Interview
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Pansori is a very unique genre of Korean traditional music that was created by the common people of the Joseon Period 300 to 400 years ago. Accompanied by a drummer, the singer (or soriggun) sings and tells a story for hours just as in an opera, although, it is hard to find a close parallel of pansori in any other country in the world. The singer captivates the audience by controlling the tempo and strength of his/her voice. Singers with excellent musicality are called myeongchang (master singer). No matter how great the myeongchang sings, the performance is not regarded as satisfactory if the gosu(drummer) fails to fulfill his role perfectly. The gosu makes a rhythmical exclamation (“chuimsae”) to enhance the atmosphere, in addition to playing along with to the singer’s song. Koreans of the past say, “Gosu first and then the myeongchang,” recognizing the importance of the gosu in a pansori performance.
In performances of Ahn Suk-seon and Jo Sang-hyeon, the country’s leading pansori myeongchangs, we often see master gosu Jang Jong-min. How he became a pansori gosu is an interesting story.
“As a student of Gugak National Middle School, I played the daegeum (a large bamboo transverse flute). Upon entering high school, I became interested in rhythm skills. I liked drumming and it fit my musical aptitude. But the most important thing that I realized is that I could appreciate every piece of Korean traditional music, whether it is performed by gayageum, geomungo or pansori, perfectly once I had mastered the rhythm.”
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In other words, he became a gosu to appreciate gugak, the country’s traditional music, better. There are stories about scholars of the Joseon Period learning rhythm skills to enjoy music better. He says that even ordinary people can feel the beauty of gugak more deeply once they learn rhythm skills using a buk (drum).
Gosu Jang Jong-min is also interested in popularizing pansori throughout the world. On the day following his interview, he was planning to fly to Japan to perform with myeongchang Ahn Suk-seon to celebrate the opening of the Korean Cultural Center in Tokyo.
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He said, “Most audiences give vast amount of praise after any performance. However, at many pansori performances, music-lovers who have had opportunities to visit pansori performances give praises from the bottom of their heart. We provide screen translations to allow a foreign audience better experience and understand the performance. They told me that they were deeply moved by the scenes of Chun-hyang parting from Mong-ryong in Chunhyang-jeon and Sim Cheong throwing herself into the sea in Simcheong-jeon.”
In pansori, the story sometimes develops dynamically like a storm. At other times, the story expresses deep lyricism as calm and peaceful as a windless sea. Pansori expresses people’s sentiments more eagerly than any other genre of music and moves the heart of the audience.
Because of its expressive power and ability to move people, Jang Jong-min says that the possibility of the globalization of pansori and changgeuk (traditional opera) is very high, adding that pansori will become an icon symbolizing the richness of Korean culture. He also added that he feels a heavy sense of responsibility as more people like him must provide more high-quality performances.
- Curriculum vitae [ Jang Jong-min ]
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- Drummer at the National Changgeuk Company of Korea - leading drummer of the country, performing teamed with maestro singers
- Making efforts for the globalization of pansori, including holding a performance along with Singer Ahn Suk-seon to celebrate the opening of the Korea Culture Center in Tokyo
