"...It would speak to the seasons." Join us for a rich evening of time circling through the elegant sounds of Rami Seo's kayagǔm. Powerful at times, passive at others, Ms. Seo's stringed wonder takes us from spring through summer, to autumn's passing and wintry embrace...and back again to spring. Relax amid the contemplative sounds and relish the rich history of the kayagǔm.

Thursday, May 20, 2010
6:15 PM Check-in
6:30 PM Recital

"If This Kayagŭm Could Talk..."
Kayagŭm Recital

Groove to an evening of ancient sound with contemporary beats, as The Korea Society welcomes two ensembles and two soloists from Korea's 21C collective. A capella group Tori'S, the Ullim ensemble, Kim Ga-hee, and vocalist Lee Ewha, accompanied by Paek Hyun-ho, will entertain with a lively mix of Korean classics and new music.

Moderated by composer and ethnomusicologist Ha Ju-yong

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at 6:30 PM
6:30 PM: Reception
6:45 PM: Performance

The Korea Society
950 Third Avenue @ 57th Street, 8th Floor
(Building entrance on SW corner of Third Avenue and 57th Street)

$10 for members and students; $15 for nonmembers
(Walk-in registration will incur an additional charge of $5)

About the Performers

Ullim

With one of the most exciting sounds in Korea today, Ullim is at the forefront of the movement to revive interest in traditional Korean music by combining ancient harmonies with contemporary techniques. Ullim's musicians are classically trained daegŭm, p’iri, haegŭm, kayagŭm, kŏmungo and changgo players who specialize in reinterpreting sinawi, a traditional genre of improvisation. The group's first album, 1/N Sinawi, was released in 2009.

Tori’S

Tori’S debuted in 2008 as a vocal group performing traditional Korean music a cappella. Its five members are classically trained in both Western techniques as well as traditional Korean genres such as kayagŭm sanjo and p’ansori, as well as central Korea's Gyŏnggi-minyo folk songs. The group draws its name from the Korean word tori, which translates as "regional musical dialect."

Join us for an evening with the talented Leekyung Kang, as she performs court, folk, and contemporary selections on the haegŭm, a traditional two-stringed fiddle. Between selections, composer and ethnomusicologist Ju-Yong Ha will explain the use and history of the instrument, which was first introduced to Korea from China in the Koryŏ period. Since then, the haegŭm's rich and mournful tone—considered evocative of the human voice—has been indispensable to both Korean court and folk music.



Performance by 

LEEKYUNG KANG

Introduction and commentary by

Ju-Yong Ha
Composer and Ethnomusicologist, City University of New York

Thursday, March 18, 2010 at 6:30 PM
6:00 PM-6:30 PM  Registration and Reception
6:30 PM-8:00 PM  Performance and Commentary

The Korea Society
950 Third Avenue @ 57th Street, 8th Floor
(Building entrance on SW corner of Third Avenue and 57th Street)

$10 for members and students; $20 for nonmembers
(Walk-in registration will incur an additional charge of $5)

For more information or to register for the program, please contact Heewon Kim or 212-759-7525, ext. 355.

About the Presenters

 

Join us for this Live House Korea screening of Intangible Asset No. 82, followed by a discussion and kuŭm sinawi demonstration by Kim Dong-Won.

The documentary Intangible Asset No. 82 (directed by Emma Franz) tells the story of Australian jazz drummer Simon Barker's artistic and spiritual quest to understand sinawi,a form of Korean folk music derived from ancient shamanic rituals. Barker's journey begins after he hears a recording of Kim Seok-Chul, a shaman, holder of tonghae p'yolsin kut(which, in South Korea, is designated as Intangible Cultural Asset No. 82), and sinawi grandmaster. Barker travels to Korea find and study with the grandmaster. Along the way, he is guided by professor and performer Kim Dong-Won, who helps Barker discover the complex techniques and spiritual roots of traditional Korean music.