Korea’s first Beethoven Symphony cycle

It is nearly impossible to find anyone more knowledgeable about Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) than Argentine-Israeli conductor Daniel Barenboim, who will deliver Korea’s first-ever complete symphony cycle of the German composer from Aug. 10 through Aug.14 at the Seoul Arts Center.

A full cycle of monumental works like Beethoven’s nine symphonies is an extraordinary cultural occasion usually reserved for the more mature classical music markets in Europe and in Japan.

There is very little of Beethoven’s enormous compositional output that Barenboim hasn’t played or recorded, either as conductor, pianist or chamber musician.

“The Beethoven Symphony cycle is probably the most important (musical) statement of a great genius,” Barenboim said in a promotional message through Credia, the concert’s organizer.

“It is astounding that, although he died in 1827, his music is still of concern for us today,” he added. “It brings to us an important message of the strength of the human being.”



Barenboim brings with him the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra (WEDO), a mixture of some 90 young talented musicians from Israel, the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, among other countries.

The 1999 establishment of the orchestra stemmed from Barenboim’s firm belief that music can serve as an efficient tool to promote understanding between clashing cultures.

Beethoven’s works have been central to the WEDO, which has evolved into a ensemble of global stature through Barenboim’s impeccable musical leadership.

The orchestra played Beethoven’s 7th Symphony in A major during its debut concert. For the last three years, it has played the full cycle around the world, reflecting Barenboim’s devotion to the ground-breaking composer.

“Only a handful of composers in the history of classical music have had the capacity to summarize and even culminate the development of an entire era of composition, while at the same time pointing the way toward a radically different new paradigm or style, and Beethoven and Schonberg are undoubtedly among these few,” Barenboim wrote in a concert program.

His first visit to Korea in 24 years is particularly meaningful, as the U.N. messenger of peace will perform a peace concert on Aug. 15 in Imjingak, which is near the demilitarized zone between the two Koreas. The concert coincides with the national Liberation Day, marking Korea’s independence from Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945).

“Our orchestra symbolizes the possibility of entering a real fruitful dialogue between people who have different ideas. I’m particularly happy to come in my capacity as the messenger of peace for the United Nations,” Barenboim said.

Pioneering symphonist

Beethoven created nine symphonies throughout his life.

The earlier works, Symphony No. 1 in C major (composed 1799-1800) and Symphony No. 2 in D major (composed 1801- 1802) reveal influences from Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the definitive Austrian symphonists of the Classical period (1750-1830).

It was with the Symphony No. 3 in the lovely key of E-flat major (composed 1803) often known as the Eroica, that Beethoven the symphonist had fully arrived.

“The piece changed entirely the idea of what a symphony could be and 200 years later, its message is still resounding throughout the whole world and it remains one of the supreme tests of a symphony orchestra,” said Michael Tilson Thomas, music director of the San Francisco Symphony, in the “Keeping Score” video series on pioneering symphonies.

“In this symphony, Beethoven began to use broad strokes of sound, to tell us exactly how he felt to be alive,” Tilson Thomas said. “The Eroica is a contest between emotion and reason, in a search for what it means to be human. And that’s a search we all understand.”

After the Eroica, Beethoven had virtually lost the ability to hear, but his musical genius only prospered in the years that followed.
His symphonic legacy influenced masters that had come after him like revolutionary Austrian symphonist Gustav Mahler, or the German composer Johannes Brahms, one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period (1815-1910).

Beethoven was a bridge between the Classical and Romantic schools.

The Eroica, for example, is often cited as the piece that ushered the beginning of the Romantic period. The piece is much longer and covers more emotional ground than earlier works.

Beethoven’s even-numbered symphonies are not as famous as the odd-numbered ones, but the Symphony No. 4 in B-flat major (composed 1806) and the Symphony No. 8 in F major (composed 1812) are full of beauty and energy.

The Symphony No. 6 in F major “Pastoral” (composed 1804) and Symphony No. 7 in A major (composed 1811-1812) are extremely popular and staples for symphony orchestras. At its debut, Beethoven was noted as remarking that the 7th was one of his best works. Its emotional second movement “Allegretto” is one of the most famous movements in symphonic history.

The final Symphony No. 9 in D minor “Choral” (composed 1817-24) is one of the greatest musical compositions ever written.
This towering masterpiece was the first example of a major composer using voices in a symphony, thus making it a “choral” symphony.

