Hyung-ki Joo is a »clever, dynamic artist who […] brings a breath of fresh air to the industry« according to the American magazine ›Billboard‹. On stage, this pianist – who has already worked with a number of renowned orchestras such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, the Wiener Symphoniker, the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and many others – inspires audiences with his charismatic personality and energetic playing. He also performs as a chamber musician with renowned colleagues such as Janine Jansen and Julian Rachlin and in recitals with Asmik Grigorian or Julian Prégardien.

Hyung-ki Joo is a musical all-rounder who uses his refreshing creative energy to devise innovative concert formats suitable for the 21st century. As curator for example, he conceived the opening of the Wiener Festwochen 2023, and his compositions have been performed by renowned orchestras including the New York Philharmonic and the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich. Together with violinist Aleksey Igudesman, he forms the duo Igudesman & Joo which combines classical music and comedy with pop culture, bringing entertainment and sparkling humour to major concert halls around the world. Hyung-ki Joo also collaborates with artists outside the world of classical music such as Billy Joel, whose first album of works for solo piano was arranged by Joo. This young Briton with Korean roots is also a passionate music educator, works regularly with youth orchestras, conducts workshops and masterclasses at various institutions, holds an honorary doctorate from the Manhattan School of Music and is Artistic Director of the Menuhin Competition.

Described by the Tagesspiegel newspaper as a »once-in-a-century talent«, Tarmo Peltokoski was appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Deutsche Kammer­philharmonie Bremen in January 2022, thereby becoming the first conductor in the orchestra’s history to hold this position. In May 2022, he was appointed Music and Artistic Director of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra and was later appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. Since the 2025/26 season, this Finnish conductor has been Music Director of the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse. From the 2026/27 season, Peltokoski will become Music Director of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, having served as Designated Music Director in 2025/26. In addition, Peltokoski will begin his three-year residency as ›Exclusive Artist‹ at the Konzerthaus Dortmund in the 2025/26 season.

Peltokoski has already conducted numerous orchestras of note worldwide, including the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and The Los Angeles Philharmonic. He conducted his first complete ›Ring Cycle‹ at the age of 22 at the Eurajoki Bel Canto Festival. His upcoming Wagner opera productions include ›Tristan und Isolde‹ (Dutch National Opera), his debut at the Deutsche Oper Berlin with ›Parsifal‹,  and ›Lohengrin‹ with the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra.

In 2023, he received the OPUS Klassik award for his recording with the Deutsche Kammer­philharmonie Bremen. In October of the same year, he signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon; his debut album was released in May 2024.