Teaching Gugak to Elementary School Students

May 11^th, 2011

I actually had an incredibly full day. I got up early (peeling my eyeballs open) and took a bus to 안성 Anseong, a city a little south of Seoul, where I met my friend 박연식 Bak Yeonshik from my 봉산탈춤 Bongsan Talchum class. Yeonshik is a professional supplementary teacher for Korean traditional music, as I mentioned in this blog when I first found out. On Wednesday I actually went along and watched him teach class. The school we went to is a tiny school of only 16 students for all six grades of elementary school. Since it's so small the students are two grades to a classroom and Yeonshik and I started with the 3^rd and 4^th graders. It was his eighth meeting with these students, but as I found out, classes are much longer than 40 minutes, we were in the classroom more than an hour and a half, although there was a break so that they could hit the can if needed.

Yeonshik had a 단소 danso and the students had brought their own instruments too (it's sort of like a recorder, a vertical bamboo (or cheaper plastic) flute). They began with Yeonshik writing out the notes in the 구음 gueum (the vocal representation of the notes) for the song they were playing (오나리 from 대장금) on the board. The students prompted him as he wrote 황태태 태황무 임무무무 황태태 태중태 태황태태 and so on. Then they all reviewed the fingering for the notes together, with emphasis on breath support and the particularly high and low notes. The students spent a few minutes practicing high 중 and low 중 and then everyone played together. As they played first one 3^rd grader and then near the end another 3^rd grader (there were 5 students, 3 in 3^rd grade and 2 in 4^th) gave up. As I continued to observe class it was obvious the one girl just had problems concentrating or had no sense for music though she was interested. After they went through it Yeonshik reminded them to not breath between each note, first they played a section of notes before breathing (as written above a section would be the series before each space) and then after they'd done that they practiced playing two sections before a breath. Everyone was really enjoying the class except the one girl with concentration issues, but I think she was having fun, too. She didn't seem frustrated that she couldn't play. Yeonshik used chocolate as a motivator. He gave it as a reward for doing things, but never actually denied it to anyone who hadn't, he just praised the ones who had managed to play through with the breathing right, for example. He particularly praised the one third grader who was doing well, as this student had never been exposed before the beginning of the term and yet was playing better than the fourth graders. The student took this very seriously. Yeonshik told him he could go to university for gugak (traditional music) and the little boy asked him very sincerely "but can you make a good living from gugak?" an answer that Yeonshik kept trying to side-step and the little boy kept asking. Yeonshik had each student play one by one, and praised each and critiqued them lightly (you need to concentrate on your breathing, it won't sound right until you take a breath at the right place and not other times) and gave them chocolate. When it was the turn of the girl who really couldn't play (last in the order Yeonshik had picked) he sent the students to recycle their milk cartons and then asked her to play, she was still having trouble getting sound to come out (it's not easy to blow like a recorder, it's vertical but like a flute you need to be positioned correctly relative to the hole or it's not going to produce a sound).

After about twenty minutes on the danso they opened their textbooks (they opened the textbook for fourth grade music not third) and they switched to playing 장구 janggu on the desk with their hands while speaking the 입장단 ipjangdan. Interestingly the notation they used was the traditional notation of circle, line and circle with a line in it (at Imshil Pilbong Nongak all the college kids read the notation that is just the ipjangdan written out 덩덩쿵딱). They practiced together beating the desks (one little third grader pulled out some cloth to shield her hand from the desk). Each time they went through the rhythm three times before stopping and trying again or getting feedback. First they did 자진모리, then 세마치, then 굿거리 and last 중중모리. Honestly they were quite good and they traded off having Yeonshik sing while they played (desk slapped and vocalized the sounds) and having them sing while he played to see if they were keeping the rhythm right. Actually I think they only sang two songs, but he sang with each of the rhythms. Because they knew the songs, this was how they checked themselves to see if they were correct because if the rhythm was wrong it was going to screw up the song. These songs were in the textbook next to the rhythms, they must have practiced the songs in a previous class.

After a break we went on to 강강술래 ganggangsullae (a folk song with a dance but they didn't do the dance). Yeonshik was even asking them questions like "what are the special characteristics of Namdo Minyo" and they (or at least one of them who answered first) could answer! Really really cool. And they were having so much fun. The girl with the concentration issues remained a little spacey but she had fun with the desk slapping and with the singing. They were quizzed on the details to the origin of ganggangsullae (sort of a myth) and they'd obviously learned it in a previous class.

