Court Music. Inhwa So

Transcription

1 Court Music Inhwa So

2 Court Music 13 Court Music Current Understanding and Status Current court music of Korea mainly consists of musics which were played in the court or in events organized by the court in the Joseon dynasty ( ). Some genres of court music were created during the Joseon dynasty, and the origin of other genres pre-dates these. As a successor of the Royal Music Institute, which managed court music affairs during the Joseon dynasty, and the Music Department of the Yi Royal Family under Japanese colonial rule ( ), The National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts (NCKTPA) transmits the court performing arts. With the court performing arts presented as the most representative repertory, NCKTPA plays a central role in Korean traditional music and dance. In the twentieth century, nearly all Korean court music has been performed only in concert settings, with the partial exception of music for the Confucian shrine ritual and for the royal ancestral shrine ritual in Seoul, the capital of the Joseon dynasty and the present republic of Korea. Compared with public settings for folk style music and dance like the four percussion instruments music called samulnori, this style of presentation has provided the public with fewer opportunities to hear court music. Consequently, the court performing arts have been less appreciated by the general public, which has tended to consider them as slow and less spectacular or dynamic than folk music and dance. Since 1964, the Korean government and Seoul City have designated some court music and dance, as well as folk arts, as (Important) Intangible Cultural Properties with the purpose of promoting Korean traditional culture. Recently, court rituals such as royal processions with music and court banquets held in the actual court palace have been revived based on scholarly scrutiny and careful attention to historical authenticity, raising public interest in court performing arts. Broad Sense of Classification Court music has been classified into three categories by origin: aak, dang-ak and hyang-ak. This classification is based on A Guide to the Study of Music (1493) which is a comprehensive treatise on music and dance 1) of the Joseon dynasty. Court music can also be divided into ritual music, banquet music, and military processional music according to its usage.

3 14 Court Music 15 1) Aak The term Aak employing the same set of Chinese characters as Chinese yayue, Japanese gagaku, and Vietnamese nha nhac literally means elegant music. The term was originally used by Confucius to distinguish music that was good and beneficial from music that was ugly and destructive. Aak was first introduced from China to Korea in During the Josen dynasty, the term referred specifically to sacrificial ritual music of Chinese origin. Later in the twentieth century, aak was used to include other court music, such as royal ancestral shrine music, banquet music, and processional music. Many people still consider the term aak as equivalent to court music in general, while scholars stick to the fifteenth-century usage of aak in a narrow sense, employing it only in reference to the Confucian shrine ritual. In Confucian philosophy, aak was conceived as a symbol of the universe with the character ak, for music itself, serving as a comprehensive term including song and dance as described in the Confucian classic, Record of Music. Therefore, one of the characteristics of aak is that music, song and dance are combined into one performance as the necessary elements for ritual. Ceremonial song is called akjang, dance is called ilmu (line formation dance). 2) Dang-ak Dang-ak, literally music of the Tang dynasty, refers to secular music of both the Chinese Tang and Song dynasties that was altered for performance at court after its introduction to Korea. The earliest record of the term dang-ak appears in the Historical Record of Three Kingdoms, which says that soldiers of Silla under a military alliance with Tang China learned dang-ak in the eighth century. The Historical Record of Three Kingdoms distinguishes the instruments of dang-ak, which were introduced from China into Korea, from those of hyang-ak, which is indigenous to Korea. During the Joseon dynasty, with the widespread respect for Chinese culture among the Korean aristocracy, Chinese style music was performed for formal occasions more often than native Korean music. Of approximately thirty dang-ak pieces in A Guide to the Study of Music, only two survive: nagyangchun (Springtime in Luoyang) and boheoja (Pacing the Void). Nagyangchun was played for formal ceremony, while boheoja was played for the court dance called oyangseon (the Dance of Five Fairies) of Chinese origin. Boheoja in a meter of beats derived several variations, which were often enjoyed by the literati. Their survival is of particular importance because these traditions have long since disappeared from China. Court banquets and ceremonies had singing, dancing, and instrumental music elements in their performances as in court sacrificial rituals. Court dance at banquets and ceremonies is called jeongjae, an offering talent. There is a singing element in the middle of the performance in which dancers sing wishes for prosperity and the King s longevity in commemoration of the event. 