Jo Sumi holds concert in Hong Kong in three years

▲This photo shows Jo Sumi at 'HKGNA' concert. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

▲This photo shows Jo Sumi at 'HKGNA' concert. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

▲This photo shows poster for 'HKGNA' concert. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

▲This photo shows Jo Sumi at 'HKGNA' concert. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Nov.19 (Yonhap) — World-renowned soprano Jo Sumi gave warm comfort and joy to the local audience who were tired of COVI-19 at her first Hong Kong concert in three years.

Jo Sumi presented six songs at the opening stage of the “HKGNA Music Festival 2022” held with the setting of Hong Kong's beautiful night view on Friday.

Appearing on stage in a beautiful red dress, Jo performed “I want to live in a dream” from the opera “Romeo and Juliet” and “Vilja lied” from “The Merry Widow.”

As darkness fell, the outdoor stage held at the West Kowloon Cultural District Art Park in Hong Kong gave a sense of freedom to the locals who were tired of Hong Kong's strict quarantine.

The audience was full of anticipation to enjoy Jo's performance on a night in November, a good time to be active.

2,000 seats were sold out on the day ticket sales began.

After changing into an white dress, Jo sang “My Favorite Sing” and “Do Re Mi Song” from the movie “The Sound of Music.”

The audience sang along as the familiar song came out, and Jo led the atmosphere by dancing lightly.

Before and after her stage, performances by the Hong Kong New Generation Music Association (HKGNA) orchestra and local classical musicians performed on the stage.

Jo Sumi is the first Korean artist to visit Hong Kong after the country abolished the hotel quarantine obligation for visitors, which had been maintained from January 2020 to the end of September 2022.

Jo, who frequently performed in Hong Kong before the pandemic, said, "I feel a lot of responsibility since today's performance is a place to confirm the friendship between Korea and Hong Kong,” adding, “I organized the songs so everyone can enjoy like a all-in-one present.”

Previously, a special duet with Keng Tho, a member of Hong Kong's most popular boy group Mirror, was announced.

However, Keng Tho was unable to make the stage due to an injury. So he promised for the next time by greeting Jo and the audience through the screen in real time.

“HKGNA Music Festival 2022,” which runs for three days until Nov. 20, is hosted by HKGNA, which is founded by Korean pianist and music director Michelle Kim.

HKGNA is a charity which provides music healing programs for young people and music education for young people with disabilities.

HKGNA, which has been held as a small-indoor music festival annually, was selected as the group to receive support from the Hong Kong Tourism Board this year and was possible to take place at a large outdoor stage.

The stages performed on this day will be aired in Korea through tvN.

(This article is translated from Korean to English by Jiwon Woo.)

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