After class but before we left Yeonshik was praising the one little 3^rd grader again and he told him that if he practiced for a year or two he'd be good enough to start performing. The little boy had tons of questions, he was so into it! And all the kids decided they needed my autograph (it's this weird thing in Korea where they do that, and I've experienced it before many a time so it didn't phase me too much). So I was writing these little sentences like (dang these don't translate well) "Your joy at practicing gugak looked very good (to me)" and then signing my name and the last two were like "just sign, only sign, really big" and gave me these huge sheets of like sketch book paper (I felt so guilty to use it). Apparently my sentiments were not needed, only my foreigner handwriting.

Next we went to the 5^th and 6^th grade classroom which was only three students (one of the two fifth graders was slightly retarded). The two girls played danso even better than the younger kids, but the boy had none and just sort of hummed along off-tune. He still got chocolate. They discussed vibration as a special element in Korean music and practiced for 25 minutes, then switched to 민요 minyo folk songs. I didn't get to see the names of the songs written down, the first one sounded like 당기둥기 might be the name and the second could be called 떡떡대기야. The two girls sang quite well and the boy was having fun in his own way. The latter song might be one they've known less time, because Yeonshik did call and repeat, but it sounded good that way, so it might just be how that song is normally sung. Part of Yeonshik's job is to teach Korean thought/consciousness (의식) and after the break they talked about 한글 (the Korean alphabet).

Yeonshik took me to see the huge facility that Namsadang has constructed in Anseong and then we had a great lunch and a long conversation followed by coffee and more conversation before I went back to Seoul.  

Dissertation Ideas Coming Together

March 14th, 2011
I worked on translation most of the day, then went to 봉산탈춤 Bongsan Talchum class at the 중요무형문화재전수회관 Training Center for Intangible Korean Cultural Assets. Today was actually a sort of pivotal day for me at this class. For months, as you know but I rarely explain, I have been figuring out how to write about the things I do in my dissertation. I can't say everything, so I have to pick relative and important aspects to develop, right?

I've been leaning towards a certain focus with my chapter that will be primarily about Bongsan Talchum, and tonight two conversations that I had really brought it together for me. First of all, I have been thinking of this as a chapter on Bongsan Talchum, and as such I've thought that the primary people in this chapter were 김은주 Kim Eunju (my usual teacher), 장용일 Jang Yongil (who sometimes teaches and I like him and he's a senior member of the group who I have interviewed multiple times) and other group members. But now I understand that the real point in this chapter is about the people who are coming to learn and the fact that they are almost entirely made up of people who are already invested in either performing or traditional arts on a full-time basis, and they regard Bongsan Talchum class as a new skill to pick up and utilize somehow in the process of personal advancement (much like an office worker might try to polish his English fluency or get certified in a new computer program).

I mentioned a few weeks ago that one of the Bongsan Talchum students, 박연식 Bak Yeonshik, turned out to be the leader of a 풍물 pungmul group that performed at the 대보름 daeboreum celebration in 송파 Songpa. Tonight I pushed him on what else he does, because he said he was teaching class during the day. He is employed with government funds (have to find out who his actual employer is) to go to five different schools where he teaches 민요 minyo (songs), 단소 vertical flute, 장구 janggu (drum), 국악 이론 traditional music theory and 정채성 Korean thought/philosophy. He rotates through 5 different schools the five days of the week. On Monday he teaches 3 classes, with a total of 25 students at a small school in a rural area, on Tuesday he has 180 students in 6 classes, on Wednesday 15 in an even smaller school, in fact he has 3 classes and one class has only 3 students, the entire fifth and sixth grade. Thursday he has 90 students, also in 3 classes and on Friday he has 120 students in four classes. He said that approximately 8% of Korean schools have someone like him to supplement their Korean music education (since the regular teachers are incapable) but that it was a higher amount before 이명박 Yi Myeongbak became president.

