Following its successful Europe tour, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HK Phil) is set to embark on an Asia tour in October 2025, with performances in Hyogo and Kawasaki in Japan, followed by Gwangju and Seoul in Korea. The tour will be led by HK Phil Resident Conductor Lio Kuokman, featuring star pianists Kyohei Sorita and Yekwon Sunwoo. A new work by Hong Kong composer Charles Kwong will be showcased. Prior to the tour, the orchestra will offer a sneak preview of the programme in Hong Kong.
The HK Phil is excited to take part in Asia Orchestra Week with two concerts in Hyogo Performing Arts Center and MUZA Kawasaki Symphony Hall on 13 and 14 October 2025 respectively. The concerts will begin with Charles Kwong’s new work Festina lente, commissioned by the HK Phil. Kwong approaches music as collective experiential situations both within and beyond listening. His creative output spans orchestral music, collaborations with performers across diverse musical cultures, site-specific and transdisciplinary projects that depart from the conventional concert paradigm, and the exploration of performativity in electronic sound synthesis. The new piece presents a seemingly straightforward concept that grew out of two interconnected fascinations: an orchestral miniature that is fast and slow at the same time, at all times.
Japanese pianist Kyohei Sorita, second prize winner at the 18th Chopin Competition in 2021, will showcase his brilliance in Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto. He won the first prize at the 81st Japan Music Competition in 2012, receiving additional accolades such as the Nomura Prize, Iguchi Prize, Kawai Prize, and Iwatani Prize. The concert will conclude with Tchaikovsky’s life-affirming Fifth Symphony, which vividly depicts the composer’s struggle against fate.
These performances are supported by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Tokyo) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
The concerts in Korea will open with Subito con Forza, a Beethoven-inspired piece by renowned Korean composer Unsuk Chin. Described by a critic as “aggressive, disorienting and hugely entertaining”, this work was specially composed to commemorate Beethoven’s 250th anniversary.
In both Gwangju Arts Center and Seoul Arts Center, the HK Phil will share the stage with Korean pianist Yekwon Sunwoo, gold medal winner at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, performing Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto. Sunwoo also made history as the first Korean to win first prizes at the 2015 International German Piano Award and the 2014 Vendome Prize held at the Verbier Festival. The programme will again conclude with Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony, with Charles Kwong’s Festina lente featured in Seoul.
The Gwangju performance is supported by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Tokyo) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Co-presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Seoul Arts Center, the Seoul performance is part of the “Hong Kong Week 2025@Seoul”.
Local audiences can enjoy the full repertoire of the upcoming Japan-Korea tour in advance, and witness Kyohei Sorita’s debut with the HK Phil.
“Kyohei Sorita Plays Tchaikovsky” will be held on 9 October 2025 (Thu) at 7:30PM at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall. Tickets have been sold out. For enquiries, please call +852 2721 2332 or go online.
It is one of the programmes of the Asia+ Festival 2025.
AloJapan.com