chairman

Sang-il Han

Sang-il Han, pianist and conductor, is one of South Korea’s most distinguished musicians.

During his studies at the Korea National University of Arts, he gained national recognition by winning First Prize and the Grand Prize at both the Dong-A Music Competition and the KBS Seoul New Artist Competition, establishing himself as a leading performer in the Korean music scene.
In 2005, he received the Grand Prize at the Epinal International Piano Competition in France, followed by Third Prize at the Southern Missouri International Piano Competition in 2006, marking the expansion of his career onto the international stage.
He is regarded as one of the first-generation Korean pianists to achieve international recognition based on domestic training, demonstrating the excellence of Korea’s classical music education.
Sang-il Han was admitted to Seoul Arts High School through a special practical talent track and graduated at the top of his class. He completed his bachelor’s degree under Professor Dae-jin Kim at the Korea National University of Arts.
He has performed as a soloist with the Orchestre National de Lorraine, the KBS Symphony Orchestra, and the Korean National Symphony Orchestra, as well as with leading philharmonic orchestras throughout Korea. In 2015, he performed chamber music in Seoul with members of the Vienna Philharmonic. He was also invited to perform as a soloist at the Seoul Arts Center Orchestra Festival in 2016 and 2020, where his performances were highly acclaimed.
In 2011, he was selected as one of the 12 finalists at the Busoni International Piano Competition and was praised by pianist Gunwoo Baek as “a pianist with a unique and distinctive sound.”
He has collaborated with renowned orchestras including the Orchestre National de Lorraine, the KBS Symphony Orchestra, and the National Symphony Orchestra of Korea, and continues to appear regularly with major philharmonic orchestras in Korea. In 2015, he performed chamber music in Seoul with members of the Vienna Philharmonic, and he was invited as a featured soloist at the Symphony Festival of the Seoul Arts Center in both 2016 and 2020.
In 2016, he released his debut album Rachmaninoff & Prokofiev through Sony Classical, marking the beginning of his recording career, followed by a successful nationwide recital tour. Notably, he became the first Korean pianist to present two consecutive recitals at the IBK Chamber Hall of the Seoul Arts Center. In 2019, he premiered his own one-hour solo piano arrangement and reconstruction of Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet at the same venue.

Expanding his artistic scope into composition, he released his first original work, Traveling, in 2023. In the same year, he released an album of Beethoven sonatas—Pathétique, Moonlight, and Appassionata—through Warner Classics, followed by a successful release recital at the Lotte Concert Hall.

In 2025, he released his second original composition, Meditation, through Warner Classics. In March 2026, he released a digital album featuring a live performance of Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit and Liszt’s Sonata in B minor, recorded during the 2006 Kumho Young Artist Series recital, through Harmonia.

Currently, he serves as President of the Asia-Pacific Pianist Association (PAPA), where he is dedicated to building a new classical music ecosystem and fostering international artistic networks across Asia.

In January 2026, he made his official conducting debut with the Prime Philharmonic Orchestra, expanding his artistic career as both a pianist and conductor.