“Penza is not a mere name for me”, said Il Oh Yang, chairman of the judges, competition “Silver Lyre”

-       After leaving school I entered college where there was an orchestra. I chose the violin. Why exactly the violin? It is a simple instrument in many senses (laughing).

-       Who was your tutor? Your mother?

-       My father taught me to conduct. Senior students at college taught me the basic techniques of playing. All the rest, they said, is a matter of practicing. And I started rehearsing. I played for 8-9 hours a day and just couldn’t stop. I love the violin, its gentle and noble sounds.

After graduating from college I entered the conservatoire instead of becoming an economist, a lawyer, or an engineer. In Korea all of us have to do military service. That’s why after the second year I went to the army. While I was there I couldn’t practice and rehearse the way I used to do while I was in the conservatoire. For three years (in Korea the military service lasts three years) I almost didn’t play. My fingers were like sticks, it was difficult to hold the fiddle bow. But hard work makes it up. Practising for 10 hours a day I recovered my skills. Naturally, when I graduated from the conservatoire, I decided that I want to learn more. It was then when I went to the USA, took a post-graduate course and started preparing for international festivals and competitions.

But then something curious happened. As I started learning music quite late and didn’t have much experience, I was too nervous and worried a lot. I couldn’t perform solo in front of the audience. The only way out was to learn to conduct and that was exactly what I did. I was already 26 years old at that time, and I had 10 years’ experience of working in an orchestra, but only as an ordinary violin player or the leading violin. It was interesting if I would be able to conduct an orchestra. Being a “playing” musician, it is much easier to do. I imagine quite well the instrument score; I feel the rhythm of music, entering the section of the violin or any other instrument. I am said to even have talent in this. Well, it’s not surprising, as my father is a conductor, it is in my blood, probably (laughing). I worked in America, in different orchestras, for several years. Then, in the 2000s, I started working in Russia. I had worked here for more than five years before I returned to Korea. Recently I’ve taken up writing music: concerts for two guitars, for the pianoforte, for the violin.

-       How come you arrived in Penza?

-       Penza is not a mere word for me, not just a point on the globe. My wife is from Penza, she is a pianist, and there are a lot of relatives here in Penza. I have two children: my daughter Ilona, she is seven, and my son Um Be, who is only four. I don’t want to impose a musical career on them, let them make their choice themselves. I want them to be happy and to grow up decent people. It doesn’t matter if they are musicians or not, if they love music and are good at it, of if they are absolutely indifferent to it. Although one can’t be indifferent to music. Music is a flight of the soul; it is the trail of its wings. 

-       How often do you visit Penza? Do you like it here?

-       This is my third visit to Penza. I came here for the first time in 2006; then in June, 2011 I conducted in the Symphonic orchestra of the Penza regional philharmonic, and now I’m invited as the chairman of the judges of “Silver Lyre”. Unfortunately, I was able to see the city only from the window of the car, I didn’t stay here for more than two days, but I’ve heard a lot about its places of interest.

-       What is your impression of “Silver Lyre”?

-       I can say that the Festival is very well organized, at the high level. You can look at everyone, listen to everyone, there is no haste. The judges are kind and open people who treat the participants with understanding as a lot of them are young people, schoolchildren who are worried and nervous.

 I hope these are only the first steps of your festival to competitions of a higher level. For the time being the level is not very high, but still it is very important that you support your musicians, give them opportunities for development, show them that you appreciate their talent and that you are ready to help them. Taking part in festivals of any level is not only experience but also communication with professionals, it is the display of creative potential.

There are 83 people in my orchestra, which is quite a lot; but your work can also be compared to the work in an orchestra: teachers and students play their parts during the educational process, and it is necessary that they should play in harmony.

To my mind, your festival lacks enough media coverage. It is essential that people should know about it, talk about it, that the musicians from all over the world should want to participate in it. I suppose that not many know about it. If you come to the world level I can bring Korean musicians here. Naturally, the music is one for all of us, but performance techniques are difference. I think professionals can learn from each other different nuances of performing skills. If I find a talented musician at this festival I will invite him or her to play in my orchestra.

-       What do you think is the most important in cultural development of our region? What are your plans for next year?

-       The most essential thing for all countries and cities to improve culture is to create and keep the orchestras so that the musicians have somewhere to play. Professionals must hone their skills, show their best to the audience, and not to find opportunities to earn money anywhere else.

If I am invited to the next festival I will definitely accept the invitation. I hope that in a year or two our orchestra will be able to come to Penza on tour, and it is possible that your talented children will play there.