It was a familiar sight at the concert hall at Jeju Culture and Art Center in Jeju City on Christmas eve – an austere stage with just a semi-concert grand Steinway, minus any superfluous stage design and lighting. Yet, Yiruma’s piano concert is nothing less than grand, in terms of the sensory experience.
Yiruma's Movement on a Theme concert at Seoul Arts Center
Anyone familiar with Yiruma’s music would probably know what to expect – wistful tinkles that are stunningly beautiful and unbearably tender.
The giant screen at the center of the stage lit up, playing a pre-recorded clip, signaling that the concert has begun. The mild-mannered pianist - dressed in a laid-back dark-colored sweater and pants – appeared on stage and played the first two songs – his signature tracks “Kiss The Rain” and “When The Love Falls”.
What’s different between the concert versions and the studio recordings are the improvisations and arrangements with strings accompaniment. For example, the cello and guitar for pieces such as “I”, “Fotografia” and “Indigo (with guitar)”.
The intro to “I” was one of the prettiest I’ve ever heard. It opened with soft tinkles on the grace notes, harmonizing with the melancholic mumbles from the cello. The dialogue between the piano and cello continued in splendid synchrony, carrying the tune forward. This arrangement is the same as the one that was played last year, but good nonetheless.
There were three musicians who collaborated with Yiruma on his Movement touras - a cellist, who also worked with him on the Ribonized tours last year, as well as two guitarists – one of whom doubled as vocalist. He goes by Ruvin – the voice behind “River Flows In You”.
Other familiar pieces dominating the first part of the concert include “Sometimes… Someone”, and “Tears On Love”.
The surprises came after the intermission, where Yiruma returned with a newly improvised “Maybe”.
And what was especially impressionable in this concert, at least for me, was his playing of “Sunbeams… They Scatter” – a brilliant piece that requires precision and concentration - you can tell from the way he paused slightly at the Steinway keys before hitting the first note. This is the first time he selected a piece from Nocturnal/His Monologue albums, and one of my favorite piece.
Other less popular pieces such as “Sunny Rain” and ”Septemberise” also made it to the set list for the first time. The rest consisted a predictable selection of popular tunes, but I’m not complaining because each one of his compositions is awe-inspiring and lushingly beautiful.
Yiruma signs autographs
Curiously though, despite the title of the tour, we don’t get to hear pieces from his latest mini album in this concert, aside from the vocalized version of “Rives flows in you”.
And in keeping with tradition, the soft-spoken pianist sang one number during the encore - he sang “Our Same Word” in Jeju but chose “Dream” instead in the Seoul shows. He also played Christmas medley in Jeju since it was Christmas eve. He replaced that with the main theme from movie “Cinema Paradiso” by Ennio Morricone at the December 26, 8pm Seoul performance. It’s a well-know tune but flavored with Yiruma’s stylings, and was absolutely awesome~
There weren’t any performances scheduled on December 25 because he probably had to do his weekly radio stint on Fridays, so in fact, he did spend Christmas with fans. If you had tuned in to his radio program on Friday, you would have heard his romantic Christmas tinkles over the air waves.
As usual, Yiruma – being an engaging performer – addressed the audience in between songs to introduce the next piece. I remembered he mentioned working really hard right after he finished his navy stint. He worked non-stop for days without resting (for his album P.N.O.N.I) but later qualified that it’s not healthy and advised against it.
I guess the reason the reason I brought this up is because it just goes to show the hardwork behind making music, or any music for the matter. People have criticized that his music sounds easy but to write deceptively simple tunes that sound great at the same time takes as much work as writing any song.
Long line of fans waiting to get his autograph
The demographics of the crowd in Jeju and Seoul are interestingly different. There used to be a far younger audience in the Seoul shows but surprisingly, the 8pm crowd was much more mature as compared to the 2pm Seoul audience. And I thought the elderly likes only classical music.
The mood however was best in Jeju, mainly because Yiruma was more relaxed, and slightly playful, and the smaller hall – with a capacity of less than 900 – was personal and cozy in spite of the wintry weather. The Seoul crowd was just a tad more sombre – maybe it’s the age factor.
There were also more foreigners in this year’s concert - lots of Japanese and a few Caucasians in the Seoul shows.
Really, there’s usually nothing over the top about Yiruma’s piano concerts – be it his attire, the stage set, his gestures, his accompanying musicians and even his piano. Yet, the experience is nothing short of grand.
And responses to his shows are typically well-received – listeners were enthusiastic and generous with their applause, and sighs of disappointment echoed throughout the hall when the last song was announced. And the encore sought to bring some kind of consolation at the closure.
Concert catalog with mini digital album
