Seoul Music Week
Every year in September · Seoul, South Korea — the showcase stage where Korea meets the world's programmers
The festival
A global stage begins in Seoul: that is the promise of Seoul Music Week, the South Korean capital's international showcase festival. Artists from Korea and around the world play thirty-minute showcases there before invited festival directors, programmers and professionals — while meetings and networking open real collaborations and opportunities. In 2026, the festival held its 10th edition.
Behind the event stands the Sound Puzzle agency and its founder Sungchun Lee, the festival's executive director and secretary general, who tours Korean artists on stages around the world.
The 10th edition — September 2026
The official open call, launched in spring 2026, invited artists worldwide to propose a thirty-minute showcase. The edition was held in Seoul in September 2026, at the Hwarangdae Railway Park (Nowon district), alongside the Nowon Craft Beer Festival: twenty-two Korean and international acts on stage, preceded by a networking day at the Nowon Arts Center with eleven international delegates. The next edition — the 11th — is being prepared for 2027; its dates will be announced on the festival's official website.
The man behind the festival
Sungchun Lee is Seoul Music Week's secretary general — and a bridge-builder: his agency Sound Puzzle produces, distributes and tours Korean artists abroad. He is also a delegate of the International Presenters Network of Sunfest, in Canada, where the roads of the world's programmers cross.
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Key facts
Name: Seoul Music Week. Place: Seoul, South Korea. Rhythm: every year in September (10th edition in 2026). Secretary general: Sungchun Lee (Sound Puzzle). Official website: seoulmusicweek.org. Official contact: [email protected].
Around the festival
Gyeongbokgung Palace and the Bukchon hanok village — historic Seoul, its tiled roofs and traditional lanes. Hongdae — the district of clubs, independent stages and young musicians. The banks of the Han River — parks, paths and open-air concerts along the water. N Seoul Tower — the panorama of the capital from Mount Namsan. Dongdaemun Design Plaza — Zaha Hadid's futuristic icon, in the heart of the shopping districts. Gwangjang Market — Korean street food in one of the city's oldest markets.