ERSO launches centenary season with South Korea tour
Monday 21st September 2026 on 10:30 in
Estonia
Estonia’s national orchestra, the Estonian State Symphony Orchestra, has opened its 100th anniversary season with a tour of South Korea, ERR reported. The orchestra and chief conductor Olari Elts are performing three concerts between September 17 and 24 in Daegu, Bucheon and Seoul.
The first concert took place on September 19 at a concert hall in Daegu, one of South Korea’s largest cities. The 1,284-seat hall was full. The performance was part of the World Orchestra Festival, which also features the Helsinki City Orchestra, conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste and a South Korean winner of the Sibelius Competition.
The programme included Tõnu Kõrvits’ “Hymns to the Northern Lights”, Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor and Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. The orchestra’s featured soloist is South Korean star pianist Yekwon Sunwoo, the first South Korean winner of the Cliburn Competition, described in the article as one of the world’s top three competitions.
In Daegu, ERSO director Kristjan Hallik also signed a cooperation agreement between the Estonian orchestra and the Daegu Symphony Orchestra. The Korean orchestra is expected to perform in Estonia next year.
Daegu concert hall operations manager Jinwoo Kim said the cooperation was made possible because Daegu and Tallinn are both UNESCO Cities of Music. He said the organisation was pleased to visit Estonia, introduce its music and learn about the cultural differences between Tallinn and Daegu through music.
The second concert took place in Bucheon, a large suburb of Seoul, at one of South Korea’s newest concert halls. Completed in 2023, the hall has 1,450 seats. Its amphitheatre-style stage and strong acoustics produced an exceptional sound, according to ERR’s music journalist Ia Remmel, who is covering the tour.
Audiences at both venues gave the orchestra and its Korean pianist soloist sustained applause. ERSO performed several encores, including Schumann’s “Abendlied”, featuring concertmaster Triin Ruubel, and Brahms’ “Hungarian Dance No. 6”. Elts also addressed the audience and drew laughter with humorous remarks.
The tour continues at the Seoul Arts Center, the capital’s most prestigious concert venue. Vanessa Tsoi, the tour manager at IMG Artists, said the trip came about through personal connections with Elts and in connection with the orchestra’s 100th anniversary. Local arrangements are being handled by MastMedia, a South Korean group specialising in representing classical music artists, organising entertainment events and producing concerts.