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Paik Kun-woo 'freely' enjoying music with new album 'Schubert' and nationwide tour

Published: 30 Mar. 2026, 19:03 Updated: 31 Mar. 2026, 17:45

Pianist Paik Kun-woo answers reporters’ questions at a press conference marking the 70th anniversary of his debut at Shinyoung Chamber Hall in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul, on March 30. [NEWS1]

Paik Kun-woo, pianist extraordinaire who turns 80 this year, looked back on his 70-year musical life, remarking that he is "freely" enjoying music once more.

Paik held a press conference at Shinyoung Chamber Hall in Yeongdeungpo District, western Seoul, on Monday morning, where he spoke about his new album “Schubert,” released Thursday, and his nationwide recital tour, which begins Friday.

“I spent many years under stress and fatigue while performing,” Paik said. “But now that I am marking the 70th anniversary of my debut and turning 80, I find myself thinking — though I do not know if it is all right to say this — that what remains is to enjoy music. What I want now is to be able to enjoy music freely.”

The new release contains four Schubert piano sonatas — Nos. 13, 14, 18 and 20 — across two CDs. It is Paik’s first Schubert recording in 13 years.

“It does not feel like I left and then came back," Paik said. “The music that lay dormant within me reveals itself when the time is right. You could call it inevitable.”

“Among performers, there is a saying that it is not that I choose the piece, but that the piece chooses me," Paik explained when he was asked why he chose Schubert. "That is not wrong.”

Even at 80, Paik remains an active performer. He is set to appear in 12 cities nationwide, beginning Friday at Busan Citizen’s Hall. The final stop on the tour will be the May 10 recital of Schubert at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul, scheduled for his birthday.

Album cover for Paik Kun-woo’s new release “Schubert" [PANTHEON]

“There is nothing especially admirable about performing for a long time as you grow older,” Paik said. “But the world of music is vast. As long as passion for music is alive, the performances will continue, whether that is in concertos, recitals or chamber music. I still have many things in mind that I want to do, but I will not be able to do them all. A lifetime is too short.”

When asked what repertoire he would like to perform in the future, Paik pointed to contemporary music.

“When I studied at The Juilliard School, the school did not teach us to perform contemporary music,” he said. “But to me, it is a very important task. We are the ones who bring written music to the public. Sometimes I wonder whether we really have to remain with music from 200 or 300 years ago. There can be nothing more exciting than taking responsibility for performing a sound that will ring out in the world for the first time through my own hands.”

This year, beyond the album release and concert activity, Paik has one more plan: to publish an autobiography.

“I have many stories from my life as a performer traveling across the United States, Europe, Eastern Europe and China,” he said. “I think it is also my duty to share those stories.”

“I went to New York to study at The Juilliard School in 1961,” he said. “At that time, the music scene in the United States was filled with towering performers and composers in a way that young people today could scarcely imagine. Horowitz, Bernstein — people whose names alone would be enough. Even people’s attitudes toward music were very different. You had to go to a shop to buy sheet music or LPs, and when you sat down to listen to an opera at home, you sat there for three hours. It was different from today, when a performer’s true worth can be judged by the number of views on a performance video.”

A poster advertises Paik Kun-woo's debut concerts held on Nov. 18 and 19, 1956 [PANTHEON]

As for the nickname that has followed him throughout his career, “an ascetic on the keys,” Paik said it felt “a little heavy.” He stressed that “anyone who is faithful to what they do and works hard is an ascetic,” adding that “there is no single right answer in music.”

“When people ask me to explain in words the piece I am going to perform, I refuse,” he said. “I have to persuade through performance, not words. I do not think it is appropriate to say, ‘This is what I prepared, so listen this way.’ What meaning there may be in spending two hours at a concert listening to music depends on each individual in the audience. It will sound different depending on one’s state of mind, and each listener discovers something new.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHOI MIN-JI [[email protected]]