Kim So Ra

For more than 2,000 years, the Korean peninsula has been home to a vibrant drumming tradition full of color, movement, and thrilling energy. This drumming, called pungmul, has  been part of village life in Korea for generations. You might think that in order to play drums you need to be seated, but like a marching band drummer, the drummers in pungmul do not stay in any fixed position. Most performances take place outside, with dozens of drummers in constant motion—drumming, twirling and dancing.

Pungmul was originally played as part of farm work , on holidays, and as an accompaniment to religious rituals. One of the most impressive elements of pungmul performances is the colorful costuming,in particular, the hats. Known as sangmo, these traditional hats are adorned with feathers, large pom-poms, or streamers called pi-ji, which are attached atop the hats, which twirl and spin around the acrobatic drummers.

The pungmul drumming tradition is deeply connected with the Korean folk spirituality also known as musok. Musok is the oldest form of religion on the Korean peninsula, involving beliefs in numerous spirits. These spirits are believed to watch over humans and nature through select members of society who can directly interact with them. In ancient times, these select people, often women,  performed a unique version of pungmul.

Starting in the 1960s, in response to the control of South Korea under a military dictatorship, a pro-democracy movement began to use the performance of pungmul in its protests. These protests were led by laborers as well as students. Because of pungmul’s long association with farming culture, it became a sonic symbol of this movement and even now, in a democratic South Korean, pungmul is a fixture in many kinds of protests.

In the late 1970s a new and more contemporary form of pungmul emerged. Called samulnori (meaning four objects), it uses four of the core pungmul drums, each of which symbolizes one element of nature: janggu, the hour-glass shaped drum, represents the rain; buk, the barrel drum, represents the clouds; jing, a large gong, represents the wind; and kkwaenggwari, the small handheld gong, represents thunder. This new style is perfect for watching and listening to in a theater.

Korean master drummer Kim So Ra is one of the leading musicians of samulnori drumming in the world. Her primary instrument is the janggu, one of the most well-known Korean instruments. Its body looks much like an hour-glass on its side, each face of the hourglass has a different sound (one pitched high, the other low) and played with sticks. The janggu represents the rain sound of the samulnori ensemble. Much like a snare drum in a marching band, the janggu is a versatile instrument. Despite its size, it is light enough to be strapped to a performer’s body and incorporated into a traditional dance; it can also be held by a performer in a seated concert.

Kim So Ra was born in the South Korean city of Jeongeup, an epicenter of pungmul music. She grew up surrounded by pungmul players and ensembles, soaking up the traditional sound. Like many high-energy kids, she was drawn to the drums and began to seriously study the janggu at age 9. Soon she embarked on a traditional musical apprenticeship path, going to live with a master drummer so that she could literally live and breathe the janggu. She practiced up to 8 hours a day and learned the nuances of the instrument by heart. As her studies progressed, she became more interested in treating the janggu as a lead instrument, something that hadn’t been done before. While the janggu can’t play a melody, it has two tones (high and low, based on the side of the hour-glass drum) that can be struck rhythmically with sticks.

Kim blends ancient Korean rhythms with modern techniques to strike a balance between old and new styles of playing. The result has landed her on international stages and an adoring audience at home. She is also creating new paths for Korean women drummers and is the founder of the country’s first all-female percussion ensemble.

South Korea is a country in East Asia that occupies the southern portion of the Korean peninsula, bordering North Korea. It is surrounded by oceans on three sides. The modern-day Korean peninsula was divided between North and South Korea following a long Japanese occupation of the land that ended at the conclusion of World War II in 1945. Despite the division, the people of both countries have a shared culture and history, colored by traditions as well as the influence of China and Japan throughout the course of Korea’s history.

Seoul is the capital city of South Korea. With a population of just under 10 million, it is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world. It is a thriving city where ancient tradition and modern customs exist side by side—where traditional kimchi (salted, fermented vegetables) is as equally important culturally as the global music force that is K-Pop (Korean pop music).

Kim So Ra’s performance is set in the Euljiro neighborhood of Seoul. Euljiro is a perfect example of Seoul’s balance between old and new. A small neighborhood of just 1 square mile, Euljiro is home to thousands of tiny manufacturing shops and outdoor food markets where old customs are preserved. But also found in this maze-like neighborhood are small cafes, artist spaces, and the hippest restaurants in the city, symbols of South Korea’s modernity.

After viewing Kim So Ra’s video, before showing it to your class…»

• What did you find most interesting about the video, artist, tradition, and place?
• What do you think the students will find most interesting?
• What concepts/skills/topics in your curriculum might this connect or shed insight on?
• How is the life and community of this artist similar to parts of your students’ communities?
• What did you find most interesting about Kim So Ra, her unique percussive, and the neighborhood or Eujiro?