Third Page: Resonance – Sun-Mi Hong

The journey of South Korean drummer and composer Sun-Mi Hong is defined by resilience. Her move from Incheon to Amsterdam a decade ago was not merely a geographical shift, but a necessary escape from a restrictive environment to turn the drums into her true emotional sanctuary. Third Page: Resonance functions as the conclusion of an autobiographical trilogy and, at the same time, as her most mature and expansive artistic statement.

Leading her quintet—completed by Nicolò Ricci (tenor sax), Alistair Payne (trumpet), Chaerin Im (piano), and Alessandro Fongaro (double bass)—Hong goes beyond conventional swing; her rhythm is a cartography of mood. The ensemble moves with telepathic complicity between the abstract avant-garde and European-rooted narrative, at times evoking the magnetic tension of Krzysztof Komeda's Astigmatic. The music wavers between pure catharsis and meditative stillness, transitioning from the rhythmic urgency of pieces like "Care Less" and "As We Are" to the impressionistic, melancholic fragility of "03 0191."

Hong’s drumming dissipates under spiritual gravity: she utilizes Korean techniques blended with the language of contemporary jazz to weave a percussive discourse filled with texture, color, and volume. In Third Page: Resonance, meticulous composition and free improvisation require one another to sustain a music that demands attentive listening and breathes with the strength of someone who has found their own voice against the noise of the world.