• (The) Research of the performance art and culture
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• no.39
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• pp.69-96
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• 2019

North Korea has conserved operas in a selective manner. The subject matters of operas recorded in the history of North Korea can be divided into classical tales, translated foreign works, Korean War and war against Japan. Operas that adapted folk classics of the 1950s are considered valuable materials to verify the changes of genres posterior to division of regime between North and South Korea. The officially confirmed works include "Kumgangsan Palseonnyeo (Gyeonwoo Jiknyeo)," "Chunhyangjeon." "Kongjwi Patjwi (Kotsin)," "Ondal," and "Geumnaneui Dal." These works had gone through recreation in terms of realistic situation setting, abolition of class difference, adjustment of social rank and punishment of evil while the base lies in the original folk classics. People emphasized in adapted folk operas are described as those who are hard-working souls without giving importance of difference of social rank, content with the currently living space, devoted to their parents and full of patriotic spirit, and members of community who participate in organized fights against unfair exploitation. This was the fruit of encouragement of work creation supporting union between labor and individual life, destruction of old things and fight promoting this destruction. Folk operas of South and North Korea posterior to Korean War have similarities in that both deal with a love story transcending social ranks and the concomitant conflicts and they focus on the audience who enjoy the operas. Nonetheless, they are different in that this love in North Korea became a tool of educating people wished by the regime, while it became an object of securing the audience by adding the tragic element to love in South Korea. North Korean operas of the initial stage are characterized by playwriting method emphasizing difficult life and compensation of common people, realistic stage expression, accentuation of melody and agreement between notes and lyrics. This was efforts designed to continuously lead senses concentrated from the theater to everyday life of people. In effect, this is in line with the playwriting method of revolutionary operas. Adapted folk operas were subject matters ideal for easily approaching the audience and leaving them good memories at the same time. To realize socialist realism, they went through an experiment of reviewing "people" through the classic folk operas. The possibility of continuation of a work was determined by thorough evaluation after carrying out an experiment in terms of subject matters, theme, music and operation plans from the moment of which the work was on the stage. The sign consisted in the possibility of visit of "Kim Il-sung" to appreciate the work and presentation of directionality. By proposing the clear directionality of which hard-working people who deny social status system can be duly compensated, it encouraged the audience who saw the opera to voluntarily put this in practice. Thus, operas established the directionality through selective processes for creating public communion even before revolutionary operas.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.48
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• pp.199-237
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• 2024

Donghak-gyo, the Teaching of Eastern Learning, is a new religious order founded by Kim Ju-hee, centered around the Donghak (Eastern Learning) lineage. The core thought conveyed in the lyrics of Donghak-gyo songs (gasa) can be identified as the concept of 'Return to the Former World (先天),' considering the frequency of the term and the content of the recited verses. The view of time and destiny (時運觀) held by Eastern Learning emphasizes the concept of 'Another Great Opening.' Donghak-gyo's perspective on time and destiny is further rooted in the concept of 'Return to the Former World.' Donghak-gyo particularly emphasizes the term 'Former World,' and incorporates the Study of Changes (易學) into their songs. They recite verses that depict the situation of the Great Opening as an interaction between yin and yang. In Donghak-gyo, it is emphatically asserted that the completion of the Later World's destiny leads to the achievement of the 'Return to the Former World.' It is sung that with the restoration of destiny associated with the 'Return to the Former World,' the symbolic 'Spring (春)' represented by the virtue of Wood (木德) will return. Donghak-gyo describes the unfolding of a new cycle of destiny (運數) as the 'restoration of Changes (易).' When this occurs, they refer to the emerging new world, characterized by a new order and norms, as the 'Return to the Former World,' asserting that a 'moral world' will be established, leading to the development of a moral civilization. It is also sung that the restoration of the destiny associated with the Return to the Former World is akin to the restoration of the Heavenly Dao (天道). The characteristics of the concept of the Return to the Former World are threefold: firstly, it advocates a nostalgic system; secondly, it is a backward-looking thought; and thirdly, the idea of 'cyclical repetition' encourages tangible actions such as 'returning to the origin' or 'restoring fundamentals.' The concept of Return to the Former World in Donghak-gyo, unlike many new religions of those days, provided a unique conceptualization and understanding of the Former World and presented a new framework for interpretation. It moved away from the notion of discarding the Former World as a relic of an outdated era, and instead interpreted it as a new era to be embraced. Therefore, the concept of 'Return to the Former World' in Donghak-gyo should be re-assessed as one of the ideologies that inherits the pursuit of returning to and restoring the past in Eastern traditions. However, it can be criticized for lacking a concrete methodology with regards to the 'Return to the Former World.' Additionally, it is noted for deficiencies in ethical consciousness and moral virtues. Furthermore, its explanation about the Former World come across as insufficient. Thus, the concept of the 'Return to the Former World' in Donghak-gyo seems to be characterized more by declarative slogans than substantive content.