3) Hyang-ak Hyang-ak is a native Korean court music performed in a vast range of context. The term, hyang-ak, literally meaning local music, first appears in Five Poems about hyang-ak, a work written by the great scholar Choi Chiwon (857 CE -?),in which hyang-ak is regarded as referring to local performing arts as distinguished from those of Chinese origin. The preface of A Guide to the Study of Music defines it as music of the folk in the Korean language. Like dang-ak, hyang-ak integrates the three elements of playing musical instruments, singing, and dancing in performances. New music pieces were created for use in court ceremonies, based on hyang-ak and gochwiak ( drumming and blowing music ) under King Sejong in the fifteenth century. They include botaepyeong (Maintaining the Great Peace) and jeongdaeeop (Founding a Great Dynasty) that are the two main suites of eleven pieces of the present royal ancestral shrine ritual music, and yeomillak (Enjoyment with the People). The second half of the Joseon dynasty saw a remarkable popularization of hyang-ak and a gradual decline of dang-ak. Among hyang-ak of that period, several pieces clearly show interrelationships between court music and music of the literati. One of the most representative pieces is yeongsanhoesang, a piece inspired by the historic Buddha s exposition of the Lotus sutra on Vulture Peak Mountain. According to A Guide to the Study of Music, yeongsanhoesang was a vocal form with Buddhist lyrics of yeong-san-hoe-sang-bul-bo-sal, used for the combination dance of crane, lotus flower and cheoyongmu mask dance. Later yeongsanhoesang became instrumental music. The string version of the music was a favorite of scholars and artists because it was seen as the music of spiritual cultivation. The music was expanded to have nine linked pieces or movements. There are also samhyeon-yeongsanhoesang the wind version, and the pyeongjohoesang (a fourth lower than the string version), which are typically used for court banquet, ceremony, and dance accompaniments. Chwita, a general term for military band music, literally meaning blowing and striking, began to be used for royal processions only during the late Joseon dynasty. The royal military music band that played chwita belonged to an office responsible for guarding the King and delivering the King s orders. The main repertory includes daechwita ( Big chwita ) which is played mainly on percussion and wind instruments. Its melody is played only on taepyeongso (conical oboe). Ritual Music In the Joseon Dynasty, there were highly elaborate rituals based on the Confucian idea that man should act in accordance with propriety, where individuals behave ritualistically with each other. The official state rituals of Confucianism conducted by the government were an important mode of communication essential to the spread of official values. The performance of sacrificial rites was emphasized to express humility and thankfulness. The Confucian shrine ritual for the spirit of Confucius and the royal ancestral shrine ritual are currently performed.

4 16 Court Music 17 1) Types : Confucian Shrine Ritual Music and Royal Ancestral Shrine Ritual Music After its introduction to Korea in 1116 during Goryeo Dynasty, aak was used in court rituals such as those for the spirits of Wind, Clouds, Thunder, and Rain (heavenly spirits), spirits of Land and Grain (earthly spirits), and the spirit of Agriculture (a human spirit, the mythological inventor of agriculture). However, during the Great Korean Empire ( ) and Japanese colonial period ( ), most state sacrificial rites were abolished. The Confucian shrine ritual became the only ritual where aak was used. The same melody used in former times is still being played in the present Confucian Shrine ritual. For the royal ancestral shrine ritual, botaepyeong, praising civil achievements of the kings, and jeongdaeeop, extolling their military exploits, have been used instead of aak since 1464 during the reign of King Sejo. When the two pieces were made under King Sejo s father, King Sejong, they were not employed in the royal shrine ritual but in formal meetings at court. At that time, aak was used for royal shrine ritual, but King Sejong objected to the idea of using music of Chinese origin, aak, to honor the memory of Koreans. King Sejo s decision to use botaepyeong and jeongdaeeop for the royal ancestral shrine ritual represents a response to the idea of King Sejong. The Confucian shrine ritual is presently held twice a year, for the spirit of Confucius, his disciples, such as Mencius, and Korean Confucian scholars like Yi Hwang and Yi I. The ritual is conducted in the Confucian shrine, the same place where it was held during the Joseon dynasty, in the National University of the Joseon Dynasty, Sungkyunkwan, in Seoul. In the past, the king, the civil and military court officials, and other lesser nobles performed the rites. Today the members of the Confucian Association perform the rites to the accompaniment of music and dance provided by musicians from The National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts and dancers from Sungkyunkwan University. During the Joseon dynasty, royal ancestral shrine music was observed in the first month of each season: the first, fourth, seventh, and tenth months. Since 1971 it has been held only once a year, on the first Sunday of May according to the solar calendar. In Jeongjeon, there are nine cubicles housing the spirit tablets of the kings of outstanding achievement, and in Yeongnyeongjeon there are sixteen housing the tablets of lesser monarchs. Today the members of the Jeonju Yi Royal Family Association perform the rites to the accompaniment of music and dance provided by the Association of the Royal Ancestral Shrine together with musicians from The National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts and dancers from The Gugak National High School. 