An overview of pedagogical piano repertoire by contemporary Korean composers.Piano teachers continually search for new and exciting repertoire pieces tailored to match each student's personality, background and interests. Diversity of cultural and ethnic backgrounds in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. is greater than in many other countries. Over the past decades, music educators have increasingly attempted to incorporate multicultural experiences in their curricula for students. Throughout Western musical history, and especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, composers have integrated elements of each of their own musical heritages into compositions. Among the many occurrences of this practice, two of the most striking examples are the integration of nationalistic Polish dances in Chopin's writing and Hungarian folk tunes in Bartok's compositions. The nationalistic character of the piano works written by such composers often provides distinctive rhythm, harmony and scale systems. Despite numerous piano works written by Korean composers in the latter part of the 20th century, they've rarely been heard outside South Korea. Many of these piano pieces are suitable, and sometimes specifically designed, for elementary- and intermediate-level piano students. Korean composers' piano works can be an innovative addition to students' recital programs. Through the study of this unique repertoire, students can explore both a wide variety of contemporary compositional styles, as well as interesting melodic, rhythmic and harmonic qualities characteristic of this music. Teachers will benefit by acquainting themselves with this lesser-known repertoire through introducing Korean composers' piano compositions to their students. South Korea's Music To provide a backdrop for teaching this music, a brief description of the South Korean music scene since the introduction of Western music in the late 19th century is necessary. Korea has its own rich musical history of court, religious and folk music folk music: see folk song. folk music Music held to be typical of a nation or ethnic group, known to all segments of its society, and preserved usually by oral tradition. Knowledge of the history and development of folk music is largely conjectural. . Furthermore, its musical language is totally independent of Western music in structure, melody, harmony and rhythm. There are more than 20 different instrumental and vocal musical genres, and more than 60 traditional musical instruments have been used in both traditional solo and ensemble music. Since the time American missionaries introduced Catholic hymns to Koreans in the late 19th century, Western music quickly gained tremendous popularity and soon dominated the musical scene in South Korea. Enormous interest in Western music among Koreans resulted in a rapid increase in the numbers of musicians, orchestras and opera companies, as well as the construction of concert halls to house performances. By the second half of the 20th century, world-famous composers such as Isang Yun Isang Yun (also spelled Yun I-sang; born September 17, 1917 in Chungmu [now Tongyeong, South Korea]; died November 3, 1995 in Berlin) was a Korean composer who spent most of his creative career in Germany. and Nam-June Paik, and other internationally recognized performers, had made their presence known. Many young Korean musicians This is a list of Korean musical artists. 0-9
Unfortunately, as Western music gained even greater popularity during the 1960s and '70s, resulting partly from the westernization west·ern·ize tr.v. west·ern·ized, west·ern·iz·ing, west·ern·iz·es To convert to the customs of Western civilization. west of Korean society, traditional Korean music gradually became more remote and less known to the general public. This genre of traditional Korean music eventually became a symbol that represented an old ideology, while Western music implied a new trend. Indeed, the musical history of the 20th century in South Korea can be defined as a constant conflict between these new (yangak) and old (kugak) musical traditions. Although there seems to be an obvious separation between Western and traditional Korean music, Korean composers who received Western musical training have consistently tried to connect the two musical worlds in their works. Yun, who served as a professor at the Hochschule der Kunste in Germany, has exerted powerful influences on young Korean composers. In his compositions, Yun seeks to amalgamate Western music, the Asian philosophy of Taoism and his Korean musical heritage. His works have gained