• (The) Research of the performance art and culture
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• no.25
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• pp.253-289
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• 2012

Dasiraegi is a traditional funeral rite performance of Jindo located in the South Jeolla Province of South Korea. With its unique stylistic structure including various dances, songs and witty dialogues, and a storyline depicting the birth of a new life in the wake of death, embodying the Buddhism belief that life and death is interconnected; it attracted great interest from performance organizers and performers who were desperately seeking new contents that can be put on stage as a performance. It is needless to say previous research on Dasiraegi had been most valuable in its recreation as it analyzed the performance from a wide range of perspectives. Despite its contributions, the previous researches were mainly academic focusing on: the symbolic meanings of the performance, basic introduction to the components of the performance such as script, lyrics, witty dialogue, appearance (costume and make-up), stage properties, rhythm, dance and etc., lacking accurate representation of the most crucial element of the performance which is sori (song). For this reason, the study analyzes the music of Dasiraegi and presents its musical characteristics along with its scores to provide practical support for performers who are active in the field. Out of all the numbers in Dasiraegi, this study analyzed all of Geosa-nori and Sadang-nori, the funeral dirge (mourning chant) sung as the performers come on stage and Gasangjae-nori, because among the five proceedings of the funeral rite they were the most commonly performed. There are a plethora of performance recordings to choose from, however, this study chose Jindo Dasiraegi, an album released by E&E Media. The album offers high quality recordings of performances, but more importantly, it is easy to obtain and utilize for performers who want to learn the Dasiraegi based on the script provided in this study. The musical analysis discovered a number of interesting findings. Firstly, most of the songs in Dasiraegi use a typical Yukjabaegi-tori which applies the Mi scale frequently containing cut-off (breaking) sounds. Although, Southern Kyoung-tori which applies the Sol scale was used, it was only in limited parts and was musically incomplete. Secondly, there was no musical affinity between Ssitgim-gut and Dasiraegi albeit both are for funeral rites. The fundamental difference in character and function of Ssitgim-gut and Dasiraegi may be the reason behind this lack of affinity, as Ssitgim-gut is sung to guide the deceased to heaven by comforting him/her, whereas, Dasiaregi is sung to reinvigorate the lives of the living. Lastly, traces of musical grammar found in Pansori are present in the earlier part of Dasiraegi. This may be attributed to the master artist (Designee of Important Intangible Cultural Heritage), who was instrumental in the restoration and hand-down of Dasiaregi, and his experience in a Changgeuk company. The performer's experience with Changgeuk may have induced the alterations in Dasiraegi, causing it to deviate from its original form. On the other hand, it expanded the performative bais by enhancing the performance aspect of Dasiraegi allowing it to be utilized as contents for Performing Arts. It would be meaningful to see this study utilized to benefit future performance artists, taking Dasiraegi as their inspiration, which overcomes the loss of death and invigorates the vibrancy of life.

• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.104
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• pp.40-69
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• 2023

This paper examines the relationship between celadon wine vessels and royal banquets by focusing on their unique forms. It explores the symbolism in their forms and designs and the changes that took place in the composition of these vessels. By examining the royal annals in Goryeosa (The History of the Goryeo Dynasty), the relation of celadon wine vessels and royal banquets is examined in terms of the number of banquets held in the respective reigns of the Goryeo kings, the number of banquets held by type, and the purpose of holding them. A royal banquet was a means of strengthening the royal authority by reinforcing the hierarchy and building bonds between the king and his vassals. It was also an act of ruling that demonstrated the king's authority and power through praise of his achievements and virtues. Royal banquets were held most often during the reigns of King Yejong (r. 1105-1122), King Uijong (r. 1146-1170), King Chungnyeol (r. 1274-1308), and King Gongmin (r. 1351-1374). Particular attention is paid here to the changes in the types and forms of celadon wine vessels that occurred starting in the reigns of King Yejong and King Chungnyeol, which is also the period in which the number of royal banquets increased and royal banquet culture evolved. The king and his subjects prayed for the king's longevity at royal banquets and celebrated peaceful reigns by drinking and performing various related acts. Thus, the visual symbolism of vessels for holding, pouring, or receiving alcohol were emphasized. Since the manner of drinking at a banquet was exchanges of pouring and receiving alcohol between the king and his subjects, the design of the ewers and cups had a significant visual impact on attendees. It can be seen, therefore, that decorating wine vessels with Daoist motifs such as the immortals, luan (a mythological bird), turtle dragons, fish dragons, and gourd bottles or with Confucian designs like hibiscus roots was intended as a visual manifestation of the purpose of royal banquets, which was to celebrate the king and to pray for both loyalty and immortality. In particular, the Peach Offering Dance (獻仙桃) and Music for Returning to the Royal Palace (還宮樂), which correspond to the form and design of celadon wine vessels, was examined. The lyrics of the banquet music embodied wishes for the king's longevity, immortality, and eternal youth as well as for the prosperity of the royal court and a peaceful reign. These words are reflected in wine vessels such as the Celadon Taoist Figure-shaped Pitcher housed in the National Museum of Korea and the Bird Shaped Ewer with Daoist Priest in the Art Institute of Chicago. It is important to note that only Goryeo celadon wine vessels reflect this facet of royal banquet culture in their shape and design. The composition of wine vessel sets changed depending on the theme of the banquet and the types of liquor. After Goryeo Korea was incorporated into the Mongol Empire, new alcoholic beverages were introduced, resulting in changes in banquet culture such as the uses and composition of wine vessel sets. From the reign of King Chungnyeol (r. 1274-1308), which was under the authority of the Yuan imperial court, royal banquets began to be co-hosted by kings and princesses, Mongolian-style banquets like boerzhayan (孛兒扎宴) were held, and attendees donned the tall headdress called gugu worn by Mongol women. During the reign of King Chungnyeol, the banquet culture changed 132 banquets were held. This implies that the court tried to strengthen its authority by royal marriage with the Yuan court, which augmented the number of banquets. At these banquets, new alcoholic drinks were introduced such as grape wine, dongnak (湩酪), and distilled liquor. New wine vessels included stem cups, pear-shaped bottles (yuhuchunping), yi (匜), and cups with a dragon head. The new celadon wine vessels were all modeled after metal wares that were used in the Yuan court or in the Khanates. The changes in the celadon wine vessels of the late Goryeo era were examined here in a more specific manner than in previous studies by expanding the samples for the study to the Eurasian khanates. With the influx of new types of wine vessels, it was natural for the sets and uses of Goryeo celadon wine vessels to change in response. The new styles of celadon wine vessels linked the Goryeo court with the distant Khanates of the Mongol Empire. This paper is the beginning of a new study that examines the uses of Goryeo celadon by illuminating the relations between royal banquets and these unique celadon wine vessels that are stylistically different from everyday vessels. It is to be hoped that more studies will be conducted from diverse perspectives exploring both the usage of Goryeo celadon vessels and their users.