Penchant for cycle playing

Barenboim has set records on stage and in recording studios as a Beethoven specialist. The 70-year-old musician was playing all of Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas by memory in his teens.

He has recorded all of Beethoven’s five piano concertos three times and all of the composer’s 32 piano sonatas twice. In 1999, he released the widely-acclaimed Teldec cycle of the symphonies with the Berliner Staatskapelle, where he serves as music director.

He will complete a new symphony cycle with the WEDO on Deustche Grammophon.
In 1998, the maestro played the Beethoven piano and orchestral cycle over a period of 12 days with the Berlin Staatskapelle.

“One’s view of each individual piece is broader and deeper if one has the breadth, the knowledge of the complete cycle,” Barenboim said, explaining his penchant for full cycles.

The last time Barenboim visited Korea was in 1984. This was around the time when he was redirecting his focus to conducting from an illustrious solo career as pianist.

Since then, the world’s most respected orchestras like the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Wiener Philharmoniker and the Chicago symphony and many others have rushed to engage him.

Amid a rigorous conducting and recording schedule, Barenboim continues to prepare his own piano recitals and master classes.
This sets him apart from most soloists-turned-full-time-conductors like pianists Vladimir Ashkenazy (Russia), Mikhail Pletnev (Russia), Chung Myung-whun (Korea) and Christoph Eschenbach (Germany), among others.


Listening guide for beginners


Michael Tilson Thomas

Maestro Michael Tilson Thomas, music director of the San Francisco Symphony (SFS), is one of the most active conductors in introducing classical music to the young.



Through the “Keeping Score” video series now available on DVD and on YouTube, he guides audiences through a journey of the marvels in the history of classical music. One of them is Beethoven’s Eroica symphony.

The film takes the audience to Vienna, where the masterpiece was composed. The young Beethoven was fighting rage and frustration at his increasing loss of hearing when he was working on this piece.

Maestro MTT, as he is affectionately known in San Francisco, provides the narration in locations in Vienna and by his Yamaha piano at home, sometimes improvising the main themes.

The narration is easy to follow and full of insights into one of the milestones in symphonic history. The DVD also includes a complete live performance of the piece at the Davies Symphony Hall, the residence hall of the SFS.

Konstantin Scherbakov

Hungarian-born pianist and composer Franz Liszt (1811-1886) was a firm believer in the capacity of the piano to emulate an entire orchestra.



An admirer of Beethoven, he transcribed all of the composer’s nine symphonies.

In a rare recording by Russian pianist Konstantin Scherbakov on Naxos, Beethoven’s symphonies are transformed into brilliant piano pieces.

Liszt inherited spiritually from Beethoven the idea of a piano as an orchestra, according to U.S. Liszt expert and pianist Garrick Ohlsson.

This year marks the bicentennial of Liszt’s birth.

Herbert von Karajan

Herbert von Karajan (1908 -1989) from Salzburg, Austria, is perhaps the most popular conductor among fans of Beethoven symphonies in Korea, along with Wilhelm Furtwangler (1952-1954).



Karajan is certainly the most accessible, since he recorded the whole cycle four times. This 1963 recording is his very first with the Berliner Philharmoniker, which he led for 35 years until his death in 1989.

Many music critics and fans alike have agreed that Karajan's first cycle with the Berliner was his finest. This budget version contains one of the most compelling performances of the 7th and 8th symphonies in recording history.

Claudio Abaddo

Italian conductor Claudio Abaddo’s 13-year tenure with the Berliner Philharmoniker culminated in these extraordinary Beethoven cycles captured both on video and in a recording.



He first made a studio recording on Deutsche Grammophon in 2000, left, but after a full cycle recorded live in Rome the following year, DG released the DVD and CD versions of the performances due to their immense popularity.



Since the release of the Rome performances, the original 2000 studio version from Berlin has ceased to be published, but some Abbado fans have chosen to own both as they are both a special testament to the conductor’s profound musicianship at its best.
The live performances are partially available on Youtube.

Source: The Korea Times

Machine to Machine to lead smart life

When people say telecommunication, it has meant communication between humans and other humans. The development of technology, however, has been broadening the scope of telecommunication. Machine to machine (M2M), or the technology allowing communication between devices or machines, is getting the spotlight as the next booster of smart life.

“People started using telecommunication to verify the condition of machines. Then they determined that machines communicating between themselves will be more effective,” said Jang Won-gyu, a manager at Korea Communications Agency, at a seminar on M2M organized by KT Research Institute.

