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Traditional Korean Performing Art Kamu
The 5 000-year national heritage of Korea includes kamu, which is a mixture of singing and dancing with instrumental music. Archaeological unearthing produced the relics of wind instruments and percussion instruments dating back to the period of Bronze Age (around 3 000 BC), such as a bone flute and a bronze bell used in singing and dancing. From ancient times the Koreans loved songs and dances very much. A historical record of a neighbouring country says that the people of Ancient Joson (the early 30th century BC—108 BC), Puyo (the mid-15th century BC—219 BC) and Jinguk (around 12th century BC—the early mid-1st century AD) were fond of kamu.
The unique entertainment was more prevalent in the period of the Three Kingdoms. According to an old record the men and women of Koguryo (277 BC—AD 668) gathered at given places in the evening to enjoy singing and dancing, and it was ubiquitous in the country. The murals created in the Koguryo period show many people singing and dancing in lines. It was widespread in Silla (the mid-1st century AD—935), Paekje (the late 1st century BC—AD 660), Kaya (the mid-1st century AD—the mid-6th century), and a large number of kamu pieces were created. For example, there are historic records, like Jongup of Paekje, Huisogok of Silla and Yongsinga of Kaya.
In the period of Palhae (698 AD—926) kamu was further developed. In Tapchu, a folk song and dance of Palhae, the people good at singing and dancing advanced in the van and a large number of people followed them behind, repeating the song and dancing movements. This shows that kamu made further progress in its structural form. In the periods of Koryo (918—1392) and the Feudal Joson Dynasty (1392—1910) kamu was widely popularized as a means of instilling the creativeness and joy in people and encouraging unity, patriotism and fighting spirit against aggressors. During the time the provincial kinds of kamu became pronounced, as shown by Tondollari from Hamgyong Province, Nilliri from the central area and Hoeyang Nilliri from Kangwon Province.
The Korean nation’s kamu is excellent in artistic presentation, too. First of all, it reflects different aspects of life—labour, struggle against aggression and feudal rulers, long life in good health, folk games and others. On the other hand it has rich rhythmicity and strong artistic representation. From old times all the kamu pieces created by the Korean nation were rich in emotion and gusto. Especially, they were characteristic of good tunes. The Koreans loved to use muljanggo, a kind of accompaniment that was made by beating the gourd put in a water-filled jar upside down. With a long spell of deep and resonant sound it matched well with the singing and dancing, thus becoming accompaniment peculiar to the Korean performance art.
Kamu exerted a great influence on the emotional life of the Koreans and the development of the national arts. On their way to and from work in the field, people used to play kamu. While doing rice-planting and weeding they beat rhythms and sang songs to boost the enthusiasm or relieve their fatigue during breaks. They played kamu even when they were practising martial arts or playing sports game.
The kind of art played an important role in the Korean people’s struggle against aggressors. Even in fierce battles they sang and danced to the tune of the peasant music, striking terror into the heart of the enemy. The typical works created in the Imjin Patriotic War were Kanggangsuwollae and Gong, Gong, O Delight. A foreigner, who made the rounds of Korea in the 19th century, wrote in his book Note of Travel to Korea: “No other Asian nations have as ardent attachment to the music than the Koreans.”
Today kamu is wonderfully inherited along with the time-honoured history of the nation. |