2) Ritual format For both rituals, the procedure consists of welcoming the spirits, the tribute offering, the food offering, the first wine offering, the second and third wine offerings, the tribute removed, the spirits ushered out, and the burning of written prayers. In both rituals, there are civil dance and military dance, and the terrace ensemble and courtyard ensemble. The terrace and courtyard ensembles alternate with one another in performance. (See Table 1 for the usage in the procedure). The terrace ensemble is positioned on the stone porch of the main shrine building, and a courtyard ensemble is located near the main entrance gate in front of the main shrine building. <Figure 1> Terrace Ensemble and Courtyard Ensemble of Royal Ancestral Shrine Ritual Inhwa So Confucian shrine music is classified into two kinds of melodies, each with thirty two notes. The first of the two melodies is performed in three keys (C, E, A). The notes are expected to be in a range of sixteen semitones, for example, C to D# in a higher octave. When the melody is transposed, any notes that would lie higher than sixteen semitones are transposed one octave lower. This leads to a modification in the shape of the melody. When welcoming the Confucian spirits, the melody in C(hwangjong) key is played nine times with civil dance. The number nine symbolizes the human spirits, while six is the symbol for heaven and eight the symbol for earth. For the tribute offering, the same melody in A(namryeo) key is played with civil dance. It is played as long as the ritual goes on and ends whenever the offering finishes. For the offering of food, the same melody in G(goseon) key is played. The music and ritual proceed as in the <Table 1>. In the last two sections, Ushering Out the Spirits and Burning of the Prayers, the second melody is performed without dance.

5 18 Court Music 19 Ritual Music Sections Ensemble Confucian Shrine Music Royal Shrine Music Dance Welcoming the Spirits Courtyard C(hwangjong) botaepyeong : (yeongsin) huimun Civil <Example 1> Melody in C(hwangjong) Key in the Welcoming the spirits in of the Confucian shrine ritual Offering of the Tribute Terrace A(namryeo) botaepyeong : (jeonpye) huimun Civil Offering of Food Courtyard E(goseon) Jinchanak no dance First Wine Offering Terrace A(namryeo) botaepyeong : huimun, gimyeong, gwiin, hyeongga, jimnyeong, yunghwa, hyeonmi, yonggwang-jeongmyeong, junggwang, daeyu, yeokseong Civil <Example 2> Melody in E(goseon) key in the Tribute Offering of the Confucian shrine ritual Second Wine Offering Final Wine Offering Courtyard Court Yard E(goseon) E(goseon) jeongdaeeop : somu, dokgyeong, takjeong, seonwi, sinjeong, bunung, suneung, chongyu, jeongse, hyeokjeong yeonggwan Military Military According to the yinyang principle, the terrace ensemble, symbolizing yang, is expected to use the key of yin while the courtyard ensemble, symbolizing yin, uses the key of yang. Of the twelve yul (lu in Chinese) of Chinese origin to indicate the twelve pitches in the octave hwangjong (C), daeryeo (C#), taeju, (D), hyeopjong (D#), goseon (E), jungryeo (F), yubin (F#), imjong (G), ichik (G#), namryeo (A), muyeok (A#), eungjong (B) hwangjong, taeju, goseon, yubin, ichik, muyeok are grouped into yang and the others into yin. This principle is followed in Confucian shrine music. <Table 1> shows the combination of the key and the ensemble. For the royal ancestral shrine ritual, in the welcoming the kings spirits, huimun which is the first song of botaepyeong is played nine times since the ritual is for the human spirits as in the Confucian shrine ritual. The same piece, but in a varied form named jeonpye huimun, is played in the offering of tribute. Botaepyeong is played with civil dance from the first piece to the final piece in the offering of the first cups of wine. Jeongdaeeop is used together with military dance for the offering of the second and third cups of wine. For offering the sacrificial food and removal of the tribute, jinchanak is used, rather than botaepyeong and jeongdaeeop. Removing the Vessels Terrace A(namryeo) no dance Jinchanak Ushering Out the Spirits Courtyard C(hwangjong) no dance <Table 1> The Procedure of Rituals and Music 3) Metaphysical Background Cosmic symbolism is shown in the beginning and ending of the music, which are played on several different percussion instruments in a certain order and are basically the same in both the Confucian shrine and the royal ancestral