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Karoline Jacobkj@karstenwitt.com+49 30 214 594-221Kathrin Feldmann-Uhlkf@karstenwitt.com+49 30 214 594-241
General Management
Grażyna Bacewicz, Ouvertüre für Orchester
Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35
Robert Schumann, Symphony No. 3 "Rhenish"
Shiyeon Sung, conductor
Veriko Tchumburidze, violin
Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias
Donghoon Shin, Kafka’s Dream
Maurice Ravel, Piano Concerto for the left hand in D major
Dmitri Schostakowitsch, Symphony No.11 in G minor, Op.103 ‘The Year 1905’
Marc-André Hamelin, piano
Oregon Symphony
Ludwig van Beethoven, Overture to 'Leonore' No. 3 in C major, Op. 72
Alberto Carretero, Con certo in certo
Ludwig van Beethoven, Symphony No. 8 in F major, Op. 93
Juan Carlos Garvayo, piano
Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla
Alexander Glazunov, Symphonie No. 9 D minor
Sergej Prokofjew, Piano Concerto No. 3 in C-Major, Op. 26
Dmitri Schostakowitsch, Symphonie No. 9 in E major, Op. 70
Alexander Gavrylyuk, piano
Grace-Evelin Mason, The Imagined Forest
Franz Liszt, Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major
Antonín Dvořák, Symphony No. 6 in D major, Op. 60
Sophia Lu, piano
Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León
Musical power and precise detail: this conducting balancing act characterises the entire programme (...) When the BR Symphony Orchestra becomes huge again in Ravel's ‘Ma mere l'oye’, the sound remains finely balanced. And once again provides an opportunity to admire Shiyeon Sung for her well thought-out phrasing, her refined internal dynamics and transitions. Süddeutsche Zeitung, November 2023
Shiyeon Sung is an internationally established and experienced conductor, who captivates audiences as a true architect of sound. With her natural, compelling energy and grace, she leads and inspires at the highest level.
As the first South Korean woman to take the podium of leading international orchestras, she regularly returns to the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, the Seattle Symphony, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Her wide-ranging repertoire focuses on the great masterworks of the 19th and 20th centuries, while also encompassing contemporary music.
The Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla appointed her Principal Guest Conductor starting in the 2025/26 season. Following a triumphant debut featuring acclaimed concerts - in which El Correo de Andalucía praised her for "eliciting an impressive performance from the orchestra" and "infusing a vibrant touch of sensuality alongside sparkling, playful rhythms" - she continues her tenure into the current 2026/27 season, leading programmes centred on Beethoven’s Eighth Symphony as well as the Ninth Symphonies of Glazunov and Shostakovich.
From 2023 to 2025, she served as Principal Guest Conductor of the Auckland Philharmonia in New Zealand. Shiyeon Sung has appeared as guest conductor with an impressive list of orchestras. Recent engagements include appearances with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, KBS Symphony Orchestra, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, and the Orquestra de València.
After winning both the Sir Georg Solti International Conductors' Competition and the Gustav Mahler Conducting Competition in Bamberg, her formative years in the American tradition began in 2007 as Assistant Conductor to James Levine at the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Concurrently, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra created the position of Associate Conductor specifically for her, a role she held from 2009 to 2014.
From 2014 to 2017, she led the Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra as Chief Conductor, propelling the ensemble to international acclaim with milestones including a recording of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony for Decca and a guest performance at the Musikfest Berlin. In doing so, she set new benchmarks as the first woman to lead a major South Korean orchestra.
Raised in Busan, South Korea, where she celebrated early success as a young pianist, Shiyeon Sung has found a second home in Berlin. It was at the Hochschule für Musik „Hanns Eisler“ where she mastered her conducting craft under the tutelage of Rolf Reuter. Since then, the free spirit and vibrant symphonic tradition of Berlin have shaped her artistic work.
2026/2027 season
This biography is to be reproduced without any changes, omissions or additions, unless expressly authorised by the artist management.
"South Korean conductor Shi-Yeon Sung (…) elicited a remarkable responsiveness from the orchestra, paying meticulous attention to every detail so that the clarity of the sound layers blended together beautifully (…) what followed was a highly nuanced interpretation of the (Firebird), seeking out its more childlike side and recreating its fantastical, oriental-inspired spirit; to this end, Sung drew on generous doses of sensuality and sparkling, playful rhythms."
El Correo de Andalucia, Juan José Roldán, 17/4/2026
"Unforgettable performance - the Auckland Philharmonia‘s Tchaikovsky 5 concert offered much cause for celebration, including the welcome return of principal guest conductor Shiyeon Sung and the very special feeling of being part of another of the orchestra’s capacity audiences (…) On the night, Sung drew a rare vibrancy from familiar pages, laying out a compulsive journey from the Russian’s doom-laden introduction to the triumphant glow of its final apotheosis."
NZ Herald, William Dart, 18 Mai 2025
"Shiyeon Sung worked wonderfully with the orchestra to bring out the ever-changing character of the Promenade that links the pieces: At times the cellos threaten, at other times, Sung lets the wildly uncontrolled Baba Yaga’s Hut become a witches’ sabbath raging through the concert hall „Glocke“, before finally, the Great Gate of Kiev with Promenade motifs makes a grand conclusion. It was an incredible cinematic experience and received a great deal of applause"
Weserkurier, Iris Hetscher, 5 February 2025
"The Korean conductor delivered an impressive performance of this testamentary work in many respects The excellent musicians of the Orchestre National de Metz Grand-Est conveyed the epic grandeur of this music without the slightest difficulty, with Sung giving it a remarkable drive. The Maestra pays attention to detail, balance, and clarity."
classique news.com, Emmanuel Andrieu, 19. January 2025
"Sung conducted with a mixture of clarity and sensitivity that allowed the orchestra to be both powerful and supportive. She was a master at balancing the dynamics between orchestra and soloist so that both could shine equally."
