I asked him to wait a little longer before doing the long-recording podcast.



However, after winning the Van Cliburn Competition last year, it became difficult to invite him as he became busier as the 'Im Yoon-chan syndrome' raged.

Although he held two official press conferences, his curiosity could not be satisfied.

So, I invited Sam Lee, CEO of Mok Production, to talk.



Established in 2007, Mok Production is known as an agency specializing in chamber music.

Mok stands for MOC, Masters On Classics.

There are several talented chamber music teams, including the Novus Quartet.

In addition to pianist Lim Yoon-chan, there are notable young performers such as violinist Park Soo-ye and flutist Kim Yu-bin, as well as reliable mid-level musicians such as pianists Son Min-soo, Cho Jae-hyeok, and tenor Kim Se-il.

(Although he has moved his agency to another place now, the previous winner of the Van Cliburn Competition, Yekwon Sunwoo, was also affiliated with Mok Productions at the time of winning the competition.)



Right after the Van Cliburn Competition ended last year, I asked for an interview with CEO Lee Sam.

He declined, saying that the manager's exposure would deprive the performer of the attention he should have received.

He said that the reason he agreed to this interview was because he felt it was necessary to speak publicly at least once.

Since he is an artist who does not have much contact with the media, there are many stories about Yunchan from other places, but there are also many wrong things, so he thought it would be better to answer his questions directly.



From now on, the conversation I had with Sam Lee was reconstructed and my thoughts were added.



“You can’t miss that talent.”

Representative Lee

Saem: I thought about the contest with teacher Son Min-soo for several years, but Yoon-chan said that the contest was a waste of time every time I went out for an interview, so I got behind my back (laughs).

Teacher Son Min-soo asked me to send him to the Van Cliburn Competition, so I wondered if it would be difficult to win again because the last winner was a Korean, and the teacher said, 'It's impossible for them to recognize that talent.'

It's not just about being good at it, it's 'One in a Million', because it's so special.



"Even if we don't win, the competition will be broadcast live, so people in the music world won't stand still after seeing that talent. It will have a big impact. That's our goal."



From what I felt at the scene, there was an enthusiastic atmosphere that seemed like there would be a riot if Lim Yun-chan did not win.

It's great to see it on YouTube, but the video doesn't capture even half of what I witnessed at the venue.

Many people at the scene said they felt the wonder of changing their lives.


Yunchan Lim's teacher, Professor Minsu Son, appeared on a podcast curtain call last year and said, 'There is no one in the world who is playing the piano like this right now'.

It is true that winning the award was not the goal, but that the goal was to promote that talent.

Lim Yoon-chan's talent must have been discovered in this way, just as the 'Nangjungjichu (囊中之錐),' like an awl in his pocket that would come out even if it was still.



The final, in which he played Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 3, was selected as one of the 10 'Performances of the Year' in 2022 by the New York Times.

A New York Times critic revealed that he watched the performance on YouTube, not at the competition site.

It is also very unusual for a contest that determines rankings to be selected as the 'Performance of the Year'.

The impact of this performance was so great.

It seems that the 'goal' that Professor Sohn Min-soo talked about has been exceeded.

humble performer...

There is no 'satisfaction' in his dictionary

Representative Lee Sam:

Mr. Yoon Chan is really humble.

He doesn't mean it intentionally to say it prettily, he's sincere.

He always doesn't feel good after playing, he always falls short.

The audience all stood up and shed tears, and even though it was a performance that seemed like it would change my life, I'm an artist who says that it was too bad, so I don't know if I can say this outside.



Because I have very high standards, I spend a lot more time and effort preparing for a performance than other performers.

It seems to me that it has been done, but even though the performance was great a while ago with the same program, they say that it is too lacking and unprepared.

I think I get a lot of stress about standing on stage in an unprepared state.


I had a chance to do a brief phone interview after the competition, and it was like that then too.

After winning the championship, I was confused, I was still lacking and I was not ready, but I was worried about receiving such a big prize.

And he said he was never satisfied with his performance.

They say that there is no satisfaction in music, and the moment you are satisfied, it becomes dangerous.

In another interview, he said that everyone is a student when it comes to music.

Im Yoon-chan's concert 'Picketing', which even the representative of the agency failed

Representative Lee Sam:

It's embarrassing, but I also tried to book tickets for a concert, but failed.

My parents didn't have a separate ticket, so I had to buy it.

I tried waiting for the reservation start time, but it didn't work.

Yunchan's performance really minimized invitation tickets, limited the number of purchases, and made authentication difficult.

That's how many people pay attention and there were many people who wanted to be fair and just from the reservation process.

I am sorry that you had a hard time making a reservation.



This year’s plans for Yoon Chan’s domestic performances have been announced, but since the overseas season starts in September, there are many places that have not yet been announced, so it is difficult to announce future performances in advance.

Performances scheduled until the first half of 2023 have many winners' concerts that the winner of the Van Cliburn Competition has to do.

