A musician plays the sanjo on the daegeum. (National Gugak Center)
The National Gugak Center, in collaboration with the Cultural Heritage Administration’s Deoksugung Palace Management Office, is set to host nighttime concerts at Seokjojeon in the palace, Feb. 21-22 and 28-29, at 7 p.m.
Built during King Gojong’s reign (1863-1907), Deoksugung’s Seokjojeon is the first European-style stone building built in Korea. Since 2015, several concerts have been performed at the historic venue.
The one-hour-long nighttime concert, “Deoksugung Yayeon,” will be composed of three parts. The Court Music Orchestra from the National Gugak Center will take the spotlight in the first segment, performing “Suryongeum” (The Song of the Dragon in the Water) and “Seasons” inspired by a poem welcoming the arrival of spring.
The Folk Music Group will follow with a daegum, a bamboo wind instrument, performance and gayageum byeongchang which involves singing and playing gayageum simultaneously, from pansori “Chunhyangga.”
The final stage will showcase the Contemporary Gugak Orchestra’s composition titled “Sunrise” drawing inspiration from the sunrise over the East Sea, and “Opening Spring, Arirang,” capturing the vibrant springtime scenery.
The concert tickets are free but admission to Deoksugung requires an admission fee of 1,000 won. Sixty tickets will be available for each concert on the National Gugak Center’s official website or by phone starting at 2 p.m. Wednesday on a first-come, first-served basis.
Starting with the Deoksugung Yayeon, the National Gugak Center said it plans to hold around 40 performances annually in cultural spaces such as palaces and traditional venues.
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