Seoul Philharmonic's new music director van Zweden to focus on Mahler, collaborations

The full Mahler cycle, collaborations with diverse genres and arts groups as well as fostering talented new musicians -- especially conductors -- will take center stage at the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, which will kick off its first season with music director Jaap van Zweden.

Beyond that, the new music director and the orchestra will strive to raise quality to the top level, which, according to van Zweden, is “the best promotion for an orchestra.”

“The weeks that I was here, they proved to me that they are in the circle of great orchestras. Now we have to prove every day, every hour, every minute that we are,” he said during a press conference on Monday. “You get that by preparation, discipline and enjoying.”

Next season will feature familiar pieces that the music director and orchestra can experience together.

For instance, the SPO is set to present a number of well-known symphonies in 2024: Mahler Symphony No. 1, Beethoven No. 5, Brahms No. 2, Mozart No. 40, Bruckner No. 7, Shostakovich No. 7 and Dvorak No. 7 and No. 8.

The piano concertos it will perform include: Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor," Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 and Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23 and No. 24, among others. In the violin concerto category, beloved pieces by Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, Sibelius and Bruch will be performed. As for cello concertos, famous works by Dvorak and Elgar are scheduled.