Sungha Jung: The young six-string master returns

MANILA, Philippines – One look at 17-year-old Korean guitar wonder Sungha Jung will tell you nothing of the brewing genius within. He carries himself in the most pedestrian of ways—his stride cautious and his eyes vaguely dazed—but his angelic countenance belies the monster that he eventually transforms into onstage, steel-string acoustic guitar in tow.

Yes, he has visited these shores before, and if you have not caught on to the Sungha Fever yet—or if, by all intents and purposes, you are still understandably doubtful—well, you can get comforted in the now-apparent truth: this kid is no baby on the guitar.

The so-called Korean Invasion currently lording over our beloved Pinas has come to be synonymous with TV soaps, girl groups, and boy bands with immaculate hairdos, but the imminent return of Sungha Jung will certainly be a game-changer. His mere presence is a stunning reminder that this kind of talent, from whichever ethnicity, does exist.

Previous attendees of his shows will attest to his musical virtuosity: serious guitar aficionados were in awe of his lightning-fast fretwork, while more casual fans were treated to a multifaceted smorgasbord of original pieces and rearrangements of popular tunes, among them Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition”, Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”, Maroon 5’s “Payphone”, Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror”, and even the Eraserheads’ “Ang Huling El Bimbo”, which particularly floored the local audiences from last year.

He has also been known to churn out performances of the Super Mario Brothers theme, as well as JerryC’s “Canon Rock”, a rock arrangement of Johann Pachelbel’s “Canon in D”.

Original cuts from his discography—2010’s Perfect Blue, 2011’s Irony, 2012’s The Duets, 2013’s Paint It Acoustic, and this year’s Monologue—are no laughing matter either, and they were as well-received in the shows as the more mainstream covers he did.

Well, you guys are in luck: Sungha Jung will be playing in Cebu and Manila once more, on August 15 (at the J. Center Mall) and 17 (at the Samsung Hall, SM Aura), respectively.

The shows are being mounted yet again by the same producer as last year’s: the online music portal Pinoytuner. Catch this true guitar visionary onstage, whether you saw him last year or not. He’s got more aces up his sleeve.