great acknowledgment in the West. Following the footsteps of Yun, many young Korean composers went to Germany to study with him, while others went to the United States. These composers returned to Korea with contemporary Western compositional styles, techniques including serialism serialism Use of an ordered set of pitches as the basis of a musical composition. The terms 12-tone music and serialism, though not entirely synonymous, are often used interchangeably. and genres including electronic and computer music. Yet many of them have sought to retain their Korean musical heritage, combining musical elements and styles found in both Korean and Western musical traditions. Korean nationalistic movements in music became pronounced in the late 1970s and early '80s under the influence of sociopolitical so·ci·o·po·li·ti·cal adj. Involving both social and political factors. sociopolitical Adjective of or involving political and social factors movements that rejected the West and searched for Korea's own heritage. A number of composers and performers with Western musical training formed a group at this time called "The Third Generation," strongly urging composers to stop merely imitating Western music and, instead, create music that fully integrated elements of Western and Korean traditional music. Contemporary Korean composers have written works in almost every genre, including numerous solo and ensemble piano pieces. Unique elements of traditional music have been adapted and transformed by contemporary Korean composers into a musical language accessible to pianists. Musical elements that occur most frequently in their works are traditional scales and modes, melodic references to Korean folk songs and dance music, as well as unique rhythmic patterns and innovative ornamentation ornamentation In music, the addition of notes for expressive and aesthetic purposes. For example, a long note may be ornamented by repetition or by alternation with a neighboring note (“trill”); a skip to a nonadjacent note can be filled in with the intervening . Although numerous piano works exist for the concert stage, this discussion specifically focuses on elementary to early-advanced teaching repertoire. The following repertoire presents an overview of many of these elements through the introduction of selected piano compositions written by contemporary Korean composers. Elementary Piano Repertoire Koreaneasche Klang fur Vier Handen (1996) by Guk-Jin Kim (1) Many Korean composers have adapted traditional Korean folk songs in their compositions by transforming the original material to varying degrees, from simple harmonic elaborations of monophonic (1) Also called "mono" and "monaural," it refers to the reproduction of sound using a single channel. Contrast with stereophonic. (2) Playing only one note at a time. Contrast with polyphonic. melodies, to a more complete assimilation of the folk idiom into the contemporary Western style. Guk-Jin Kim, for instance, composed a number of solo and duet piano works with native musical elements, many of them written for children. This collection includes his 11 pieces in Opus 240 and four pieces in Opus 245. These 15 pieces range from elementary to intermediate levels. "Der Blauen Vogel" ("Blue Bird"), Op. 240, No. 3, uses a simple but famous Korean folk song of the same name ("SeyaSeya" in Korean). It is accessible to any elementary-level student who can play five-finger position patterns. These five-finger patterns are presented in two different registers, and the melody is paired with another piano part that can be played by the teacher or another upper elementary-level piano student. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The folk song "SeyaSeya" is built on a three-note scale. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Traditional Korean music often is based on a pentatonic scale pentatonic scale Noun Music a scale consisting of five notes Noun 1. pentatonic scale - a gapped scale with five notes; usually the fourth and seventh notes of the diatonic scale are omitted pentatone , and, as in "SeyaSeya," three- or four-note scale fragments are derived from the pentatonic scale. Although some works by contemporary Korean composers utilize only the pentatonic scale and its derivations, the majority shows some combination of Western and Korean tonal systems. Many composers have borrowed intervals widely present in folk music. In the same way Bartok used many seconds and sevenths found in monophonic Hungarian folk music Hungarian folk music includes a broad array of styles, including the recruitment dance verbunkos, the