Applications of M2M infinite

Monitoring a device or machine with a sensor is the simplest form of M2M. Automatic metering, for instance, measures electricity, water or gas consumption of each household, and sends the numbers to the central computer system. Surveillance cameras recognizing human movement and smart homes where home appliances automatically turn on and off are also among products in the early stage of M2M.

The machines not only receive or collect information but they also analyze information and make decisions and act on their own in M2M. A smart vacuum cleaner, for instance, automatically gets information on weather and turns on when there is yellow dust outside.

The technology is also widely applied in cars. The industry has realized “telematics,” integrating infrastructure of media, communication and the Internet, instead of depending wholly on humans to control machines. Car companies are working on the development of smart cars, where M2M technology is used so that the cars collect information on road conditions or the flow of traffic for selecting the optimized route.

Mobile offices, healthcare, electronic payments and security are some of the sectors where M2M technology is also used. In healthcare services, for instance, which require systematic collection of data, M2M technology could be used to monitor physical conditions, measuring pulse and blood pressure and enabling medical service providers to quickly detect and respond to irregularities.

The introduction of smart devices is accelerating M2M application in these sectors. Industry analysts expect smartphones to quickly become the hub of the M2M technology. For instance, smartphones can work as a remote control for home appliances or to start a car.

Market growing

Governments around the world expect M2M to solve environmental, energy and social problems. Europe has made the adoption of smart meters an obligation before 2020 to cut carbon emission. The United States is planning to invest $4.5 billion in smart grids, and Japan is approaching the technology from a social perspective, applying it in medical services and earthquake monitoring.

The Korea Communications Commission also noted its growth potential, and is moving toward the standardization of related technology and platforms.

M2M is thus regarded as the next blue ocean for the telecommunication businesses. “In the past, telcoms rarely engaged in direct business in the sector due the small size of the market and pricy devices. As M2M is applied more extensively, however, they are eyeing the technology as a means of income diversification, expanding network connectivity to devices other than cell phones,” KT Research Institute said in a report. It added that M2M could be a new income source for WiBro, which is seeing it as a new business model.

KT Research Institute expects the local M2M market to grow to 20 trillion won market in 2020.

SK Telecom, the biggest mobile carrier in the country, has been using M2M technology in building energy management systems. They automatically check electrical consumption of lighting, air conditioning and heating systems, and share the information with the central management center.

Source: The Korea Times

Chung sisters perform for flood victims

PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province — There is nothing quite as invisible, yet gripping, as music, and a chamber concert Friday tugged at listeners’ hearts with even more intensity as artists dedicated their music to flood victims.

“We dedicate this song to victims of the flooding and their families. Our hearts go out to them,” said violinist Chung Kyung-wha, who normally only communicates through her instrument onstage.

The newly appointed co-director of the Great Mountains International Music Festival & School (GMMFS) appeared onstage with her cellist sister and fellow festival director Myung-wha, in matching “hanbok-inspired” dresses by Lee Young-hee. The fiendishly talented American pianist Kevin Kenner joined them for an intimate session of Brahms.

The two sisters, who became famous with their brother Myung-whun as the Chung Trio, appeared in a chamber performance for the first time in six years together. As the concert was a highlight program not only at the festival itself but one of the most anticipated events of the season in the Korean classical music scene, the 630-seat Alpensia Hall was packed and many fans were turned away disappointed (even star pianist Lim Dong-hyek was unable to secure tickets).

Some 200 VIPs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Trade; Hong Ra-hee, director of the Leeum Samsung Museum of Art (who donated a Hamburg Steinway for the festival); Daewon Cultural Foundation Chairman Kim Ilgon; and actress Youn Yuh-jung (who last year appeared in a performance of Earl Kim’s “Dear Linda”) were spotted among the crowd.



The Piano Trio No. 1 in B-major, Op. 8 was marked by an exciting yet elegant interplay between the strings opposite the luminous, rollicking phrases of the piano. The scherzo in particular had the listener wanting to clap enthusiastically, but as is the case with the most absorbing performances, not a cough was heard between movements.

Brahms wrote the piece as a young man and revised it in his later years while suffering from cancer, making it a most apt work for the festival’s theme of “Illumination,” shedding light on how life experiences of joy and fury, sorrow and happiness, illness, frustration and resentment inspired musicians and how they harnessed these to artistic ends to produce profound masterpieces, said Myung-wha.





