Conductor Jin Sol to close 10-year Mahler cycle with ‘Resurrection’ in Seoul
In short
Conductor Jin Sol, 39, will lead the Mahlerian Orchestra in Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection”, at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul on Oct 9, ending a 10-year project to perform all ten Mahler symphonies. Hankook Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo describe it as the first complete Mahler cycle by a private orchestra in Korea. Jin Sol said she never expected to finish and wants to applaud her younger self for starting with courage.
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Conductor Jin Sol, 39, will lead the Mahlerian Orchestra in Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection”, at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul on Oct 9, closing a project to perform all ten of the composer’s symphonies, Hankook Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo reported. Both outlets said the decade-long cycle is the first by a private orchestra in Korea. Dong-A Ilbo noted that public and state orchestras in the country have also taken on complete Mahler cycles. [ 1 , 2 ]
Jin Sol founded the Mahlerian Orchestra in 2016 after studying at the Korea National University of Arts and Germany’s Mannheim National University of Music, according to the two outlets. Hankook Ilbo said the cycle began in February 2017 at the Seongnam Arts Center with Mahler’s unfinished Symphony No. 10; Dong-A Ilbo said she began conducting the complete symphonies the following year. [ 1 , 2 ]
At a meeting with reporters on Oct 1 — Dong-A Ilbo described it as a press conference at the Pineta Hall in Seoul’s Seocho district — Jin Sol said she had never imagined the project would be completed. “I want to applaud the young me who started with courage and kept at it quietly,” she said, adding that many people had been sure she would quit midway and that she was always afraid. She said that with the finish in sight, “today is the happiest of the past 10 years”, and that she might cry on the day of the performance. [ 1 , 2 ]
Hankook Ilbo reported that the hardest part over the decade was practical rather than musical: securing venues and budgets for performances involving as many as several hundred participants, and responding to players’ sudden departures because of accidents or personal circumstances. She said her relationship with Mahler changed over the years, from admiration for a composer who put Goethe’s philosophy and self-reflection into music to repeatedly asking “why did Mahler do this here?” as she studied the scores. [ 1 ]
She chose “Resurrection” as the closing work because she hopes her challenge will give courage to other young musicians, calling it “a song of spiritual succession” that should apply to anyone, and said she wanted to deliver the message, “If someone like me can do it, who can’t?” She also said many musicians in their 20s lose their dreams because the Korean music scene focuses on teenagers, and that everything after 30 depends on believing in yourself and persevering. Korea Economic Daily headlined its interview with her remark that she had dug into Mahler alone “like a madman” for ten years. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Why it matters
The finale closes what Hankook Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo describe as the first complete Mahler cycle by a private Korean orchestra, a milestone reached outside the country’s public and state orchestras. Jin Sol frames the project as a model of persistence for musicians past their 20s, in a field she describes as having been more closed to newcomers and to women conductors when she began. The documents give no basis for significance beyond the domestic classical music scene.
Key facts
- Conductor Jin Sol, 39, founded the Mahlerian Orchestra in 2016 and has led a complete Mahler symphony cycle over ten years. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The closing concert, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection”, is scheduled for Oct 9 at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Hankook Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo describe the cycle as the first complete Mahler symphony project by a private orchestra in Korea. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The cycle opened in February 2017 at the Seongnam Arts Center with Mahler’s unfinished Symphony No. 10, according to Hankook Ilbo. [ 1 ]
- Jin Sol said she never expected to complete the project and that many people had been certain she would quit midway. [ 1 ]
- Hankook Ilbo reported that the biggest difficulties were practical: venue bookings, budgets for performances involving as many as hundreds of participants, and players leaving suddenly. [ 1 ]
- Jin Sol also runs a game music platform and said she chose “Resurrection” as the finale in the hope that her challenge gives courage to younger musicians. [ 1 , 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Conductor Jin Sol, 39, founded the Mahlerian Orchestra in 2016 and has led its complete Mahler symphony cycle. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The final concert, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection”, is scheduled for Oct 9 at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The Mahlerian Orchestra is described as the first private orchestra in Korea to perform all ten Mahler symphonies. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Jin Sol studied at the Korea National University of Arts and the Mannheim National University of Music in Germany. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Jin Sol said she wants to applaud her younger self for having the courage to start the project. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Jin Sol spoke with reporters on Oct 1 ahead of the final concert. [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- What the orchestra will do after the cycle ends, and whether the project will continue in another form. No document states the orchestra’s plans after the Oct 9 concert.
- How the 10-year project was funded and how large its budget was. Only Hankook Ilbo mentions venue and budget difficulties, and it gives no figures; no other document covers this.
- The full text of the Korea Economic Daily interview. Its article text carries unrelated stories, so only the headline quote could be used.
- Dong-A Ilbo’s account of the project’s origins is cut off mid-sentence. Its feed summary ends while describing the founding of the orchestra, so founding details from that outlet are incomplete.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Jin Sol founds the Mahlerian Orchestra after returning from studies in Germany [ 1 , 2 ]
- The complete Mahler cycle begins with Symphony No. 10 at the Seongnam Arts Center [ 1 ]
- Jin Sol meets reporters ahead of the finale; Dong-A Ilbo says the press conference was held at the Pineta Hall in Seoul’s Seocho district [ 1 , 2 ]
- Hankook Ilbo publishes its interview with Jin Sol [ 1 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo publishes its report on the project and the Oct 9 concert [ 2 ]
- Korea Economic Daily publishes an interview headlined with her remark about digging into Mahler “like a madman” [ 3 ]
- Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 “Resurrection” is performed at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul, ending the cycle [ 1 , 2 ]