csárdás and nóta. To some extent, the music of ethnic Hungarian people and the music of the Roma in Hungary have been conflated, though the exact degree to which this has occurred , contemporary Korean composers have frequently used seconds and fourths derived from the pentatonic scale in both melody and harmony. Small World on the Keyboard (1993) by Dong-Il Shin (2) Dong-Il Shin is one of the few young composers who has produced a whole collection of piano works solely designed for elementary- and early-intermediate-level students. Inspired by "The Third Generation," he has been actively involved in the Korean National Music Institute and has promoted many children's concerts featuring his nationalistic piano works. His collection, KunBan WuiEui JakEunSeSang (Small World on the Keyboard), contains 20 short pieces in which traditional Korean rhythmic and melodic elements are joined with Western structural principals such as binary and If two conditions are combined by and, they must both be true for the compound condition to be true as well. Likewise, two bits may be combined with and: x y x AND y 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 I.e. ternary forms. The third piece of Shin's collection, "HaGyoKil" (On the Way Home from School), uses simple and charming melodic and rhythmic features. Instead of the usual teacher's accompaniment part, the composer suggests that the teacher clap or stomp one of the traditional Korean rhythmic patterns, which is repeated every four measures. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Much of traditional Korean vocal and instrumental music employs a metrical met·ri·cal adj. 1. Of, relating to, or composed in poetic meter: metrical verse; five metrical units in a line. 2. Of or relating to measurement. rhythmic system based on a series of accompanying patterns known as jangdan. Usually a drummer plays these rhythmic ostinatos throughout a section or a whole piece, and then repeats them using improvisatory im·prov·i·sa·to·ry also im·prov·i·sa·to·ri·al adj. 1. Made up without preparation; improvised. 2. Of or relating to improvisation: improvisatory skill. variations. To become familiar with the rhythmic pattern in Shin's "HaGyoKil," the student may clap the jangdan rhythm with both hands a number of times before playing the piece. Once the student can tap the underlying jangdan rhythm fluently, the teacher can play the music while the student plays the rhythm or vice versa VICE VERSA. On the contrary; on opposite sides. . This will help the student strengthen his or her rhythmic sense by simultaneously experiencing two types of rhythmic patterns: the rhythm of the piano part on the score and the implied recurring rhythmic pattern of the jangdan. In addition, it enhances the students' understanding of larger metrical units and phrasing, since the four-beat unit of jangdan ties two measures into one phrase, thus helping the student experience both the compound meter Compound Meter may refer to:
adj. 1. Consisting of two; double. 2. Music Consisting of two or a multiple of two beats to the measure. meter groupings. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Intermediate Piano Repertoire Six Pieces for Piano Nori (1996) by Chung-Sock Kim (3) This set contains six movements. Similar to many traditional Korean vocal and instrumental suites, the first movement starts off with the slowest tempo and each movement progressively increases in speed. This work provides a strong Korean musical flavor as it contains native rhythmic characteristics, pentatonic pen·ta·ton·ic adj. Music Of or using only five tones, usually the first, second, third, fifth, and sixth tones of a diatonic scale. Adj. 1. pentatonic - relating to a pentatonic scale tunes and well-known Korean children's folk songs. Chung-Sock Kim again employs the folk song "SeyaSeya" in the third piece, yet unlike Guk-Jin Kim's simple version, Kim adds more harmonic complexity with many dissonant dis·so·nant adj. 1. Harsh and inharmonious in sound; discordant. 2. Being at variance; disagreeing. 3. Music Constituting or producing a dissonance. chords, passages of parallel thirds and fifths and chromatic chromatic /chro·mat·ic/ (kro-mat´ik) 1. pertaining to color; stainable with dyes. 2. pertaining to chromatin. chro·mat·ic adj. 1. Relating to color or colors. passages. This movement is accessible to intermediate-level piano students because of its relatively slow tempo and easier technical prerequisites. It also gives them a chance to experience harmonic characteristics of 20th-century Western music combined with a traditional Korean melody. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Five Pieces for Piano (1983) by Seung-Joon Chop (4) Written while Seung-Joon Choi was studying at the American Conservatory in Chicago, this work has frequently appeared in recent Korean pianists' solo recitals. The set successfully employs many native elements including a pentatonic scale, dotted rhythms prominent in traditional Korean music and references to folk songs. The second piece, titled "Lullaby," shows the use of a pentatonic scale C-D-E-G-A and the recurring rhythmic pattern, jangdan, corresponding with the two-measure sub-phrases. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Yet, it also shows the composer's intention to highlight characteristics of Western music. In addition to many dissonant notes, mainly in the chordal chord·al adj. Of or relating to a chorda or cord. accompaniment, the melody of the middle section (left hand, mm. 9-16) almost is an exact inversion of the right hand melody in the first section, a practice commonly found in Western music. Altestimmung (1981) by Jung-Gil Kim (5) One of the leading musical figures in Korea, Jung-Gil Kim's music is widely performed and includes many symphonic sym·phon·ic adj. 1. Relating to or having the character or form of a symphony. 2. Harmonious in sound. Adj. 1. and chamber works, ballet, dance and film music, and solo instrumental music. Altestimmung (Antique Style, subtitled sub·ti·tle n. 1. A secondary, usually explanatory title, as of a literary work. 2. A printed translation of the dialogue of a foreign-language film shown at the bottom of the screen. tr.v. Reminiscences of Childhood in Old Age) was written in Germany in 1981, and consists of four pieces, the subtitles sub·ti·tle n. 1. A secondary, usually explanatory title, as of a literary work. 2. A printed translation of the dialogue of a foreign-language film shown at the bottom of the screen. tr.v. of which refer to such old Korean Old Korean correponds to the Korean language from the beginning of Three Kingdoms of Korea to the latter part of the Unified Silla[1], of which period is roughly from 1 CE to 1000 CE. artifacts artifacts see specimen artifacts. as an incense case ("Hyang-Hap") and wooden shoes ("Na-Mak-Shin"). The third piece of the set, titled "Okbynyo," refers to an ornamental jade hairpin hairpin a secondary structure that occurs in single-strand RNA during protein synthesis in which the strand turns back on itself. The structure is the result of base pairing and hydrogen bond formation. . It is written in folk-song style using a 6/16 meter and greatly evokes Korean sentiment. The simple melody derived from a pentatonic scale and the prevailing dotted rhythm in compound duple meter elicit the feeling of a slow, graceful Korean traditional dance. This piece also shows the influence of the genre of Korean folk vocal-ensemble music traditionally employing an antiphonal an·tiph·o·nal adj. 1. Relating to or resembling an antiphon. 2. Answering responsively, as in antiphony. 3. style with solo and chorus. The composer adapts the antiphonal structure by alternating sections of linear two-voice writing with those of chordal textures, the latter serving as multiple refrains. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Theme by Folklore and Eight Variations (1987) by Sung-Ki Kim (6) This work, in a romantic style, reflects 18th- and 19th-century piano writing incorporating many standard compositional techniques of the past, including variation, fugato Fu`ga´to a. 1. (Mus.) in the gugue style, but not strictly like a fugue. and four-voice writing. Despite the title, the theme is not an actual folk song but rather uses Korean folk style. Both the melody and harmony share the same pentatonic scalar scalar, quantity or number possessing only sign and magnitude, e.g., the real numbers (see number), in contrast to vectors and tensors; scalars obey the rules of elementary algebra. Many physical quantities have scalar values, e.g. basis, and the intervals of perfect fourths and major seconds derived from the pentatonic scale are frequently used both linearly and vertically in all eight variations. The entire set is very accessible to the intermediate-level piano student. