An evening of exciting voices and masterful performances
LSO Future, presented at the grandiose Barbican Hall, is a concert that presents a bold and imaginative vision for contemporary music. As part of the K-Music Festival 2025 and the Seong-Jin Cho Artist Portrait, it features a new piano concerto by Donghoon Shin—written especially for the pianist—alongside works by other emerging artists. Conducted by Maxime Pascal, the concert presents a carefully curated constellation of new and existing works.
The first piece, “gilufim” by Omri Kochavi, opens the concert with a delightful beginning. It starts with a tonal foundation, using the marimba to set a lovely atmosphere, before blending in atonality to create a wondrous, imaginary soundscape.
The second piece, “Sly” by Sasha Scott, showcases the composer’s significant potential as a new talent. It presents an intriguing soundscape rather than conventional “music,” successfully building an atmospheric landscape through its untraditional use of strings from the very start. The soundscape then escalates into a climactic development which, while feeling like a slight loss of focus into unbalanced sounds, provides a stark contrast to the initial dreamlike, feverish vibe.
Following these shorter pieces, Donghoon Shin’s Piano Concerto immediately demonstrates his masterful command of composition. True to his description, the work is “a conversation between two extremes.” It opens with unsettled, almost ambient sounds, creating a tension as if something is waiting to happen—an atmosphere soon contrasted by the introduction of sparkly timbres. The interplay between strings and percussion later gives the piece an almost Stravinsky-like quality, and when the piano enters, it immediately establishes a conversational relationship with the orchestra before gradually taking center stage and evolving into a full-fledged solo.
Seong Jin Cho, known for his impeccable control, proves his mastery once again from his first solo notes, taking the audiences into another realm of space and time. The music briefly shifts to a near-classical style, followed by rapid transitions between moods. As a piece written especially for him, the composer included a substantial solo for Cho to showcase his virtuosity and wow the audience with his technique. The solo then slides into quieter, more intimate territory. Continuing this sentiment, the second movement unfolds like a silent march, combining diverse sonic elements. Finally, the third movement emerges as a Ligeti-esque passage—a carnival of sounds and a celebration. Donghoon Shin shows his ability to compose music that speaks a universal and evocative language, proving that his future works for piano are worth highly anticipated. As a concert that showcases the mastery of established musicians while elevating new talents, the first half concludes as a definitive success.
The concert’s second half featured a work by Pierre Boulez. As a pivotal figure in modern composition, his piece has an international scope, incorporating instruments from around the world. Yet, even for today’s audience, his work—lacking traditional progression and conventional structure—remains challenging and perhaps overly conceptual.
The LSO has supported young and emerging talents for decades. As the UK’s most established orchestra, the future iterations of LSO to bring more exciting new voices into the contemporary music landscape is worth keeping an eye for.