Kyung-wha, meanwhile, is no stranger to the trials of illness, having recently returned to the stage after years of nursing a hand injury.

“When my sister started playing, tears came to my eyes and I had to avert my gaze because I was afraid I might start sobbing before making my entrance,” the violinist told reporters at noon Saturday, after the trio performed for the GMMFS students that were unable to attend the sold-out concert.

“Soloists usually tend to appear in fancy concerti, and I always had to stubbornly insist on doing chamber projects for my manager to let me. But chamber music is essential for the growth of an artist,” she said, adding how grateful she was to her late mother, a “forward-looking” person who initiated the idea of launching a sibling chamber ensemble.

Myung-wha agreed, and added how it was possible for the Chung siblings to survive in the United States in the 1960s as young students because they had each other. Likewise, she said she was able to assume and carry out the festival’s directorship because of her younger sister.

When asked about restaging the magic of the Chung Trio, Kyug-wha said they are planning to hold a performance in the near future. “It’s just a question of where,” she said.

As for performing with Kenner, the sisters both said it was a great pleasure to work with an artist of such caliber. “He is a true musician... We were only able to rehearse for about six hours but the teamwork was great,” said Kyung-wha.

“Many guests and press came despite the heavy downpour. It’s our 8th edition of the festival, and following the opening performance (on Thursday) the Chung sisters showed, through the Friday performance, how the festival has evolved,” said Kim Dong-ho, President of Gangwon Art & Culture Foundation.

The GMMFS continues through Aug. 7, featuring performances not only at Alpensia, the main venue of the festival, but also outreach programs that travel to neighboring venues such as Woljeong Temple. Visit www.gmmfs.org for more information.

Yu-na Kim named 8th highest paid female athlete

Korean figure skating star Kim Yu-na has been ranked eighth among the top 10 highest paid woman athletes in the world, Tuesday (KST).

Forbes magazine announced that the Vancouver Olympic gold medalist earned about $10 million last year, to rank eighth while Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova maintained the top spot for a seventh consecutive year by earning $25 million.



The publication introduced Kim as the most popular athlete in Korea. It also mentioned that she has set up a sports management company to represent her. The company was responsible for staging ice show in Korea as well as in Los Angeles.

In data collected between July 2010 and July 2011, the earnings estimates cover endorsements, appearance fees, prize money, licensing income and salary.

Kim and Li Na, the first Grand Slam Chinese champion winning the French Open in June, earned the same amount of money but Li was one step ahead of Kim in the list and Forbes didn’t explain the discrepancy.

Li is the only other Asian on the list.

Among the top 10 highest earning females seven are tennis players and Kim is the lone winter sports athlete.

Forbes releases the list every year and Kim dropped three places from fifth with $9.7 million in the previous ranking.

Current world No. 1 tennis player Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark ranked second with income half of Sharapova’s at $12.5 million.

Meanwhile the combined amount earned by the 10 highest paid women in sports was $113 million compared to the $449 million raked in by the top 10 highest paid male athletes.

Richard Rutt, pioneer in Korean studies, passes away

The death of Richard Rutt in England on July 27 deserves to be recorded in Korea. He was deeply attached to this country, to which he devoted the central years of his life.

Born in England on August 27, 1925, he came to serve in Korea as an Anglican priest in 1954. For many years he lived alone in remote rural villages where traditional ways were still being practiced.

In 1966 he was appointed Assistant Bishop of Daejeon and in 1968 he became the Bishop of Daejeon. The next year he married Joan Ford, a teacher he had known for many years. She too came to love Korea and edited a Korean cook book as well as the autobiography of the last Korean Crown Princess.

In 1973, feeling that the time had come for Koreans to take charge of their portion of the Anglican Communion, he offered his resignation as Bishop of Daejeon, intending to serve as a simple parish priest in the country he had come to love so much. That proved to be impossible and in 1974 Richard Rutt returned to England and became suffragan bishop of the Diocese of Truro. While in Cornwall, he learned the Cornish language in order to celebrate weddings in Cornish. In October 1979 he was named Bishop of Leicester and as such, in 1985, was introduced into the House of Lords.

