The document proposes a museum exhibit on the music of Korea. It provides an overview of Korean music history, traditions, genres, influential figures, and instruments. Traditional Korean music, known as Gugak, includes diverse folk styles that incorporate stringed, woodwind, brass and percussion instruments. The exhibit would showcase regional folk genres like Pansori, Pungmul, Jeongak and Nongak through video and demonstrations of traditional instruments like the geomungo, daejaeng, bipa, haegeum, daegeum and janggu. It would also address the political issues surrounding music in North and South Korea since their division. The proposed museum would allow visitors to experience Korean music through hands-

1. Music In Korea
A MUSEUM PROPOSAL

2. The music of Korea has a vast a complex history. It is documented
in both Chinese and Japanese history and influenced a great
number of societies. There were stringed, wood and brass
instruments. All of which played an important role in Korean society,
from court sessions to military proceedings.

3. Music-People and Places
The music of Korea dates back thousands of years and been influenced by many people. The geography
and government was never stable but the traditions carried on. Traditional music includes many elements
from folk, ritual and vocal styles. Traditional Korean music is referred to as Gugak and contemporary music,
K-Pop is called Yangak. In this exhibit you will see some people who are responsible for the creation and
documentation of Korean Folk Music
Here are some of the people who had a profound impact on Korean music…..

4. Chen Sou
Lived in the Three Kingdoms from 233-297
A.D.
Famous for his work Records of the Three
Kingdoms in which he kept detailed accounts
musical rituals and biographies of court
musicans, who were held in high esteem at
the time.

5. Wang Sanak
Wang Sanak invented the Geomungo an
intrinsic part of Korean court proceedings
from the 4th to 6th Century

6. King Jinhueng
United the Three Kingdoms of Korea bringing
together different musical cultures.
No portrayals exist of King
Jinhueng, this a memorial
to him

7. Jeong Do-jeon
Politican, known by his pen name Sambong,
made several songs for celebrating the initial
moments of the Joseon dynasty

8. Korean Folk Music
Korean Folk music is quite complex and contains many different genres, each with different cultural
significance. In this exhibit look for the different types of preformances and which aspects of Korean culture
the depict.

9. Pansori
Similar to Opera, Pansori is a lengthy vocal and percussive music. There is traditionally one
singer and one drummer. There also can be a narrator at times, telling the story. The video
below is a performance of Sarang-ga: Love Song

10. Pungmul
Pungmul focusses heavily on percussion and is often accompanied by dancers. It is usualluy
preformed outside with many dancers. The video below is a Pungmul performance

11. Jeongak
Jeongak translates into ‘Proper Music’ and it includes both vocal and instrumental music. It was
almost exclusively preformed by the literate upper-class during the Joseon dynasty but has since
reached the masses of modern day South Korea. This Link will take you to a traditional Jeongak
song

12. Nongak
Nongak was traditionally ‘Farmers music’ which has deep roots in agricultural societies in Korea.
Typically preformed in an open area of the village, there are many variations of instrumentation
and the dancers use a number of formation changes and often play an instrument as well as
dance. The video below is a performance of a Nongak dance

13. Instruments
Traditional Korean Instruments are made up of a wide variety of string, percussion and wind
instruments. In this section look for the craftsmanship and traditions behind the instruments as
well as their role in the Folk performances.
Here is a great resource for information of Korean instruments

14. GEOMUNGO
The Geomungo is one of the oldest and most
prolific instruments in Korean Folk music. It is
a long instrument, almost 5ft in length and has
a hollow body. It has 6 silk string. It is played
while seated on the floor. The strings are
plucked with short bamboo sticks.

15. DAEJAENG
Made out of paulowia wood and comprised of
15 strings. The soundboard has movable
bridges that support strings. These bridges
move to adjust the tune. It was created in the
6th century and was mainly used for court and
chamber music.

16. BIPA
Shaped like a pear and similar to a lute. Made
up of a wooden body and 4 strings, passed
onto the Shilla Dynasty (618-932) from the
Gokuryo Dynasty and was one of the 3 string
instruments of the Shilla Dynasty. this
instrument fell out of use in the 1500’s but
recent attempts to revive the instrument have
been successful.

17. HAEGEUM
Brought to Korea from Central Asia, probably
through China, it was a vertical fiddle with 2
silk strings and played with a bow. It is one of
the most widely used instruments in Korean
folk music. It is most notably from the Joseon
Dynasty when its use was recorded in parades
and festivals.

18. DAEGEUM
It is a large transverse bamboo flute which can
produce a large range of tone qualities, from
lower mournful sounds to high-pitched tones..
According to Korean folklore it was created
when King Sinmun of Silla was given a gift by a
dead king who had turned into a sea dragon.
The bamboo tree was on top of an island and
the king was told if he cut down the tree and
made it into a flute the country would be
peaceful.

19. JANGGU
The Janggu is the most widely used drum in
Korean Folk music. The two heads produce
different pitch and timbre and when played
together they are believed to represent the
harmony of man and woman. It is most
commonly made out of poplar and paulownia
wood. The quality of the tone is determined by
the Jorongmok, the round tube in the middle.

20. Time, Rhythm and Structure
There are a lot of moving parts to Korean Folk music but they all maintain a set of rhythms called
Jangdan. A variety of rhythms are used and they change every minute to highlight different
sentiments. They can be played both fast and slow. The Janggu drum is the most important
instrument for maintaining the Jangdan rhythm. The word Jangdan literally translates into ‘Long
and Short’ this defines the fundamental structure of the core of Jangdan music.

21. Pitch
In Korean Folk Music, wood instruments heavily control the pitch. The low pitch is deep and
harmonious while the high pitch is strong and penetrating. Many of the stringed instruments
had movable bridges to change the pitch and the flutes were capable of the highest pitches.
“In pansori, singers fundamentally maintain a fixed pitch. However, each singer will express the
pitch as a movable pitch, which is determined according to his or her singing capacity” The
Theory of Pansori

22. Issues
The political issues in Korea are both vast and complicated. In the North, many of the same
traditional instruments are used for performances as in the south. Both countries use music as
propaganda aimed at demonizing the others government. Since the division in 1948 music in
North Korea has been purely political and channeled to support the state and glorify their
leader. Traditional South Korean Music has largely remained the same and continued to tell the
history of Korea through song and dance.
North Korean
children
performing for
tourists
Pansori performance at the
Busan Cultural Center in
Busan South Korea

23. Jam Zone
This will be an area where visitors will get to try some of the traditional instruments they saw in
the exhibits. Each instrument will have a short instructional video. Available instruments will
include….
*
The Janggu Bipa Nabal Jabara
Images source

24. Field Study
Once a week we will be graced with performers from the Hanmadang Korean Traditional
Performers who will host a workshop and demonstrate traditional Korean Folk Music
More info at:
http://facebook.com/ktpghanmadang

25. Bib
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26. Bib
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27. Bib
Slide 16-19 "Strings." Traditional Korean Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Aug. 2015.
Slide 20- Woo, Hyowon. "Korean Traditional Elements and Contemporary Compositional Techniques in Hyowon Woo's
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Kwon, Donna Lee. Music in Korea: Experiencing Music, Expressing Culture. New York: Oxford UP, 2012. Print.
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Kwon, Donna Lee. Music in Korea: Experiencing Music, Expressing Culture. New York: Oxford UP, 2012. Print.