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| Pianist Yang Bang-ean / Courtesy of Endorf Music |
By Park Ji-won
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| Cover image for pianist Yang Bang-ean's new album "Light & Shadow" / Courtesy of Endorf Music |
Yang, who has also worked as music director from time to time for various high-profile shows including the opening and closing ceremonies of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018, said he was planning to release an album with new songs to mark the 25th anniversary of his solo career this year, but decided to release the recordings of live performances as well as new songs due to the COVID-19 pandemic making it difficult for him to record with orchestras. The title song "Meteor ~ Nora" is composed for his late friend ORIGA who died in 2015 and is aimed to give pandemic-hit people hope that their wishes could come true.
"I wanted to release an album with recordings with orchestras, but due to the pandemic, it was difficult for me to work with them and go to recording studios in London … So I picked the best performances I have done and great soundtracks for films and games as they cannot be heard unless you play those games or watch those films," Yang said during a press conference, Wednesday.
"I made the list to reflect my current works so that they can have an influence on audiences."
The album includes soundtrack selections such as "The Seven Deadly Sins" game based on the Japanese comics with the same title; songs for the documentary "Who I am" for the Tokyo Paralympics this year and the background music for the immersive digital gallery of the National Museum of Korea. He listed the songs in order to give listeners the feeling of being at a concert, he added.
Born as a second-generation ethnic Korean in Japan in 1960, to a South Korean father and North Korean mother who migrated to Japan, he chose to become a doctor upon the advice of his father, but quit the occupation to become a musician. He became a South Korean national in 1999.
Whenever he took on Korean government music projects in the past, he had been criticized for not being qualified as a sufficiently "authentic" Korean, which hurt him to some extent. But this alienation didn't discourage him and only made his performances more unique, he said.
Some define his music as new age, crossover or neoclassical. But he hasn't intentionally picked a musical genre and chose instruments to express his thoughts via music, he said.
"People have preconceived notions when they see something different or new (including my music). I take it positively. It means my music is special and unique. As I was born in Japan, people blamed me for directing national events including the Olympics. It was so hurtful. But without these 'shadows,' there would be no music or life. I thought that I, a Korean artist living overseas, need to finish these jobs as there are many great artists out there outside of Korea. I hope more artists living overseas come to Korea and make some great artistic works."
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