He retired in 1990 and went to live in Falmouth, Cornwall, which he had come to love. In 1994 he and his wife became Catholics and in June 1995 he was ordained as a Catholic priest. His wife Joan’s health declined and she died in Falmouth in 2007. Father Rutt spent his last years at St. Mary Immaculate Parish in Falmouth. In 2009 he was made a Prelate of Honour by Pope Benedict XVI. He was an honorary canon of Plymouth Cathedral.



Pioneering scholar-missionary

Richard Rutt was the last of the line of scholar-missionaries that began with James Scarth Gale, Homer B. Hulbert, George Heber Jones and the Anglican bishop Mark Napier Trollope, the pioneers who laid the foundation of what is now known as Korean studies.

On arriving in Korea, he began to explore in great depth its language, culture and history, as well as Classical Chinese. He was an active member of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch, serving on the council, overseeing its publications and serving as its president in 1974. He published several scholarly papers in the RASKB's journal, Transactions, which reveal his deep knowledge of the Classical Chinese used in pre-modern Korea.

His deep affection for the traditional culture of Korea, which had almost ceased to exist by the time he arrived, was particularly expressed in his popular 1978 volume, “Korean Works and Days: Notes from the Diary of a Country Priest.” His most outstanding work of scholarship, apart from his translations, must be his annotated edition of the “History of the Korean People” by James Scarth Gale, which was first published in 1927. It includes a thoroughly researched biography and bibliography of the author.

Rutt was fascinated by traditional, formal “sijo” and older forms of Korean poetry in general. This led to the publication in 1971 of “The Bamboo Grove: An Introduction to Sijo,” containing pioneering translations of many of the most celebrated Korean sijo. Like Gale, Rutt was deeply interested in Classical Chinese, and after his retirement he published a new translation of the challenging ancient Chinese classic, “The Book of Changes” in 1996.

He also co-authored the scholarly encyclopedia “Korea: A Historical and Cultural Dictionary” with Keith L. Pratt. When he retired as Bishop of Leicester, he gave many of his rare Korean books to the University of Durham and in later years the Bodleian Library at Oxford University acquired the bulk of his remaining Korea-related books. He developed a passionate interest in knitting, and authored a definitive history of the craft in “A History of Hand Knitting” (Batsford, 1987). Characteristically, he collected a unique library of knitting-related books which included some very rare items from the nineteenth century, which he finally donated to the University of Southampton.

Brother Anthony of Taizé is an educator and translator of Korean literature who has lived in Seoul since 1980. He taught English literature at Sogang University for about 30 years. The naturalized Korean citizen is the laureate of many translation awards and serves as a judge of The Korea Times Translation Award. His Korean name is An Son-jae, meaning "little pilgrim." ― ED.

Korean El Sistema, Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra

Do you know about “El Sistema”? “El Sistema”, originally meaning “a system” in Spanish, is now widely used as a name of a free musical education program for poor children in Venezuela.

El Sistema, organized in 1975 by Jose Antonio Abreu, an economist, was started as an orchestra with 11 poor children in Caracas, the capital city of Venezuela. Now, it has grown up to become a large-scale organization with 260,000 people in about 190 centers in Venezuela. The excellence of this program has been recognized in whole world since it turned out that many of great musicians such as Gustavo Adolfo Dudamel Ramírez, the permanent conductor of LA Philharmonic, and Edicson Ruiz, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra’s double bass player were from this orchestra.




(Photo: AsiaToday)

Among all the positive outcomes, the best one was that it acknowledged poor children that they have responsibility as a society member, and gave them hope and dream about their future, preventing crime by teaching music to those children exposed in danger such as drug, violence, and weapons. With this result, El Sistema is now settled as a global musical education system for preschoolers and teenagers.

Even in Korea, more and more people are interested in the system of El Sistema. There is a band, which dreams of becoming Korean “El Sistema”. Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra. It consists of 100% young students. They haven’t even touched the musical instruments before entering this orchestra, but now each of them plays very well. What changed them like this? Let’s have a look.


Hopeful Harmony Created by Small Hands

‘Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’ was made to provide opportunities to make the hopes and dreams come true for the neglected class of children and teenagers by giving them musical education and helping them find their talent. By running the show as one of the activities of “Hope-Sharing” project in Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, this orchestra is receiving attention as a model of Korean “El Sistema”.

This orchestra chose its members among students who are learning instruments at Seoul Metropolitan Area Children’s Center, community centers, study rooms and many other places by the open call auditions or the recommendations from these groups. On September 10th, 2010, the orchestra had the welcoming ceremony and stepped their first feet. The targets are the children who are interested in music, and aged between 4th and 8th grade.