shrine music. Teukjong, a single bell chime made of metal and symbolizing heaven, is played in the beginning signal while teukgyeong, a single chime made of stone and symbolizing earth, is played in the ending. It is based on the cosmic symbolism that the heaven controls giving and the earth concluding. Chuk, a percussion instrument with a square wooden box and mallet, located on the East side of ensemble, is played in the beginning signal, while eo, a wooden percussion instrument shaped like a tiger and located on the West side of ensemble is played in the ending. According to the yinyang principle, the tiger is an animal belonging to yin. It is based on the cosmic symbolism that the East is symbolic of the spring when things are generated and the West the autumn when things stop growing. Between these two ensembles, one on the terrace symbolizing heaven and the other in the courtyard symbolizing earth, a line formation dance is performed, symbolizing human beings. According to the Analects of

6 20 Court Music 21 Confucius, the number of the dancers is different depending on the social position of the host. With the establishment of the Great Korean Empire in 1897, line formation dance in Korea began to be performed with 64 dancers forming 8 lines of 8 dancers for the emperor. Previously, it had been performed with 36 dancers. The total of 64 dancers is based on the 64 formations of the Book of Changes of Confucian philosophy that reflect the endless circulation of the universe. According to the Book of Changes, the overlapping of the eight trigrams (which are eight fortunes reflecting changes in the universe) forms sixty-four hexagrams. The dance consists of a series of ritual movements of stately arm motions, bowing, turning, and posturing, with little foot motion. <Figure 2> Dance of Confucian shrine ritual NCKTPA In the Confucian shrine ritual, civil dance is performed with implements symbolizing peace, such as an ancient flute, called yak, in the left hand and a stick bearing pheasant feathers suspended from a dragon s head, called jeok, in the right, while military dance is performed with a shield in the left hand and an axe in the right hand, symbolizing defense and bravery, respectively. In the royal shrine ritual, civil dance is performed with the same implements as in the Confucian shrine ritual, while military dance is performed with implements symbolizing military exploits: wooden swords for dancers of the first four rows, and wooden spears for the dancers of the last four rows. 4) Instrumentation Confucian shrine music employs aak instruments. They are made from each of the eight materials stipulated by the paleum (eight tones), which is an ancient Chinese system of classifying instruments called the bayin, based on the main material from which the instrument is made. The eight materials are metal, stone, silk, bamboo, gourd, earth, leather, and wood. These materials are considered to be significant in expressing the harmony of the universe. From this fact, we can infer that aesthetic value was placed on the harmony of various tone colors. Of the eight materials of the universe, the present ensemble lacks the saenghwang, the sole member of the gourd category, because seanghwang was hardly made in Korea during the Joseon dynasty, but imported from China. The bak which is not an instrument of aak but of dang-ak, was added to the instrumentaion of aak some time after The instrumentation of the terrace and courtyard ensembles is a slightly different from each other. In the Confucian shrine ritual, for example, the terrace ensemble is characterized by instruments of low volume, such as geum and seul, while the courtyard ensemble features instruments with louder volume, such as Jingo. The terrace ensemble uses voice, pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, teukjong, teukgyeong, geum, seul, so, hun, ji, yak, jeok, jeolgo, chuk, eo and bak. The courtyard ensemble uses pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, hun, ji, yak, and jeok, jingo, bu, chuk, eo, bak, nogo, nodo. In contrast to the Confucian shrine music, royal ancestral shrine music combines a mixture of instruments used in aak, hyang-ak, and dang-ak. In the royal ancestral shrine music, the terrace ensemble consists of pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, banghyang, dangpiri, daegeum, haegeum, ajaeng, bowed zither with seven strings janggu, jeolgo, chuk, eo, and bak. In the courtyard ensemble, instead of ajaeng and jeolgo, instruments such as haegeum and jin-go are used. Taepyeongso and daegum (large gong) with large volume are added only when Jeongdaeeop is played, praising the military achievements of the royal ancestors. Pyeonjong and pyeon-gyeong are supposed to lead the ensemble with their clear melodic and rhythmic line, creating a solemn mood. Singers sing, slowly adding vowels between the main textual syllables. According to A Guide to the Study of Music, string instruments such as geomun-go and gayageum were also used for the royal ancestral shrine music. Currently,they are not employed; in 2006, NCKTPA gave a restoration concert of the royal ancestral shrine music in the eighteenth century version with the aforementioned string instruments.