There was a student I hadn't met before tonight, he'd come on Thursday at least a couple times according to 하연 Hayeon. His name was 김용철 Kim Yongcheol. I stepped into a conversation during the evening that showed me (because he was also moving in demonstration) that he had significant dance training but then we had to get back to our class, so I quizzed him after class ended. He was born in 1965, he has his BA from Keimyung University in dance, then his MA and Ph.D. are from Sejong University also in Dance. The Sejong programs were theoretical programs but his focus was on choreography. He's performed around the world primarily in 창작 new creations for Korean dance (his aren't enormously traditional as he incorporates b-boy or modern dance moves with traditional moves). For four years he worked with the Seoul City Dance Company, but now he's teaching—he teaches at 한예종 KNUA, Sejong University and Jungang University as an adjunct professor of dance. He is particularly interested in Bongsan to learn new moves that he can work with in creating new works and keeping in shape because he has to keep up with his students.

Making ends meet in traditional arts. It'll be a lively section of my dissertation.

Daeboreum (First Full Moon of the Lunar New Year)

February 16th, 2011
Worked on the computer all day.

February 17th, 2011
Today was 대보름 Daeboreum, the first full moon of the lunar new year. In the morning I tried to get stuff done on the computer as I have a couple deadlines next week, but I left my house a bit before 2 and headed to 서울놀이마당 for the Daeboreum Festival. When I arrived we were preparing long sticks by wrapping them in tape. Then balls of fabric (later to be soaked in fuel and used as torches) were attached to the end. We had made the balls the previous Saturday. I was rather stressed not about my own performance (as one of the 등롱 deungnong lantern carriers) in the performance of 송파다리밟기 Songpa Dari Balpgi, but because the four KNUA students who I had roped into participating really weren't being given the information they needed to participate to their best and I felt like we were looking unprofessional in front of them as a result. I want them (희수 Heesu came today, too, in addition to 재윤 Jaeyun, 정우 Jeong-u and 장호 Jangho the guy I did not previously know) to think of the Songpa folks as professionals or at least serious about what they're doing, but I am afraid they didn't appear that way.

We had an early dinner (or late lunch?) at a restaurant we often go to and then went back to preparing (I got into my 민복 minbok and continued to try to rope 탄종원 Tahn Jongwon, the only one I could trust to remember and explain clearly, into telling the boys how to do the performance). Eventually we did have the tiniest bit of rehearsal (3 minutes?) before we had to go and distribute peanuts and drinks to the assembled audience as the 풍물 pungmul performance was going on. Actually considering that it was an outdoor nighttime performance in February and about freezing, it was a great turn out. After a 민요 minyo performance we did Songpa Dari Balpgi. At first everyone was cold and stiff and not in sync with each other, however as the performance went on things loosened up and straightened out. I ended up having a lot of fun with only one small error. As we ended the performance morphed into the torch lit parade along the banks of the lake with the pungmul group dominating the soundscape. I sprinted to the practice room, dropped my lantern and grabbed my camera. After our march we ended up at the 달집 daljip (house of the moon), a branches and bamboo wrapped up with thousands of wishes for the new year (the wishes had been collected at Songpa Noli Madang for over a week). My wish was in there, of course. After more pungmul and speeches by the local government official (the head of Songpa District) the bonfire was lit and we continued to dance around it until it was burned down to the ground and the pungmul players were exhausted.

One thing about the pungmul team- the leader of the team (the 상쇠 sangsoi or lead 꽹과리 ggwaenggwari player), who also chanted the ceremonial wish-chant during the speeches and 고사 gosa ceremony- turned out to be my friend 박연식 Bak Yeonshik from my 봉산탈춤 Bongsan Talchum class. The world of Korean traditional performing arts really is quite small.

After everything was finished I was still, for lack of a better term, high on the communal release of energy. There is not much I like more than dancing to ecstatic drum music by a bonfire under a full moon. I hung around hoping something good would happen, eventually 김영숙 Kim Yeongsuk, 이수환 Yi Suhwan, 서병무 Seo Byeongmu, Tahn Jongwon and I went out for a late dinner and some more drinks. With the exception of Seo Byeongmu those are just about my favorite people from Songpa Sandae Noli, so I was happy, but then after only about one drink Seo turned into an argumentative nonsensical annoying drunk. Actually he's always an annoying drunk, but I hadn't realized he'd already been drinking so he only needed a bit more to tip him over into unacceptable.

