My Impression of Korea - Korea.net

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PEOPLE Yonhap The Korea Herald Diva for Homeland on New Album BY KOH YOUNG-AAH KOREA HERALD STAFF WRITER Jo’s latest album “Missing You” ‘Arirang’ Played by N.K. Pianist at U.S. State Department BY LEE JI-YOON STAFF WRITER North Korean pianist Kim Chul-woong performs at the U.S. State Department in Washington D.C. On Oct. 6, “Arirang,” the beloved Korean folk song, was played in the Benjamin Franklin Room at the U.S. State Department in Washington. The audience was overwhelmed not only by the sad melody of the song, but also by the pianist Kim Chul-woong, a North Korean who defected and now lives in Seoul. The 34-year-old pianist has become the first North Korean defector to have a recital at the center of U.S. diplomacy. “‘Arirang’ is a song that any South and North Korean person can recognize immediately,” he explained why he chose the song to arrange for the concert. “I hope my efforts can be helpful for people to pay more attention to human rights issues in North Korea,” said Kim who was on concert tour across the United States. Another striking moment occurred when the pianist played “A Song of Joy,” a popular North Korean song, which expresses the delights of independence after the Japanese colonial rule. The Korean media compared the moment to when the New York Philharmonic played the American national anthem in Pyongyang in February. On the day Kim gave a rendition of all four music pieces, the audience applauded him after every performance. He was educated at the Pyongyang Music and Dance Institute and graduated from the Tchaikovsky National Musical Academy of Russia. From 1999, he played for the Pyongyang National Orchestra. He crossed the border to go to China in 2001 and arrived in Seoul in 2003. ■ Traveling can be exciting, but it also has a way of making the traveler feel lonely. World-renowned soprano Jo Sumi is no exception. Jo says she has felt solitary throughout her career, due to traveling and spending a lot of time alone studying and practicing. With 25-years of world-traveling experience, Jo has released a new album in October titled “Missing You,” centered around this theme. The crossover album contains 16 representative love songs from various countries, including the all-time-favorite Korean nursery song “Ummaya Nunaya (Mother, Sister).” “I chose to include ‘Ummaya Nunaya’ in the album along with numerous foreign songs, to say that the place that I want to come back to, after all the long journeys, is Korea, where I can see my mother,” said Jo from Italy in a phone interview with The Korea Herald. The soprano is noted for her excellence in classical repertoires, including operas. In May, Jo received a Puccini Award granted to figures who have contributed significantly to the promotion of the great Italian composer. She has been steadily releasing crossover albums as well. While most people expect her to be conservative just because she is a classical musician, Jo said she is actually very open-minded regarding different cultures, religions, and points of views because she went to study in Italy at a young age. “As an artist I desire to make music of different colors once in a while, which is like taking a vacation for me,” Jo said. “As long as the audience can feel relaxed listening to my music, I’m happy.” All the songs on the album were recorded in their original languages, meaning Jo sang in 11 different languages. Although Jo is known for her talent in learning and speaking foreign languages, she said it was a big challenge and was quite stressful. “It required a lot of courage for me to sing in languages I have never been acquainted with, like Swedish and Hebrew,” said Jo. Yet Jo stuck to it because she felt it was a good opportunity for her to get to know different countries, their cultures and historical backgrounds. Marking 22 years as a classical music performer, Jo thinks it is fate that has brought her thus far. “I think it’s fate. As I get older, I feel like I’m destined to do this,” said Jo. Even though confidence on stage only arises from sufficient rehearsing, the soprano said she thinks it is in her nature to become excited on stage. “Although I’m usually not a very outgoing person, I really love the spotlight that I get on stage. It almost makes me feel like a queen,” she said. Jo said she plans to release more crossover albums in the near future while continuing her tour. “I just want to present some healthy and joyful music that can appeal not only to the domestic audience, but also to foreign audiences,” Jo said. Jo starts her Asian tour within few months. She is set to return home for a concert in December. ■ 38 KOREA NOVEMBER 2008 NOVEMBER 2008 KOREA 39