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Early-Advanced Piano Repertoire Drei Bagatellen (1973) by Byung-Dong Paik (7) Traditional Korean music does not feature functional harmonic progressions. Instead, traditional Korean musicians have focused more on melodic line and highly developed melodic ornamentation, rhythm complexity and various tone colors produced by the combination of different instruments. Ornamentation--nonghyun in Korean--is an essential component in almost every genre of Korean traditional music. Numerous kinds of ornaments include vibrating vibrating, v using quivering hand motions made across the client's body for therapeutic purposes. and bending a single tone, as well as extremely elaborate ornaments placed before or/and after a tone. Many contemporary Korean composers have attempted to simulate the effect of nonghyun in their compositions. The first of Byung-Dong Paik's Drei Bagatellen (Three Bagatelles) presents the essence of traditional Korean ornamentation in a contemporary musical language. Its relatively thin texture and short length make this bagatelle accessible for intermediate- or early- advanced-level students. Many of the ornaments added to the top melodic line simulate the effect of vibrating or curving a tone on traditional Korean string or wind instruments. The composer also brings out the improvisatory character prevalent in traditional Korean music by removing bar lines and metrical rhythmic structure. Thus, playing this piece can be a new and stimulating experience for both a student and a teacher who are used to the more functional Western musical system. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Piano Suite "Korean Dance Korean dance is a type of dance, historically derived in Korea. This article looks at the history of Korean dance, from shamanistic early rituals three thousand years ago, through folk dance to contemporary dance, as well as newer trends like Korean versions of Russian classical " (1970) by Hoe-Gap Chung (8) Four movements of this set--"Skill," "Ritual," "Humor" and "Dance"--were inspired by the unique Korean peasant folk music and dance ritual Nongak and were written after the composer's three years of extensive field research of the genre. Hoe-Gap Chung not only incorporated transcriptions of Nongak rhythms and modal and pentatonic scales, but also employed 12-tone serial technique. This suite is one of the most frequently nationally and internationally performed Korean compositions. "Dance," the fourth movement, characterizes the music and dances by a group of performers who specialize in the Nongak ritual together with excited village spectators. The overall structure of the piece exhibits the arch form In music, arch form is a sectional structure for a piece of music based on repetition, in reverse order, of all or most musical sections such that the overall form is symmetric, most often around a central movement. , ABCBA. Section A features triplets accompanied by Kutgori jangdan, a lively metrical rhythm in 3/4 meter. Section B utilizes constant running 16th notes accompanied by a quasi-ostinato bass line with plenty of syncopation syncopation (sĭng'kəpā`shən, sĭn'–) [New Gr.,=cut off ], in music, the accentuation of a beat that normally would be weak according to the rhythmic division of the measure. through irregular rhythmic accents. It also sounds heavily dissonant due to tone clusters and many tritones. The meter, complexity of rhythms created by dotted rhythms, triplets and irregular accents manifest the spirit of Korean peasant dance and music. Nongak ritual together with excited village spectators. The overall structure of the piece exhibits the arch form, ABCBA. Section A features triplets accompanied by Kutgori jangdan, a lively metrical rhythm in 3/4 meter. Section B utilizes constant running 16th notes accompanied by a quasi-ostinato bass line with plenty of syncopation through irregular rhythmic accents. It also sounds heavily dissonant due to tone clusters and many tritones. The meter, complexity of rhythms created by dotted rhythms, triplets and irregular accents manifest the spirit of Korean peasant dance and music. Obtaining the Music [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Contemporary Korean piano compositions exhibit a great diversity of styles and individuality, and they deserve the attention of piano teachers and performers. The unique blend of Korean musical traits and Western compositional styles can appeal to any level of piano student, and these works will broaden both teachers and students' appreciation for the music of other cultures. Although some of these works have been published in Europe, (9) most are printed in Korea and can be imported from the country. Eumag Chunchu Edition, one of the major music publishing The contractual relationship between a songwriter or music composer and a music publisher, whereby the writer assigns part or all of his or her music copyrights to the publisher in exchange for the publisher's