7 22 Court Music 23 Ritual Type Terrace Ensemble Courtyard Ensemble Confucian shrine ritual Aak instrument Dang-ak instrument Aak instrument (voice) pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, hun, ji, yak, jeok, chuk, eo, teukjong, teukgyeong, geum, seul, so, jeolgo Bak (voice) pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, jeolgo, chuk, eo (voice) pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, hun, ji, yak, jeok, chuk, eo, jingo, nogo, nodo, bu Bak (voice) pyeonjong, pyeon-gyeong, jingo, chuk, eo <Example 4> Twelve pitches in Hyang-ak In an ensemble with the pyeonjong and pyeon-gyeong whose pitches are fixed, the instruments are tuned to the C(hwangjong) of pyeongjong and pyeon-gyeong. On the other hand, in hyang-ak with geomungo and hyangpiri as its leading instruments, the instruments are tuned to Bb (imjong) of the daegeum because the daegeum tones are most accurate and Bb(imjong) with all of its six holes closed is the most stable fingering on the daegeum. Royal ancestral shrine ritual Dang-ak instrument Hyang-ak instrument & others banghyang, dangpiri, ajaeng, janggu, bak daegeum (flute) banghyang, dangpiri, haegeum, janggu, bak, taepyeongso daegeum (flute) daegeum (large gong) 2) Tempo Court music is slow, stately and imposing. <Example 5/6> shows the janggu strokes of a rhythmic pattern called jangdan, which is repeated in some slow pieces of hyang-ak. The jangdan is from the first movement, called sangyeongsan, of the wind version of yeongsanheosang. <Table 2> Current Instrumentation of Confucian and royal ancestral shrine ritual musics <Example 5> Sangyeongsan Jangdan of Wind Version of Yeongsanhoesang Characteristical Sound of Music 1) Pitch In court music, the pitch of hwangjong (literally meaning yellow bell and symbolizing the center), the first of a set of twelve pitches, was regarded as the standard pitch. As is written in A Guide to the Study of Music, court music of Chinese origin is low in pitch with the C(hwangjong) as the first note of the scale while Korean indigenous music is high in pitch with an equivalent to Eb(hyeopjong) of that scale as the first note. This example consists of beats. It starts with a stroke by the right hand with a stick followed by one by the left hand with the palm. The first one stroke of jangdan in <Example 6>, which is the simultaneous stroke of both hands,, is split into two, and in <Example 5>, implying a slow tempo. The former is a mark of striking the right head of janggu, the latter is one of striking the left head. The actual duration of the stroke is longer than the simultaneous stroke of both heads of janggu.. <Example 6> <Example 3> Twelve pitches in Aak and Dang-ak In the wind version of yeongsanhoesang, a stroke by the right hand with a stick followed by one by the left hand is employed from the second jangdan of the first piece, called sangyeongsan, through the first jangdan of its second piece, called jungyeongsan. Then it is changed to the simultaneous stroke of both heads. In yeomillak, the first three sections (jang) are played in this way with 20 beats in one jangdan. Yeongsanhoesang and yeomillak, which start in slow tempo, get faster in subsequent statements. Yeomillak and boheosa (a derivative of boheoja) consist of two sections in different jangdan. The second section has a shorter cycle of jangdan than the first, giving the sense of an increase in the tempo.