<’Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’, dreaming of Korean “El Sistema”>
(Source: MoonhwaJournal21)

These children receive lessons from the members of Eurasian Philharmonic or SeoulPhil every Wednesday. Even though it was hard to gather young children from elementary to middle school at the first time, now it is hard to find the absence. As a first step, they have opportunities to learn the instruments they are interested in. However, if they lose interest in the instruments and music, teachers change the instruments to keep their interests alive. Also, the members of ‘Sejong Naneum Ensemble’ chose to become mentors for these children and volunteer to teach them.

‘Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’ had their first concert as a guest appearance at the concert of ‘Sejong Naneum Ensemble’ on December 25th, 2010. Then, they had a successful inauguration concert with ‘Rafael Chorus’, the blind choir at Sejong Chamber Hall on May 7th. Starting from this concert, ‘Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’ is planning to have variety of activities to share culture and arts at Free Musical Concerts for the citizens or those in neglected class like themselves.


Dream and Hope to Isolated Children

‘Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’ is screaming of joy these days due to a lot of help from people interested in this project. Even though this orchestra has started for less than a year, and even they didn’t learn music professionally, these students with passion and hope have reliable supporters. Domestic musical instrument companies decided to provide instruments used in the orchestra for free, and the maintenance management of these instruments are held by Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. Additionally, except for four coaches who majored in music and teach the children, all people are volunteers.

There was a pleasant guest last January. Mark Churchill, the director of USA El Sistema, and Nicholas Real, a flute player grown thanks to the program of “El Sistema”, visited these children and shared their experiences and hope.

After the inauguration concert, H group decided to support ‘Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’ and made it public that they had an informal cooperation Cultural Divide at Sejong Arts Academy in Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. As a support, H group donated personal instruments to each member of “Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra” and provided a uniform for each member in the orchestra. Additionally, the group is planning to support these children with management of the program by providing volunteers for one-to-one music lesson for each orchestra member.






(Source: MoneyToday)

When people asked about how the orchestra will be managed, Sejong Center for the Performing Arts addressed that “To open the door wide for children in neglected class, we are planning to replace all members every two years. Also, we are not planning to receive any participation fee”. Even though they are not “professional”, the dreams of these passionate children, wanting to become the best musician in the world in the future are growing as time goes by.


To Settle the System of ‘Korean El Sistema’

Ministry of culture and Korea culture and Arts Education Agency are pushing ahead with an orchestra program starting from 8 parts of South Korea with the name of “Dream Orchestra”. Cheong Myeong-Hoon, the conductor, Cheong Myeong-Hwa, the cellist, Chang Han-Na, the cellist and conductor, Paek Joo-Young, the violinist and more musicians are taking part in this program and planning to be the mentors for the children. El Sistema is receiving attention in Korean educational world as an aid project to reduce the cultural gap of multicultural families and low-income children.

However, the most important part of this project is durability. Since this project started, it gained a lot of attention and supports. However, if the support decreases as time goes by, it means that the project might come to an end. The company official who made it official to support ‘Sejong Youth Orchestra’ said at the interview that it is true that the support for the culturally underprivileged was limited to providing the opportunity to see the concert. And the official showed the reason why the company decided to support the project by referring to the necessity of the support for the culturally underprivileged.




(Source: Yonhap News)

Also, the truth that in the reality where a serious concern of sustainable culture sharing and the active participation of the beneficiaries is necessary, ‘Sejong Youth harmony Orchestra’ can be a solution, means that it includes a concern regarding the durability and the outcome of the program of Korean El Sistema. Even though there is a bright future of El Sistema by continuous activities, it seems like it has a long way to go to successfully settle this program with children.


If we consider the time and effort given to make this system settle down at Venezuela, this kind of movement should not be considered as a short-term project, but has to be able to provide an environment for low-income children and multi-cultural families to grow up through music. We sincerely hope that through Korean “El Sistema” program like ‘Sejong Youth Harmony Orchestra’, those children who have a stereotype that music costs a lot of money, can have a chance to enjoy the music and find the possibility and their talents.

What happen

Samulnori, which was created from Korean traditional music, Pungmul, is one of the most beloved genres of music among many Koreans and considered to harmonize the East and West and Old and New. It is one of the most dynamic music in the world and makes us thrilled with powerful sound and dynamics. Now shall we learn about Samulnori?