Vorarlberger Nachrichten, 19. November 2024
"Under the precise and emphatic baton of South Korean conductor Shiyeon Sung, the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra mobilised a richly toned fresco through all the different moods of this effective first movement, with whose concept Liszt opened up a new compositional genre. (…) The dedicated commitment of all those involved in Antonin Dvořàk's Symphony No. 6 in D major was inspiring. Shiyeon Sung's blazing maelstrom in the Presto of the Scherzo, which is seldom so truly a furiant, was overwhelming, as was the way in which the brass Allegro con spirito was finally allowed to rise."
DrehPunktKultur, Horst Reischenböck, 14 November 2024 - Concerts cycle at the Großes Festspielhaus Salzburg
"The program’s second half was devoted to Dvořák — the under-programmed Sixth Symphony of 1880, to be precise. Shiyeon Sung showed herself a wonderful colorist in possession of an admirable technique, eliciting Dvořák’s ingratiating blends of woodwinds with sensitivity and refinement."
Memeteria, Thomas May, 19. April 2024 - Concert with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra
"Shiyeon Sung captured the piece’s vivacity and allowed all featured instrumental voices to shine."
Barefoot Review, Kym Clayton, 22. March 2024
"The Korean conductor begins Maurice Ravel's classic in an extreme, almost inaudible pianissimo, skilfully using the sensitive acoustics of the Isarphilharmonie together with the BR Symphony Orchestra. She then emphasised the jazzy moments, at a tight tempo, but always with a sensitive sound. Musical power and precise detail: this conducting balancing act characterises the entire programme, which interweaves works by Ravel with those by György Ligeti. (...) When the orchestra becomes huge again in Ravel's "Ma mere l'oye", the sound remains finely balanced. And gives another opportunity to praise Shiyeon Sung for her thoughtful phrasing, her refined internal dynamics and transitions. Ravel's collection of fairy-tale images thus leads into the poetic, into a dream realm, the evening as a whole effectively contradicting all traditional concert dramaturgy, from the powerful to the delicate."
Süddeutsche Zeitung, Michael Stallknecht, 27 November 2023
"Shiyeon Sung offers such an abundance of detail that it is hard to keep up while listening. The South Korean conductor is extremely precise with the dynamics: the longer the BR Symphony Orchestra lingers in tantalising pianissimo, the more electrifying the tension builds up. We encounter a whole host of special works [Ravel and Ligeti] here, all of which are conducted by Shiyeon Sung with precision, but also with an elusive elegance, a sense of lightness, brightness and friendliness."
Abendzeitung, Michael Bastian Weiß, 24 November 2023
“...Isang Yun's orchestral works have an unmistakable tone, determined by rather shrill, high woodwinds (...) This also applies to Yun's ‘Réak’ from 1966, which opened the musica viva concert with the BR Symphony Orchestra in the Herkulessaal, conducted clearly and energetically by Shiyeon Sung.”
Abendzeitung, Robert Braunmüller, 7 July 2022
"Sung’s overall conducting of Holst’s 'The Planets' was exemplary. (...) Her interpretation imbued the astrological characteristics of each planetary voice with a fresh distinctive sound, without losing the essence of Holst’s overall vision. It was a fine achievement. Her strong technical skills and attention to detail with a clear, insistent beat allowed her sweeping style to coax as well as lead."
Limelight Magazine, Suzannah Conway, 17 April 2023
“The rest of the evening also convinces with an adventurous programme. (...) Conductor Shiyeon Sung, whose impressive debut makes her the eighth female conductor ever to conduct the Concertgebouw Orchestra, first makes the threatening clarinet solos in Bartók's Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin glow softly, then lets the orchestra blaze to incandescent volume.”
de Volkskrant, Rick van Veldhuizen, 7 November 2021
“Here, in Muak by Isang Yun and in The Miraculous Mandarin by Bartók, conductor Sung brought out the best in the Concertgebouworkest. Her debut in this wonderful programme, born of a cancellation, definitely deserves a sequel.”
Trouw, Peter van der Lint, 7 November 2021
Mahler Symphony No. 6 "Tragic" - Shiyeon Sung / Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra (Live recording 23th, Mar. 2023 Lotte Concert Hall Seoul)
Auckland Philharmonia, Part 1 - Shiyeon Sung discusses her childhood and her beginnings in the world of music
Auckland Philharmonia, Part 2 - How does a conductor prepare for a concert? Shiyeon Sung breaks down the steps she takes to prepare for taking the podium
Stravinsky: The Firebird Suite - Shiyeon Sung / Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
Falla: Nights in the Gardens of Spain - Shiyeon Sung / Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
Mahler Symphony No.5 - Shiyeon Sung / Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra
P.I.Tchaikovsky: Symphony No.5 in e minor, Op.64 - ll. Andante cantabile
Dvorak Cello Concerto 3rd mvt, Jakob Koranyi - Cello
Claire Huangci, Shiyeon Sung, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Berlin Classics, B07T4RYMLT, 2019
Shiyeon Sung, Gyeonggi Philharmonic Orchestra DECCA 2016, DD41140
Shiyeon Sung, Ann Hobson Pilot, Boston Symphony Orchestra ℗ 2015 Boston Symphony Orchestra Inc., 2011