8 24 Court Music 25 This increasing tempo is affected in many different ways in music, such as shortening duration, omitting some parts, changing rhythm, etc. The last of the four sections of another hyang-ak piece named sujecheon (long life as everlasting as the heaven) clearly shows this phenomenon. According to Cho Chae-son: It is the Jang [section] that synthesizes in qualitative terms the contents of the various sections by condensing the six jangdan structure into a two jangdan structure. Its two jangdan represent the two basic types, A and B. It tends to curtail long-valued notes by introducing various incomplete tones and grace notes, which results in an increase in the internal tempo of the music without disturbing the arrangement of janggu strokes characteristic of the piece. 1 3) Sound Characteristics Court music is characterized by using bak when starting and ending music. When starting music, a senior player serving in the role of conductor strikes the bak once, and when ending, three times, but does not actually conduct the music through the performance as in Western classical music. Court music of hyang-ak and dang-ak in general is characterized by the use of loud wind instruments (considered to include bowed instrument) that sound majestic. Rather than sepiri, which is soft, hyangpiri or dangpiri is used. In principle, hyang-ak is led by hyangpiri, while dang-ak is led by dangpiri. One exception is that royal ancestral shrine ritual music, which employs three kinds of instruments including aak, hyang-ak and dang-ak, employs dangpiri, which is larger and sounds louder than hyangpiri. In court music, piri, daegeum, ajaeng, haegeum, janggu, jwago, dangjeok or sogeum, are obligatory, and the geomun-go and gayageum are optional or used only in certain pieces. The addition of chimes such as pyeonjong and pyeon-gyeong make the grandest form of court orchestra. Ajaeng and sogeum are typical of court music ensembles. Ajaeng for court music which is larger than one for folk music plays a low pitch melody and gives a majestic feeling. Sogeum gives bright color to court music with a clear sound and high pitch notes. 4) Melody Aak appears to be simple, as in the Confucius saying in Record of Ritual, Thus, music comes from within, and rites act from without. Coming from within, music makes our minds serene; acting from without, ritual makes our gestures elegant. Yet, great music must be easy, and great rites, simple. Based on this idea, the Confucian shrine ritual music is simple : it has a musical text made of eight lines of four Chinese characters from the Classic of Poetry, a Chinese classic. Each note falls on a character/syllable and is of the same duration, as seen in <Example 1>and <Example 2>. The melody starts from a central tone and ends on the same central tone. A starting signal and a finishing signal are played on drums and other percussion for each performance of a melody. Instruments are played in a strictly consistent and orderly sequence and procedure: the bells and chimes are struck once for each note. The wind instruments play each note once and rise in pitch near its end. A clay bowl is struck with a bamboo stick split into nine pieces after each note has begun in the melodic instruments, and a drum plays a punctuating pattern after the beginning of the fourth note of each line. The rise in pitch in the wind instruments that is distinct from other forms of Korean music, is regarded as musically natural, considering the simple melody. 2 It is also understood as a sign to show moving to the next note. The royal ancestral shrine music has a simple melody too, but uses more melodic variety than aak proper, the Confucian shrine music. The songs of royal shrine music are of melismatic style, while those of Confucian shrine music are syllabic with one note to each syllable or character. Many tones and ornaments are added to one syllable. Botaepyeong, which praises civil achievements of the kings, is in pyeongjo mode and Jeongdaeeop, which praises military achievements, is in gyemyeonjo mode. Pyeongjo is moderate or more reserved than gyemyeonjo which is expressive and emotional. Botaepyeong in pyeongjo uses C(hwangjong), D(taeju), F(jungryeo), G(imjong), A(namryeo) as constitutional tones. Jeongdaeeop in gyemyeonjo originally had C(hwangjong, Eb(hyeopjong), F(jungryeo), G(imjong), Bb(muyeok) as its constitutional tones. But in present-day performance, wind instruments such as dang piri produce as muyeok (Bb) many of the notes written as hwangjong(c). In general, transposition (change of key in the same mode) and modulation (change of mode in the same key) constitute two important techniques of variation in court music as in other kinds of Korean traditional music. For example, pyeongjohoesang is varied from a string version of yeongsanhoesang by being played a fourth lower as mentioned above. Generally, the transposition entails tonal and ornamental change, and the relationship between the two pieces is not very clear. 