Sound of Korean, Samulnori is trying to be changed

Samulnori makes everyone’s heart beat faster with only four musical instruments. Kkwaengguari(small gong) symbolizes thunder, Janggu( traditional double-headed drum) symbolizes rain, Buk(drum) symbolizes cloud, and Jing(gong) symbolizes wind.



(Source: Seoul Shinmun)


Kim Duk-Soo with His Friends Touching all over the World

Samulnori is a compound word of 'Samul-percussion instruments' and 'Nori-play'. Samul refers to Kkwaengguari, Jing, Janggu and Buk. Now, we have many Samulnori performance teams, however, Samulnori was first created in 1978 by Kim Deok-Soo with His Friends- Kim Deok-Soo, Lee Kwang-Soo, Choi Jong-Sil, and Kim Yong-Bae, who started playing music since they were little. Later, they grew up as very talented performers. Kim Yong-Bae who studied at Korean Traditional Music high school is the one who contributed a lot to the first step of Samulnori.

That’s why Kim Deok-Soo and His Friends comes to our minds when speaking Samulnori. Well, they attended the World Contest of Percussion Instrument Players in 1982, World Drum Festival in Vancouver, Canada in 1984, and held a celebrating performance for the Olympic Torch in Seoul Olympics in 1988. Kim Deok-Soo and His Friends enhanced the national prestige by performing Samulnori in Japan, U.S. and so on. Last year they performed ‘Digilogue Samulnori-Blooming the Dead Tree’ scripted by Lee O-Young, the former minister of the ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Sport.




(Source: Hankook Ilbo)

They performed Digilogue Samulnori with four musical instruments. These four instruments symbolize the four directions- East, West, North and South and four seasons- Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. It shows us how deserted real world blooms, returning to Winter and again sprouts. It mixed digital and analogue, online and offline and put into one performance. They combined virtual reality and real world together and adopted four- dimensional (4D) technology, which became a turning point that traditional Korean performance can be universal. As seen the possibility of digital-Samulnori performance, Samulnori proved its rhythm compatible with any kind of genre, such as Jazz and Blues as well.

In addition, Kim Deok-Soo dramatized Arirang (Korean traditional folk music) that we can look into the past and future of Korea. It is composed of 7 chapters and played with Samulnori instruments, traditional musical instruments including Kayageum, Haegeum and so on. They also used western instruments like violin, piano and saxophone. It shocking because they mixed music instruments from Asia and the West and dramatized traditional music. It contributed a lot for Arirang becomes worldwide music.



Samulnori Tempted World with Rhythm

There are a few percussion instrument groups in Korea excluding Kim Deok-Soo and His Friends. 'Noreummachi' is one of them. It is a compound word of ' Noreum-play' and 'Machim-finish'. Noreummachi is a fusion music group that mixes Samulnori and rap music. Noreummachi had their first concert abroad last year. Kim Deok-Soo tried hard to introduce Samulnori to the world but Noreummachi tried to popularize Samulnori. Noreummachi will have concerts in four European countries until Aug 25th this year.





< Noreummachi Performing in Overseas>(Source : Maeil Business Newspaper)

Other fusion group called 'Deulsori' will have concerts in Italy, U.S. and South America from this August. Sebastian Wang is a Korean-American and he was born and grew up in the U.S. He was captivated by Samulnori and tried to popularize Samulnori in the world. He hopes Samulnori become the national brand of Korea like Samsung, LG and Taekwondo.


Let's Enjoy Samulnori

Samulnori has become popular in Korea. There is an application we can play Samulnori in the smart phone. Intangible cultural treasure students record all rhythms they play with Samul and computer musician transforms it into digital and put them in the application. It is very easy to improvise Samulnori like them.

Last December Korean movie star Jang Dong-Geon was on the Hollywood action blockbuster movie 'Warrior's Way' and this movie inserted Samulnori in it. Samulnori sounds was applied into the major action scenes and ending credit. Samulnori performance was inserted in the action scenes in the hall and it was well harmonized with gun shooting sounds. It caught attentions from all over the world and it enhanced the beauty of the image in the movie.




(Source : Kyunghyang Shinmun)

Regardless of the past and present, performers and audience, Koreans and foreigners, Samulnori keeps making progress with new interpretation and recreation of the music. We hope Korean traditional music spread into the world and become the representative brand of Korea.