2010-06-08 18:29
Rock and roll influenced by Korean traditional music is the way to go for putting both Korea’s pop and traditional music on the global radar, a local group pioneering a new genre of rock declares.
Koguryo Band, a five-member local rock group, believes infusing Korean traditional-style music into rock and roll-style compositions -- without the traditional instruments like the daegeum or gayageum -- will be the magic to globalizing the local culture and its ethnic music.
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Members of Koguryo Band (from left) drummer Lee Joong-hoon, vocalist Lee Gil-young, guitarist Yang Ahn-buk and bassist Suh Min-seok. (Koguryo Band) | “Our music is in a category of its own and we aim to be the pioneers of this genre, with the vision of raising worldwide awareness of Korean culture,” said band leader Lee Gil-young. “Rock and roll has the characteristic of being approachable and is familiar to almost everyone all over the world. Bringing Korean traditional music forms through rock and roll could more effectively popularize our ethnic music.”
No group name could better reflect the dream of Lee and his band of their music becoming a world symbol of their home country and an icon of Korean national identity.
Goguryeo is one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea and played an active role in overcoming the power struggle for control of the Korean Peninsula. According to some historical texts, Goguryo was founded in 37 B.C. and acted as a major regional power in Northeast Asia until it was defeated by a Silla-Tang alliance in 668 A.D.
Lee is the lead singer and at times plays guitar. The other four musicians cover the drums, bass, guitar and keyboards. Lee’s innate passion for music, desire to create songs and longing to make Korean traditional music more approachable to people all over the world led to the formation of the Koguryo Band in 2000. Since then, the 39-year-old has released two albums and three singles.
“I hope our music will be able to make Korean traditional music a type of world music that is appreciated by modern-day people, such as how the samba and reggae have not only come to be globally recognized as musical forms but also have come to symbolize their respective national culture,” Lee said in a telephone interview. “Using only our traditional instruments, such as the percussion instruments of samulnori, limits promoting global awareness of our nation,” he said.
Lee then added that he believes his strategy could also be more effective and more promising for raising worldwide awareness of Korean rock bands.
The artist said his group plans to focus on establishing a presence in the Asian market first before attempting to reach out to Western cultures, such as Europe.
Koguryo Band is scheduled to perform its next concert in Osaka. Lee said a concert in Seoul would most likely be possible at the end of the year.
In between, the group will be holding performances at local theaters, such as in Seoul’s trendy area of Hongdae, and in small cities such as Ulsan and Gwangju. By Yoo Soh-jung (sohjung@heraldm.com)
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