5) Rhythm In court music as most other ensemble music, janggu plays rhythmic pattern and controls the rhythmic flow of music which proceeds in great variety and tends to be very flexible. However, there are also some musics which are not governed by the rhythmic pattern of janggu, such as royal ancestral shrine music. In the original notations of that music, the percussion parts were highly regular: janggu had several set patterns and each phrase was punctuated by a single stroke of the bak. The rhythm was changed drastically sometime after the eighteenth century so that now many notes are of equal duration. Phrasing has become markedly irregular with disintegration of the percussion parts. Additional notes have been introduced between repeated notes. 3 There are several interpretations of this phenomenon. First, according to Dr. Jang Sahun The equal durations, widely spaced percussion strokes, and slow tempo of modern practice combine to produce an effect of great majesty. Although it is somewhat reminiscent of the Confucian shrine music in measured stateliness, the Royal ancestral shrine music is distinguished by its melodic movement, asymmetrical phrasing, and powerful ensemble. 4

9 26 Court Music 27 Second, according to Dr. Cho Chae-son, it shows a breath-oriented rhythm that is a variation of music in a regular rhythm governed by Janggu strokes 5 similar to what happens in Sujecheon: The breath is the basic measure of the construction of a jangdan. The structure of the Sujecheon jangdan vary according to the number of breaths. 6 Some other court music pieces such as man, also called yeomillak-man (Yeomillak in Slow Tempo) and nagyangchun (Spring in Loyang) show a historical change of rhythm similar to this. In them, notes are played with great flexibility in length. Ngyangchun which was regular in rhythm in its original form currently has an irregular metrical structure. This kind of rhythmic change over the times seems to be related to their usage in ritual and procession, whose pace could be varied depending on the situation. Introduction on the Samhyeonyukgak 2) Instrumentation and Different Musical Styles Daepungnyu is a term for instrumentation and is equivalent to samhyeonyukgak in current usage. Daepungnyu also refers to music whose main instruments are winds, such as piri and daegeum, in contrast to those of julpungnyu which has string instruments such as geomungo, gayageum, yanggeum as main instruments and a few soft wind instruments such as sepiri and danso, etc. Samhyeonyukgak is enlarged by the inclusion of dangjeok or sogeum and an additional daegeum for court wind ensemble. Sogeum, typically used for court music only, plays the melody of daegeum one octave higher. Some pieces like sujecheon employ ensembles similar to samhyeonyukgak that have been further enlarged with ajaeng, which adds an element of majesty with its full bass tone. In 2006 Saturday regular performances by NCKTPA, sujecheon employed five hyangpiri, six daegeum, five haegeum, one sogeum, two ajaeng, one janggu, one buk (jwago) and one bak. 1) Primary function In modern usage samhyeonyukgak (three strings and six horns) refers to an instrumental ensemble including two hyangpiri, one daegeum one haegeum, one janggu, and one buk. It is typically used for dance accompaniment. Genre paintings by the eighteenth century artists Kim Hong-do (1745-?) show that an ensemble identical in constitution to the modern Samhyeonyukgak has been used for dance accompaniments for more than two hundred years. 7 Samhyeon-yeongsanhoesang, the wind ensemble version of yeongsanhoesang, is one of the pieces most often used for dance performance both in and out of court. Samhyeonyukgak arrangement was also employed by the band which followed officials in processions, here called seak (small band music) in contrast to the more powerful preceding band (daechwita). The ensemble of samhyeonyukgak could travel easily without instruments of the long zither type. 3) Sonic Characteristics Each instrument in the samhyeonyukgak ensemble has a specific musical role. The doubling of the lead instrument piri produces an impression of great energy. The daegeum plays an octave above, as a counterpart of piri which plays the principal melody. The daegeum plays the sophisticated change of timbre. The membrane of one hole of daegeum brings a soft and warm timbre to the flute in low range and a stirring timbre in high range. The haegeum, with its continuous tone, welds together the breaks in the wind parts. The janggu and the buk establish the rhythms. Not a single instrument is dispensable. Instruments often added for court music, such as ajaeng and sogeum, make ensembles larger and more diverse in sound. Dance Music 1) Function The slow but lively tones of court music help dance realize the beauty of movement in stillness. The bak holder playing a role of a conductor strikes the clapper to mark the change of rhythmic pattern that goes with the change of dance formation or movements. <Figure 3> Samhyeonyukgak in a Painting by Kim Hong-do in the 18th Century Nat l. Museum 2) Characteristics of Dance Music The repertory of court music is not large. The same piece of music may be used as an instrumental music and as dance accompaniment at a large royal banquet. For example, yeongsanhoesang is often played as dance music: string version, wind version and a fourth lower variation of string version. Especially the wind version of yeongsanhoesang, samhyeon-yeongsanhoesang, is most often used. Several movements among eight in total are