Many of the schedules after that were created jointly by Mok Production and IMG (in charge of overseas management).



This month, there will be a London Wigmore Hall performance (London local time, 8pm on the 18th) and an Italian performance, and will participate in the French Louis Vuitton Foundation's artist recital series.

Also, there is a collaboration debut with the New York Phil.

During the festival season in July and August, concerts with top orchestras in the US are held almost every day.

Rachmaninoff No. 3 is requested a lot as a concert piece, and I play that song a lot overseas and do a new song in Korea.



For domestic performances, in June, he will perform Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 with the Lucerne Symphony.

In November, he will perform Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4 with the Munich Philharmonic under the direction of Myeong-Whun Chung.

In Korea, he has never played number 4, so he is looking forward to it a lot.



A lot of people wonder why contest songs aren't played during the competition, but it's because Yun-chan likes to sing new songs, and it's too difficult to perform competition songs again.

It took too much time to complete the repertoire, and if you want to put it on stage again, you've already completed it, but to raise it to the level you think, really, according to the artist, it takes so much energy that you have to give up your life. go in

You ask me to persuade you why they don't include the competition songs in the performance program at overseas concert halls, but now I persuade them to understand.

The manager's role is to reduce the number of performances?

Representative Lee Sam:

I've seen the process of winning the competition, debuting as a pro, and settling down for 15 years, but Chan Yun's case was exceptional.

Usually, it takes three to four years for a winner of the competition to settle down on the world stage, but as soon as the performance was over, Yoon Chan stayed up all night checking his emails as request mails piled up.

It seems that people in the music industry have already become fans after watching the performance video.



He gave me offers from so many overseas agency contracts, but in fact, I think I was most anxious and afraid at that time.

It was such an important moment in a performer's career and life that there was no easy decision to make.

If you choose one, you have to throw away one, and in this situation, I needed a lot of advice from people around me.



The managers of IMG, which signed a contract with an overseas agency, were already big fans of Mr. Yoon Chan.

So, it moved Mr. Yunchan's heart a lot, and in many ways, he had the right conditions to develop his career.

There are many artists who manage each continent, but Yunchan did not do that.

IMG oversees North America and Europe, and Mok Production oversees Asia.


IMG Artists, which signed an exclusive contract with Yunchan Lim in October of last year, is a world-class classical music management company headquartered in London, England.

Pianists Evgeny Kissin, Murray Perrier, Son Yeol-eum, and violinists Hilary Han, Julia Fischer, and Sarah Chang belong to it.

Yunchan Lim's manager, Nicolas Matthias, said, 'I am sure that Yunchan Lim is destined to build a world-class international career in the next few years', and Federico M said, 'Yunchan Lim is an intellectual who combines a deep knowledge of music with a transcendent passion. He is a rare genius with finesse.”

Sam Lee:

The reason Mok Production decided to oversee the Asian region was to control the number of performances.

Japan is an important market, so Japan Arts collaborates as a partner.

Having more managers means you have to do more gigs.

I am a performer who can be greedy endlessly, but I try to keep the number of performances at an appropriate level so that I can perform without exhausting myself physically and musically.

I think the appropriate number of performances per year is between 40 and 50 times.



I think it's good to play a little bit a lot for one month, take a break for the next month and study, and organize it that way.

There are some performances I have to do as a winner of the Van Cliburn Competition until 2024, so I'll try to organize it like that after that.

So, most of what I do these days is 'refusal'.

'It's not possible.

I'm sorry' I say a lot.

Under discussion until 2027

Representative Lee Sam:

I also want to know if this is true, but the last meeting we had in December was the 2027 performance.

In Korea, it is common for performances to be held in the same year, but overseas, famous venues and historical orchestras reserve several years in advance.

So, I understand that it takes 3 or 4 years, but the top orchestras that can really be counted on one hand plan after that.



We are also planning a schedule for 2027, and the number of performances that can be digested in a year is less than that of other performers, so there is a feeling that the schedule fills up faster.

So, it seems that the time to increase the performance is around 2025 or 2026.

I hope Korean fans don't feel very sad.



Why doesn’t Lim Yoon-chan do a 10-episode tour or a national tour?

As a fan, I think it would be great to do it, but there are not many artists who can physically handle a 10-episode tour.

I hope you can still wait with the heart of protecting Yunchan.

When Yoon-chan finishes his studies and just needs to play perfectly as a professional, he may be a little different from now, so please wait a little longer.



If I play more, my income actually increases financially, and it is better for me as a manager.

However, exposure is minimized so that the performer is not exhausted and consumed.

I hope the fans will understand.

The most important thing is that the artist is happy

Representative Lee Sam:

The record of the concert with the Gwangju Philharmonic Orchestra, which was promised before winning the competition, came out from Deutsche Grammophon.

Then, there are many people who are curious about what will happen to the next album, but I am still thinking about it.

