Words: Timothy Holm
Venue: Poplar Union (London, UK) | Date: 5th December 2025
On a crisp December evening in East London, Poplar Union provided a warm, community focused backdrop for the finale of what has been an ambitious year for the Kollab & Kulture series of Korean culture-based events. This year-end wrap-up served not only as a showcase of musical talent but as a retrospective on a year spent bridging the artistic sensibilities of South Korea and the UK. While the evening featured the experimental sounds of the collective RITO, the night belonged to composer and pianist Ka Youn Yoo, whose presence as both host and performer anchored the event in a sense of narrative and emotional intimacy.
The Host: Weaving Stories Between Songs
Ka Youn Yoo has been the curatorial force behind much of this year's programming, and her role as host yesterday evening was integral to the event's success. From the moment she took the microphone, the evening revealed a host who is deeply invested in the 'why’ of the music, not just the ‘what.’
Her opening remarks set a tone of gratitude and reflection. Not only reading off a script, she engaged the audience with the ease of someone welcoming friends into a living room. She spoke candidly about the mission of Kollab & Kulture - to introduce contemporary Korean art and music not as distant, exotic curiosities, but as a shared, evolving dialogue. Her introductions were not merely functional; they were contextual bridges. She took care to explain the concepts behind the performances, ensuring that the audience, regardless of their familiarity with Korean culture, could find a foothold in the material. This was particularly evident when she introduced the concept of Han - a uniquely Korean sentiment of sorrow and resilience - preparing the room for the emotional weight of the music that was to follow.
Ka Youn Yoo: Cinematic Soundscapes
As a performer, Ka Youn Yoo demonstrated why she is rapidly gaining recognition in the visual music world. Her set was a masterclass in ‘visual’ music—compositions that evoke imagery and narrative even without video or film on a screen. Sitting at the piano, she shifted effortlessly from the role of affable host to serious composer. Her performance style is characterized by a delicate touch and a focus on melody that indicates her training at the Royal College of Music. A highlight of the evening was undoubtedly her performance of ‘Counting the Stars.’ She balanced romantic intensity with a lighter, more optimistic touch, which continued in ‘Spring Walks,’ performed together with piri flutist Seayool. In these pieces, her style reminded me of many K-dramas I have loved in the past - sweeping, lyrical, and accessible. There is a distinct ‘East-meets-West’ quality to her writing; while the melodic progressions often hint at the pentatonic scales of traditional Korean folk music (minyo), the harmonic structures are lush and Western. It is a fusion that feels organic rather than forced, reflecting her own journey from Seoul to London.
To finish up her set, Ka Youn also performed keyboard alongside singer Ji Eun Jung (usually known for her mastery of the kayageum) on the track called ‘Spring Waltz,’ which appeared on the album Classical Traditional Korea (which can be found on streamers such as Amazon Music and Apple Music), another splendid piece, enhanced by the lovely voice of Ms. Jung. And finally, the song ‘Menari,’ another impressive traditional number from the same album which Ka Youn performed with Seayool on flute and Kangsan on percussion.
A Short Documentary Interlude
Before the halfway break, the audience was treated to a short documentary about Ka Youn and her work on the Kollab project over the past year. It was neat to see clips of all the different events they have hosted, along with interviews with the participants including Ka Youn herself. Also discussed was Ka Youn’s role as a concert producer and composer at the Korean Cultural Centre UK last year. K-Folklore: Past, Present and Future brought together a number of professional artists and musicians from Korea (including her own mother, a daegeum flutist) to celebrate Korean traditions and present them to the British public. This short doc (also scored by Ka Youn) premiered at the SKY ESEA Heritage Festival in September.
RITO: The Ritual of Sound
While Ka Youn Yoo provided the melodic and emotional heart of the evening, the collective RITO provided its pulse. Their set offered a stark, thrilling contrast to the piano’s acoustic purity. RITO describes their work as ‘a modern ritual of sound, rooted in tradition,’ and their performance lived up to the moniker. The interplay between the piri (traditional bamboo oboe), percussion, and electronic soundscapes created a texture that was at once ancient and futuristic. The piri, an instrument known for its piercing, voice-like timbre, cut through the ambient electronic wash with startling clarity.
Their performance explored the concept of Tori - the regionally distinct musical dialects of Korea. However, rather than presenting this as a museum piece, RITO deconstructed it. The percussion (led by Kangsan) provided a driving, visceral rhythm that nodded to samulnori traditions but felt completely at home in the realm of modern electronica. Meanwhile, Edith’s electronic elements didn't simply accompany the traditional instruments; they enveloped them, creating a dense, atmospheric fog that the acoustic instruments worked to pierce through. At times, Edith's playing reminded me of the haunting sounds of the theremin. It was a performance that demanded attention, shifting the energy of the room from introspection to a trance-like engagement, and the audience was clearly enraptured by it.
Atmosphere and Verdict
Poplar Union proved to be the ideal venue for this ‘Wrap-Up,’ as it has been for all the previous Kollab events. Its community-centric ethos mirrored the inclusive vibe Ka Youn Yoo fostered throughout the night. The transition between the acts was smooth, and the technical setup served the acoustic nuances of the piano as well as the electronic layers of RITO. The evening ended as it began, with a sense of connection and an opportunity for networking and photos. By the time the final applause faded, it was clear that Kollab & Culture succeeded in its 2025 mission. They haven't just hosted events; they have cultivated a space where the ‘traditional’ is allowed to breathe and evolve.
Ka Youn Yoo, in her dual capacity as the evening’s voice and its virtuoso, was the linchpin of this success. Her ability to translate the specificities of Korean emotion into a universal musical language is a rare gift. As I departed into the damp December cold, the warmth of the Year-end Wrap-Up lingered with me - a testament to a year of ‘Kulture’ that managed to be both a deeply Korean and an undeniably London experience.