10 28 Court Music 29 selected to fit the dance. The combination dance of crane and lotus flower (hak-yeonhwadaemu) use two kinds of yeongsanhoesang: string and wind versions. The two dancers dance in crane costume to yeombul-dodeuri of string version of yeongsanhoesang. It is played by yanggeum and danso in a serene mood. With one clap by the bak, the music goes on to taryeong of the same sting version of yeongsanhoesang. At the moment when the music changes to samhyeon-dodeuri of the wind version of yeongsanhoesang, two dancers come out from each lotus flowers followed by the appearance of two leading dancers with bamboo rods, who sing to announce the beginning of the dance with no music while standing still. Then the music changes to taryeong. The two dancers who came from lotus flowers sing a verse commemorating the event, also perform with no music while standing. Then taryeong is played and gets faster. When it returns to slow, another kind of taryeong called gil-taryeong is played. Gil-taryeong is in the same jangdan as taryeong of yeongsanhoesang. Two leading dancers with bamboo rods sing to announce the ending of the dance, again while standing and with no music. A court dance called chunaengjeon (the Spring Nightingale Dance), which was composed in the early nineteenth century by the crown prince Hyomyeong who was inspired by the sound of an oriole singing on a fine spring morning, is performed to another version of yeongsanhoesang, pyeongjohoesang, a fourth lower variation of the string version of yeongsanhoesang. The music consists of eight linked movements. A striking difference from the same piece not accompanying dance is that the janggu player strikes the janggu loudly to let the dancers follow the rhythm. Also the first and second movements, sangyeongsan and jungyeongsan, which have 20 beats in a rhythmic cycle when played without dance, are played in 10 beats as in a rhythmic cycle, which is the same as the third movement. This pattern may have evolved because for a court dance accompaniment, a smooth change of tempo is more proper than a large contrast in rhythmic pattern. Further Readings Cho Chae-son, Aspects of Melodic Formation and Structural Analysis in Sujecheon. Chang, Sa-hun Court Orchestral Music, Survey of Korean Arts Traditional Music, National Academy of Arts. Song, Kyong-rin, The Royal Ancestral Shrine Music, Survey of Korean Arts Traditional Music, National Academy of Arts. Lee, Song-chon Samhyon Yukkak, Survey of Korean Arts Traditional Music, The National Academy of Arts. 1 Cho Chae-son, Aspects of Melodic Formation and Structural Analysis in Sujecheon, p This is based on an interview I conducted with Lee Changgyu (1916-), who played the music in the 1930s. 3 Chang, Sa-hun Court Orchestral Music, Survey of Korean Arts Traditional Music, 116. National Academy of Arts. 4 Song, Kyong-rin, The Royal Ancestral Shrine Music, Survey of Korean Arts Traditional Music, 156. National Academy of Arts. 5 Cho, Chae-son, Analytical Study in Chŏnpye Huimun, Hanguk eumak yeon-gu, Vol. 17, No Korean Musicological Society. 6 Cho, Chae-son Aspects of Melodic formation and Structural Analysis in Sujecheon, Lee, Song-chon Samhyon Yukkak, Survey of Korean Arts Traditional Music, 130. The National Academy of Arts. 8 Robert. C. Province, Court Music and Chongak, The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music Vol. 7. p Summary Court music was considered and served as a medium for people to live in a harmonious way based on the yinyang principle. It was an important mode of communication in a variety of court rituals and banquets. In modern times, it is still enjoyed by Korean people who appreciate its beauty of movement in stillness. Court music was used in different events and situations. As with other genres of music, a small number of pieces have been varied, developed, and manipulated to create a substantial amount of music with many interrelationships. 8 It also has relationships with the other genre of music such as music of the literati. While some ritual music such as aak was preserved in a form close to the original, dang-ak banquet music was Koreanized through a long history. Therefore, current court music appears distinct from that of neighbors such as China and Japan in the use of elements such as rhythmic pattern, rhythmic flexibility, and the weight of breath oriented rhythm.

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