Last Full Day of the Winter Sangmo Intensive

February 10th, 2011
I had a frustrating morning. After a bit of work on the 나비사 nabisa move (which is getting very fluid), I was assigned to work with 범준 Beomjun on steps. I got stuck on the second step we tried, I just could not get the timing right and it frustrated the heck out of me the rest of the morning. REALLY frustrated me. It seemed so simple, and I understood what I was doing wrong, yet… After lunch all the students with high enough skills met and had a mini group concert in the dirt expanse between the two main teaching buildings. I joined in and learned how much harder it is to do nabisa when you are timing it to the music and the other 상모 sangmo people, while being too close to each other so 지용 Jiyong's ribbon kept smacking me, with a pesky wind that kept trying to snatch the ribbons and take them out of the course we'd set them on. It was not easy. Nor were the other spins that I did, or combination spins, but the challenges I've named here are pretty much what challenged with all of the moves. Fortunately 진영 Jinyeong was at the front of the sangmo group and she knew what to do with each musical cue.

In the afternoon after everyone stopped playing it was starting to snow (it never really got going) but 이재정 Yi Jaejeong had been promising us all week that he'd cook us a bunch of chicken (it took people various amounts of time to realize he meant eggs). So we boiled eggs over an outdoor fire, spinning while waiting. Jaejeong taught us this really interesting way to peel an egg. You take a bit off the shell at each end; then you blow really hard in one end. The whole shell just slips right off. Totally wild. He's very sweet but he's also quite Korean in his teaching methods. When students are roughhousing for just for fun, he'll hit them. That sounds bad to American ears. Hmmm, how can I explain. It's funny, for one thing. Everyone laughs a lot, even when he's slapping their wrist with two fingers as hard as he can. None of it really truly causes any physical distress (except possibly the wrist slapping when it happens too much, but it only happens too much if people have been losing games and stuff like that. Today's games included a relay race while spinning the sangmo. Things like that. It's sort of affectionate.

Photo of Jiwon and Jeonghwa from the Hallym University team and of course, me. Not sure I like the treatment i did on these photos though.


Jiyong

Awesome instructor Yi Jaejeong

Uiyeong (yes, this is a woman)

Beomjun

Jinyeong


My afternoon practice was MUCH more successful, I immediately nailed the steps from the morning, and started working on hitting the 소고 sogo while doing nabisa. Jaejeong definitely teaches people really fast. He doesn't make anyone perfect a move before they can move to the next move. I think this is because he feels that teaching us the basics of a lot will let us have more to practice on our own later, when we can polish things. But of course I worry that people don't realize how different their move is from someone like Beomjun's move—we don't have mirrors in the room we're in. I also think Jaejeong gets bored and wants to avoid student boredom as well. But I could be wrong. Anyway, when I had class with 구철회 Gu Cheolhoi last summer he didn't teach people more than two moves in a week. And in Seoul with 이종휘 Yi Jonghui he definitely nitpicks each move before he allows anyone a chance to try something new. In 5th week of the winter session Jinyong was studying with Yi Jonghui and he studied the whole week and only worked on 양사 yangsa and 자반 jaban (giant jumping spinning move) but I suspect he worked on the latter without Jonghui around. He's been learning that move since last summer. Jaejeong keeps saying "it has to be interesting! This class has to be fun!" Jinyong thinks this is different than the way he used to teach, that he's mellowed out a lot and lets us goof off a lot. Of course there is also the factor of the space (size of space for the number of students) and the total number of students the teacher has to divide his (her) time between.

Egg party:


Our entire class (except Minsu who left on Wednesday). Click on the photo and it'll get larger





After class we had a special 민요 minyo session. The minyo teacher was very young, she taught us 성주풀이 Seongju Puli. Or rather she taught the chorus and one verse, the shortest one. After leading everyone through the song, she started calling people out to sing it on their own. 박주동 Bak Judong was practicing the song starting last night, so he volunteered to sing right off the bat. At the very end she called on me, but I flat out refused. I will do a lot that makes me look silly (like the sangmo move with my hair last night) but I will not sing absolutely horribly in public.

After dinner we had one more sangmo practice. Everything I'm doing is getting pretty smooth and nice, but I have a long way to go before I will look good in performance. I ran out of energy half way through the practice, though, and didn't even get on the case of the other people who were talking instead of practicing.

