Gwangju in South Korea was where Korean traditional music had been educated and its traditional opera companies had actively given their performances since Korea was freed from the rule of Japanese imperialism, and thus many masters flocked there. In ...
Gwangju in South Korea was where Korean traditional music had been educated and its traditional opera companies had actively given their performances since Korea was freed from the rule of Japanese imperialism, and thus many masters flocked there. In those days there lived many men of taste in Gwangju, who were wealthy and enjoyed their traditional music and was dedicated to supporting it. In the 1950s the traditional music lost competitiveness, but in Gwangju there were many men of taste.
Meanwhile, the traditional music in Gwangju(Gwangju-Pansori) suffered greatly with Park Dong-Sil’s defecting to North Korea. As Gwangju-Pansori had passed down to Kim Chae-Man and Park Dong-Sil, his defection drove it into a crisis of disappearance. But fortunately, many masters have upheld it since Korea was liberated from Japanese colonial rule. As a result, in Gwangju various schools such as Boseong-Sori, Dongchoje, Dongpyeonje and others have retained the history of Gwangju-Pansori.
This study is focused on Kim Sung-Gwon(1926–2008), a master of Pansori who engaged in his activities with Gwangju as his stage from when Gwangju -Pansori was gulped down by the angry waves. In addition, it is within bounds to say that his family laid in the foundation of Gwangju-Pansori. His great-uncle Kim Chae-Man, was a master of Pansori who lived in Sokgol in Gwangju and turned out the renowned such as Park Dong-Sil, Seong Won-Mok, Gong Chang-Sik, Han Sung-Tae and others. Moreover, his father was a renowned singer and contributed to the development of Korean traditional opera by establishing an organization, HyeopRyulSa. Thanks to the family, Kim Sung-Gwon naturally came across how to sing the traditional songs and to play the drum from childhood, and as a result became a professional singer and drummer. In particular, he was appointed to be a human cultural asset in 1991. But regrettably, records fail to show the course of his life, which was an insuperable disadvantage of rural artists.
This study is to arrange the postcolonial history of Korean traditional music in and around Gwangju, as well as to inquire into the historical activities of Kim Sung-Gwon. Hereat the postcolonial history of Korean traditional music was divided into three phases, i.e., phase I (independence–the 1950s), phase II (1960–1985) and phase III (1986–2009). This study looked into the activities of Kim Sung-Gwon as to changes in his life, role and status in the history of Korean traditional music.
The results of this study showed that in the history of traditional music in Gwangju, Kim Sung-Gwon achieved the followings:First, he was the pivotal figure in passing down Gwangju-Pansori for generations.
Second, he did not stick to his own style but came up with Gwangju Drumming on the basis of old-fashioned drumming.
Third, he performed a role of a great drummer in Gwangju and upheld local art.