There are many record companies that have suggested it, and each has its own characteristics.

As Yunchan is an artist who takes recording albums very seriously, he is not in a hurry, but carefully considers and decides.

Chan Yoon is looking for a record label where he can be the happiest.



There are many artists who enjoy interacting with the audience in the audience, but Yoon Chan is an artist who takes more time to contemplate alone and is happy to practice alone.

He thinks that a lot of playing can be poison.

When I said that I wanted to go into the mountains and live alone playing the piano, many people take it funny and like a joke, but I am heartbroken to think that would really happen.



Yoon Chan really likes the time he spends with composers in a small room alone.

If he is deprived of such joy, he is an artist who will not be surprised if he leaves like that one day.

I think I have to do my best to prevent that from happening.

Of course, I will convince you not to shut yourself up like that.



But at some point, I had this thought.

I'm not a very good manager in terms of business.

I think the most important thing is for the performers to be happy.

If at any moment the performer says, 'This is not happy', I think the performer's hand will be raised.

No matter how great the stage is, if you say you're unhappy, that situation will be too difficult for me.

The visiting concert will continue quietly

Representative Lee Sam:

At the end of last year, I visited a children's hospital and quietly volunteered for music.

It was a concert that only medical staff and patients could see because it was played without prior notice.

Also recently, a charity concert was held at the Myeongdong Cathedral.

Mr. Yoon Chan said he wanted people who had difficulty visiting the performance, unless he was a teenager or a student studying music, so he invited such people.

Myeongdong Cathedral runs a program to support young artists, and Yunchan made this concert a no-guarantee and donated the ticket profits to support young artists.



Chan Yun places more value on dedication, giving, and service than any other performer I've ever seen.

He thinks he was influenced by the pianist Richter.

Richter said that he greatly enjoyed visiting concerts.

It is said that he took the train, got off at the station of a small town, entered a tavern, played an old upright piano, and shared music with the townsfolk.

Mr. Yunchan also likes to go to the Myeongdong Cathedral concert in the form of donating profits, but rather to volunteer with music quietly.



As the word that Mr. Yunchan will do volunteer work is known, he is contacted by many companies and organizations to join him.

Of course, doing it together like that would be meaningful, but I think it will get a lot of publicity.

In the future, 'Im Yoon-chan is coming!'

It is not like this, but we plan to serve quietly without informing the outside world.


There is an impressive story that Mr. Lim Yoon-chan said at the album release press conference.



“I think it is a great thing that a musician can do, not to go to a competition and get first place, but to visit people who have difficulty coming to a concert, such as people in hospice wards or people with disabilities, to listen to music. "



Material sharing and donations are meaningful, but the reason why I think sharing through music is more important is because "it can be a process that can open up another universe that someone didn't know about."

He also said, "One of the things I learned from teacher Son Min-soo is like that, and I'm going to try to do that too."

I think there are many people who have met another universe thanks to the performance of Yoonchan Lim, who has already started his quiet service.

Fans and artists, hope to be together in a long breath

Representative Lee Saem:

Since Yoonchan Lim is enjoying 'popularity like a syndrome', many people envy him and how good it is.

You can think of it like this, but from Yunchan's point of view, it seems like the sudden popularity or interest is getting caught up in a torrent.

No matter how much milk and honey flows in this river, getting caught up in it means I can't control this situation.

I hope that artists who are still lacking in experience can think that this situation can be uneasy or scary.



It is the manager's role to ensure that the artist can only look at the music without feeling this kind of anxiety.

There are reefs and rocks everywhere in the river.

Even if I don't have the ability to break and remove rocks and reefs, if there are reefs, I want to become a person who can absorb a little shock with my body first.

This is my dream as a manager.



I think Yunchan's today is thanks to the love given by his fans.

Supporting and becoming a fan of an 18-year-old artist is a very 'long game'.

Considering that artists continue to play until they are 70 or 80 years old, we should aim for a 100-year-old life.

Don't be impatient or anxious if you don't see results right away, but trust me and hope that you will be together for a long time with a long breath.

I hope you will continue to support this artist's music for a long time and happily.


CEO Sam Lee said that he first saw Yoon-chan Lim at the age of 13 through the introduction of Yoon-chan Lim's teacher, Professor Min-soo Son.

She said that at the time, she went to see Yunchan, who was performing with Yewon Middle School, and laughed out loud because she was like 'Little Son Min-soo'.

The official management contract was signed after winning the youngest prize at the Isang Yun International Music Competition.

I have been in a relationship for a long time, so I really understand the characteristics of the performers.



Professor Son Min-soo also talked about this in last year's curtain call.

Legendary pianist Maurizio Pollini told an anecdote about how he continued to study without standing on stage for a long time after winning the Chopin Competition at a young age, and said, “Yunchani also goes through life like water, sometimes calmly, sometimes like a river when he wants. I wish I could go out to sea, stay in a small pond if I don't want to, and then make my own tempo like that."



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