We're getting visitors today. 다원 Dawon from week 3 came, and then later after the last practice 태강 Tae'gang showed up. They both brought food and presents for the group. 뒤풀이 duipuli was pretty normal, just drank a bit of 막걸리 makgeolli and tried hard to circulate to have a last few minutes with each groups of students that included someone I'd gotten close to during the week. I try hard to talk to everyone, or give everyone a chance to talk to me if they want to take it, and I think I did an excellent job, socially, during this week. On the other hand I'm physically exhausted after battling a cold for the whole week while practicing sangmo which is intense and sweat-inducing.

Bongsan Talchum Performance

December 17th, 2010
In the morning I went to Severance Hospital –again- and yet by the evening my ear was almost as painful as it’s been at any time during this whole long annoying infection. And the new pills he’s trying on me cost way too much- 70 bucks or so- if Karjam hadn’t insisted I wouldn’t have picked them up.

In the evening I went to 무형문화재선수회관의 풍류극장 the Pungryu Geukjang (theatre) at the Training Center for Intangible Cultural Heritage to see a performance of 봉산탈춤 Bongsan Talchum with 양은석 Yang Eunseok and two of his co-workers. Eunseok is a friend from summer 2009 at 임실필봉농악전수관 Imshil Pilbong Nongak Training Center. He’s amazingly talented, both as a drummer and notably as a singer of 민요 minyo. If only he would stop smoking! As usual the advertising materials existed for the performance but they’d done a horrible job of getting the word out. I didn’t even know about the performance until Monday, even though I’m in the building week after week. On the evening of the performance there were posters (even free ones for the guests) and bookmark-like cards to advertise the show around the building, but considering that the foot traffic is not the highest, such advertising materials need to go out in advance, as far in advance as possible (in my opinion). More directed advertising can focus on a few days before but passive advertising such as distributing cards needs to be out there so attendees at other shows can pick them up weeks in advance.

The performance began with an introduction by 박상운 Bak Sang-un and two musical performances- 대금산조 Daegeum Sanjo followed by a 해금 독주 Solo Haegeum piece. Both were performed by younger members of the group. The performance was 사상좌춤 Sa-sangjwa dance, 발목중춤 the scene of the 8 dark-faced monks (with solos by the 2nd, 3rd, 5th and 8th monk), 노장춤 the Old Monk’s dance and 사자춤 the lion dance. I video-taped the two middle pieces, since I don’t think I have the Old Monk’s dance and I’ve ruined previous performance videotapes of the dark-faced monks by being too excited about the performance and speaking the 대사 daesa monologues with the monks loud enough for the camera to pick up the sound. Either Bak Sang-un or in one case the National Human Treasure 김애선 Kim Aeseon spoke between acts, and their announcing was very rich—I will have to transcribe it (or get it transcribed) for future analysis- very rich indeed.

Friday morning dawned snowy. This is the view down our break-neck (esp. when icy) hill from our stairs. Karjam shows off his facial hair. I show off the clean hair on my head (if only I didn't get more water in my ear...)

