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 Music &
Dance Korean Life Buddhist
Culture Oriental
Medicine Taekwondo |
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| When it comes to experiencing culture, visitors to Korea have many options
available. Those interested in experiencing Korean cuisine can participate in
kimchi making, tea making and cooking Korean food. Music lovers can try their
hand at playing various traditional Korean musical instruments, including the
ones used by a samullori (a percussion quartet). Those who have an interest in
fashion may try on a variety of Korean modern clothing, as well as different
styles of the hanbok (Korea's traditional attire). A wide range of interesting
cultural programs and festivals also provide visitors with a closeup look at
Korea. |
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| Music & Dance |
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• Traditional Music
Traditional Korean music can be
broadly divided into jeongak, which was originally court music with an
intellectual emphasis, and minsogak, which is folk music that is full of
emotional expression. The former was closely related to the culture of the royal
family and the upper class literati, while the latter belonged more to the
common people in the lower strata of society.
The first general
characteristic of Korean music to note is its slower tempo. Most court music
moves at a slow pace, sometimes so slow that a single beat can take up to three
seconds. As a result, the mood of this music is static, meditative, and
reposeful. The reason for this stately tempo is related to Koreans' concept of
the importance of the breath. |
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• Traditional Dance
Traditional dance can
be broadly divided into court dance and folk dance. Court dance includes
jeongjaemu, dances performed at banquets, and ilmu, the line dances performed in
Confucian rituals. Jeongjaemu is subdivided into native hyangak jeongjae and
Tang-derived dangak jeongjae. Hyangak jeongjae and dangak jeongjae can be
distinguished by the manner in which the dancers enter and exit, the calls that
mark the beginning and end of a dance, the presence or absence of a spoken
greeting, and the content of the sung lyrics. Ilmu can be further divided into a
civil dance, munmu, and a military dance, mumu. |
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• Traditional Musical Instruments
Korean wind
instruments include the cylindrical oboe (piri), the metal-bell shawm
(taepyeongso), the transverse flute (daegeum), and the end blown flute (danso).
String instruments include the twelve-stringed zither (gayageum), the
six-stringed zither (geomungo), the seven-stringed bowed zither (ajaeng) and the
two-stringed fiddle (haeguem). Percussion instruments include the handheld gong
(kkwaenggwari), the hanging gong (jing), the barrel drum (buk), the hourglass
drum (janggu), the clapper (bak), bell chimes (pyeongjong), and stone chimes
(pyeongyeong). |
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| [Places to experience traditional Korean music] |
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• National Theater of Korea
The National
Theater of Korea was established to contribute to the creative development of
local arts through a multitude of cultural and art performances held throughout
the year. By staging both regular and special performances, the National Theater
of Korea brings the general public closer to traditional culture and art. Under
the motto of 'Reaching out to the Public,' it conducts provincial tours as
well.
The programs available in the theater include regular performances,
special performances, Saturday cultural performances, unabridged pansori
performances (traditional vocal music), Sunday stage productions, etc. |
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• The National Center for Korean Traditional Performing
Arts
The National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts hosts
regular gugak performances featuring all genres of traditional music and dance,
as well as specially designed monthly performances that harmonize traditional
and modern styles. It offers courses for visitors to enable them to learn and
experience Korean dance and the best known traditional musical instruments such
as the gayageum (12-stringed zither) and the janggu (hour-glass drum). By giving
visitors an opportunity to perform on instruments and in dances, the center
helps deepen people's understanding of traditional Korean performing arts and
develop a sense of familiarity and affinity for Korea. |
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• Chongdong Theater's Gugak Performances
Chongdong
Theater classifies traditional Korean performing arts into four categories:
dance, pungmul (percussion instrumental music), instrumental and sori (vocals).
Chongdong Theater presents both court and folk music and introduces audiences to
the true spirit of the traditional Korean performing arts by offering programs
that consist of seven performances in all four categories. The performances
include the fan dance, sanjo ensemble (scattered melodies in literal
translation, meaning a popular folk music style played on a solo instrument to
the accompaniment of a drum), salpuri (exorcist dance), pansori (Korea's
narrative solo opera), hwagwanmu (flower crown dance), and gayageum byeongchang
(a music genre in which a performer plays gayageum while singing).
Japanese
and English interpretation services are available along with the "duitpuri,' an
after-show session in which performers and audiences mingle. |
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• Unhyeongung Palace
Unhyeongung was the
private residence of the Regent Heungseon Daewongun, who ruled the Joseon
Dynasty in its final days. Designated as a historic site, the palace offers
various performing art programs every week. This palace was the place where King
Gojong, the son of Heungseon Daewongun, and his queen consort Myeongseong
Hwanghu, held their national wedding ceremony. Every Saturday and Sunday, a
wedding ceremony in the traditional sadaebu style (the literati and aristocrats
of the Joseon Dynasty) is reenacted for the benefit of tourists.
Unhyeongung
also presents various educational programs designated to preserve and pass on
Korea's unique sense of decorum. Major contents of the educational programs
include lectures on traditional manners, traditional musical instruments, the
art of tea-making, folk games, etc. |
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• Seoul Nori Madang (open-air stage for various folk
performances)
Seoul Nori Madang hosts gugak performances that feature
traditional vocals and dramatic presentations, as well as special monthly
performances that combine traditional and modern themes. Educational courses
that teach traditional dance and how to play traditional musical instruments
such as the gayageum (12-stringed zither) and the janggu (hour-glass drum) are
offered to visitors. Performances are given from April to October on Saturdays
and Sundays. |
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