commercial exploitation of the music. companies in Korea, has published three volumes of Contemporary Korean Piano Works and two volumes of Pieces for Piano by Korean Women Composers. In addition to individual composers' collections produced by a number of Korean publishing companies, The Piano Music, the most widely distributed Adj. 1. widely distributed - growing or occurring in many parts of the world; "a cosmopolitan herb"; "cosmopolitan in distribution" cosmopolitan bionomics, environmental science, ecology - the branch of biology concerned with the relations between organisms piano and piano pedagogy magazine in Korea, presented a series of contemporary piano works by Korean composers. (10) Bonus Byte To view the accompanying bibliography and a chart listing techniques and other features of the Korean compositions from this article, go to www.mtna.org and click on "American Music Teacher." Then click on "Bonus Bytes" from the drop-down menu See pull-down menu. drop-down menu - pull-down menu . Editor's Note Editor's Note (foaled in 1993 in Kentucky) is an American thoroughbred Stallion racehorse. He was sired by 1992 U.S. Champion 2 YO Colt Forty Niner, who in turn was a son of Champion sire Mr. Prospector and out of the mare, Beware Of The Cat. Trained by D. : The works featured in this article can be obtained by contacting the following agencies: Eumag Chunchu Edition Publishing Co. at chunchu@hanmail.net or by phone at 011-822-2231-9001/9002/9003 The Piano Music magazine at eumyoun@nownuri.net or by phone at 011-822-547-3231 DaiHan Music (the most reputable music store in Korea) at dhmusicco@freethal.com or daihanmusic@yahoo.co.kr or by phone at 011-822-776-0577 Correspondences in English are welcome. NOTES (1.) Guk-Jin Kim, "Der Blauen Vogel," Op. 240, No. 3, Koreaneasche Klang fur Vier Handen (Pusan: DongJin Music Publishing Co., 1997), 8. (2.) Dong-Il Shin, "HaGyoGil" ["On the Way Home"], KunBan WuiEui JakEunSeSang [Small World on the Keyboard] (1993), (Seoul: YeSol Publishing Co., 2000), 30-31. (3.) Chung-Sock Kim, Six Pieces for Piano "Nori" (1996), Korean Contemporary Piano Collection Vol. 2 (Seoul: Eumag Chunchu Edition, 1999), 4-12. (4.) Seung-Joon Choi, "Lullaby," Five Miniature Pieces for Piano (1983), (Seoul: Fabre Editorial, 1999), 4-6. (5.) Jung-Gil Kim, Altestimmung (1981), Korean Contemporary Piano Collection Vol. 2 (Seoul: Eumag Chunchu Edition, 1996), 58-74. (6.) Sung-Ki Kim, Theme by Folklore and Eight Variations for Piano (1987), (Seoul: Sae-Kwang Publishing Co., 1987). (7.) Byung-Dong Paik, Drei Bagatellen (1973), Contemporary Korean Piano Works, Vol. 1 (Seoul: Eumag Chunchu Edition, 1986), 114-117. (8.) Hoe-Kap Chung, Suite "Korean Dance" (1966), (Seoul: Soo Moon Dang dang interj. Used to express dissatisfaction or annoyance. adv. & adj. Damn. tr.v. danged, dang·ing, dangs To damn. n. , 1982). (9.) Suk-Hi Kang, Inventio musicae clavichordii et sonorum artificiosorum (1984), (Bad Schwalbach, Germany: Edition Gravis). --, Sonatebach (1985), (Bad Schwalbach, Germany: Edition Gravis). Sung-Ki Kim, Variations sur un theme populaire coreen (1987), (Paris: Editions Distingo, 1992). I-Sang Yun, Funf Stucke fur Klavier (1958), (Berlin/Wiesbaden: Bote & Bock Noun 1. bock - a very strong lager traditionally brewed in the fall and aged through the winter for consumption in the spring bock beer lager beer, lager - a general term for beer made with bottom fermenting yeast (usually by decoction mashing); originally , 1962). --, Interludium A for Piano (1982), (Berlin/Wiesbaden: Bote & Bock, 1966). (10.) The Piano Music, February 1992-February 1994, 120-143. JeongSoo Kim is assistant professor of piano at Northern Illinois University . She has a bachelor's degree from Seoul National University Not to be confused with the University of Seoul. Seoul National University (SNU) is a national research university in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1946, SNU was the first national university in South Korea, and served as a model for the many national and public , a master's degree master's degree n. An academic degree conferred by a college or university upon those who complete at least one year of prescribed study beyond the bachelor's degree. Noun 1. from the New England New England, name applied to the region comprising six states of the NE United States—Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The region is thought to have been so named by Capt. Conservatory and a doctor's degree from the Eastman School of Music Eastman School of Music: see Rochester, Univ. of. . |
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