PEOPLE Yonhap Lim performs a traditional Korean dance at the Shimogamo Shrine in Kyoto, Japan Kim Ki-duk’s ‘Dream’ is Provocative, Deep BY YANG SUNG-JIN KOREA HERALD STAFF WRITER Director Kim Ki-duk Award-winning director Kim Ki-duk has built up an international reputation with his films that starkly differ from other mainstream movies in Korea and elsewhere. He stands out largely because of his provocative styles and thought-provoking themes. For better or worse, Kim did not pull any punches in making his 15th feature, “Dream (BiMong),” which was released here on Oct. 9. The movie has attracted media attention by signing up high-profile actors — Lee Na-young from Korea and Joe Odagiri from Japan — but viewers should be aware of the cinematic puzzles director Kim routinely inserts in his films, if they want to grasp what is really going on in this mixture of reality and fantasy. Odagiri plays Jin, an artist who sees himself in a dream causing a car crash. What he discovers, however, is that his dream is not a mere creation of his brain — all the details he witnessed while sleeping turn out to be true. Or that’s what viewers are supposed to assume, given the quirky plot turns provided by director Kim, who never shies away from purposeful ambiguity and ambivalence. Jin encounters a woman named Ran (Lee Na-young), a character who has plenty of grievances, especially concerning her shattered relationship with her ex-boyfriend. Strange as it may be, what Jin believes he has done in his dream is what Ran has done in reality. Although the car accident happens in Jin’s dream, the same incident plays out in Ran’s life, with police seeing her as the prime The poster for the film “Dream” suspect. The key proposition of the movie is that the two main characters are connected through dreams in a way that blurs reality and fantasy. A butterfly emerges as the core image symbolizing the significance of dreams. In fact, this metaphor comes from a well-known ancient Chinese thinker, and its implication is rather straightforward: A person may dream about his life and discover that it’s just a dream when he wakes up, but how can he be sure about the possibility that what appears as reality is also another dream? Kim’s presentation of the dream’s implications, however, is far from straightforward. The subplots are utterly confusing. Jin used to have a girlfriend, but the relationship is now over. But he finds himself dreaming about his former girlfriend and he vaguely senses that he still loves her. While Jin is struggling in his dreams, Ran is visiting her former boyfriend, not in her dream but while sleeping, because she is a sleepwalker. She hates the man deeply and when she realizes what she has done, she gets mad at Jin, the man whose dream goes in lockstep with her nightly visits. To resolve the situation, Jin and Ran attempt to do the almost impossible: stay awake all the time. The assumption is that if Jin does not sleep, Ran does not have to walk around in her sleep. Jin can also sleep without his muchdreaded dream that generates real events when Ran is awake. Their struggle to stay awake is, as some of director Kim’s fans might correctly predict, depicted in a gruesome manner. Self-inflicted torture abounds, which will make the audience squirm. One hint regarding Kim’s message is the peculiar existence of Jin. Japanese actor Odagiri plays the role in Japanese, while all the other characters speak in Korean. Strangely enough, Jin communicates perfectly with other Koreans, even though he continues to speak in Japanese. His otherworldly identity that transcends the language barrier is certainly unrealistic, but Kim leaves more questions than answers about his new cinematic dreamland that is so desolate. ■ Korean Dance Performed at Japan’s Oldest Shrine BY LEE JI-YOON STAFF WRITER Lim Lee-jo, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theatre, captivated the eyes and minds of Japanese audiences with performances presented at Japan’s oldest shrine in Kyoto. During the two-day event held on Oct. 2 and 3, Lim staged traditional Korean dances including the famous “Seungmu,” which is performed by Buddhist monks, and “Salpuri,” a solo dance derived from the shamanistic tradition of spiritual cleansing. Assumed to be built in the Yayoi period (4 B.C.-A.D. 3), the Kamomioya Shrine, better known as the Shimogamo Shrine, has more than 50 treasured buildings on its grounds and was designated a world’s cultural heritage by UNESCO. It was the second time for the respected Japanese shrine to open its space to an overseas artist. The Japanese traditional performance “No,” which consists of masked performers’ dances and songs, opened each day’s performance. Lim appeared on the stage and danced to music played with Korean traditional instruments such as a fiddle and janggu, an hourglass-shaped drum. His subtle and refined movements impressed the Japanese audience of over 1,000 who gathered at the garden. Lim, 58, who celebrated 50 years of his traditional dancing life last year, is considered one of the most renowned traditional dancers in Korea. Now leading the Seoul Dance Theatre, he has choreographed a variety of dance works and contributed to the success of performing arts in Korea. ■ (Photos by Kim Hak-ri) 40 KOREA NOVEMBER 2008 NOVEMBER 2008 KOREA 41
Page 3 and 4: Opening a communicative space betwe
Page 5 and 6: COVER Information on Autumn Festiva
Page 7 and 8: DIPLOMACY Yonhap Yonhap President L
Page 9 and 10: GLOBAL KOREA Gugak performance at t
Page 11 and 12: NATIONAL (From top) Visitors look a
Page 13 and 14: SCIENCE World’s Largest Solar Pow
Page 15 and 16: SBS Actors Park Shin-yang (left) an
Page 17 and 18: CULTURE The dog (gae) A legendary f
Page 19: PEOPLE Jung Sung-ha Korean Guitar P
Page 23 and 24: TRAVEL Samcheong-dong is a sweet an
Page 25 and 26: TRAVEL A Trip Back to Olden Times S
Page 27 and 28: FOOD 1 3 2 Omegisul master Kim Eul-
Page 29 and 30: EVENTS Charity Market Turns into Mu
Page 31 and 32: EVENTS Biennale Transforms Busan in
Page 33 and 34: BOOKS Korea: Impossible to Possible

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