Songpa Sandae Noli Performances for the Elderly

October 20th, 2010
Usually Wednesday’s are pretty boring, they’re my only day off. Today, however, 송파산대놀이 Songpa Sandae Noli had two morning performances. I rolled out of bed and got across town as fast as I could, arriving only a couple minutes before we left for the first site. At a park close to Seoul Noli Madang a large group of local elderly residents had gathered for an event in their honor. Although the event was supposed to begin at 10:30, it kept being pushed back. I had only brought Karjam’s little digital camera, which almost immediately ran out of batteries as the crew were putting their costume on over their white 민복 minbok (cotton peasant garb). The two 피리 piri players walked around with their 서 (the seo is the vibrating double reed of the piri, so just picture high school band and the clarinet or sax players except close to the size of a fat partially smoked cigarette), 탄종원 Tan Jongwon flirted from behind his mask, 전철규 Jeon Cheolgyu who was playing 해산어멈 Haesan Eomeom, the midwife who exposes a naked extended belly and dances with exaggerated butt-wags, looked a little less happy to be standing around for awhile in his costume. 이영식 Yi Yeongshik who has been teaching some of the more active elderly in a special evening Songpa dance class kept seeing people he’d taught and he’d want to say hi, except he kept forgetting they couldn’t see who he was. Everyone seemed to have a different story on how they’d played hooky to come dance that morning. Yi Yeongshik had actually walked out of a meeting at school (he’s a principal), Tan Jongwon had gone to work and left his regular shoes there, then run out in his 미투리 mituri. Yi Byeongok had called and said he couldn’t come teach class (please reschedule it) and he’d miss a departmental meeting. Jeon Cheolgyu is a publisher (I think he’s the boss or close to it) for several magazines and he could be absent in the morning without a large problem. 김학석 Kim Hakseok, one of our two National Human Treasures, is retired. 이영순 Yi Yeongsun, one of the only female members of the group is a private 장구 janggu teacher (although she dances for Songpa). Notably 함완식 Ham Wanshik, our other Human Treasure and the group’s director, was absent (as was his son, 함승헌 Ham Seungheon who is doing a graduate degree in public health). Both our 해금 haegeum and 대금 daegeum players are college students, so it wasn’t surprising they were available, I am not sure about most of the rest, but it was pretty amazing how many people were there and ready to dance even on a Wednesday morning!

The elderly locals sat around at long folding tables and were served appetizers, fruits and 떡 ddeok (a cake from pressed cooked rice) until finally things got rolling with Professor 이병옥 Yi Byeong-ok leading some initial pressure-point pressing and introducing the acts. First a woman (who is an 이수자 isuja) sang경기민요 Gyeonggi (province) folk songs, then Songpa performed the 취발이마당 Chuibali Scene, then four young men played 사물놀이 samulnoli (a modernized form of 풍물 pungmul played while seated with more complex rhythms on only the four percussive instruments without 소고 sogo, 태평소 taepyeoso or 나발 nabal). We rushed out to the other performance site, but what with the issues with parking, we were quite late (and the people parking the cars, all essential people, were even later). Oddly I ended up being the person hearing the organizers freak and having to apologize and explain that the other site had started much too late. The minyo singer had to start without the 장구 janggu player, which made it really hard for her, then although we intended to do two scenes, they even shortened the Chuibali Scene (drastically), even the samulnori players played for only 5-6 minutes or so.

Cell phone photos:



After the performance, which was also for a group of elderly, but this time on the fourth floor of a community center in a large room that probably is normally used as a church, they served us lunch. Lunch was 갈비탕 galbitang (rib stew) so I had rice and side dishes, but despite the current price of kimchi, they weren’t stingy at all. Afterwards I talked to the office manager (and 이수자 isuja) 김영숙 Kim Yeongsuk for a little bit about politics inside the group and then came home via the grocery store.

August 22nd, 2010

August 22nd, 2010
Karjam and I ran out to watch 송파백중놀이 Songpa Baekjung Noli shortly after returning home from 필봉Pilbong. First there was a performance of 풍물pungmul music, then 송파산대놀이 Songpa Sandae Noli (three scenes only and plagued by sound issues—not working mic, feedback and differential adjustments in the mics). In fact one older man in the audience started yelling at the performers about the mics and what not and I could hear other people grumbling, too. After Songpa performed there was 씨름 Ssireum (traditional wrestling) and 경기민요 Gyeonggi Minyo (folk songs of the Gyeonggi region) and last of all, 줄타기 Jultagi (tight-rope). Karjam enjoyed the singing but we got way more Jeultagi than was needed. In fact the jeultagi guy was late, and so to pass the time they made me come out and be the entertaining foreigner, dancing (in a dress mind you) for the group of Koreans who were probably much less impressed after they found out I had a five year association with the group. The pungmul group was supposed to come back to end the show, but he just decided to take the rest of the time himself, and the audience didn’t complain. Although protesting, I still dragged Karjam to meet all the Songpa people, the 예능보유자 Human Treasure and 회장님 preservation association president, 함완식 Hahm Wanshik practically talked his ear off, insisting that Karjam take him to Tibet (not the only person to do this about one in five of the people who really engage with Karjam say the same thing). I think Karjam did end up feeling really warmly welcomed, though. Yi Suhwan and some of the other guys really tried to talk in English to him, and Kim Yeongsuk was her usual welcoming self.