Music Brings Us Together: Thoughts And Feelings From A Traditional Korean Music Performance

Words cannot begin to describe how excited I was through all of last week, waiting eagerly for September 26th to come. Why? Because for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea and the Korean Cultural Centre Canada were able to host an in-person event*!

Strings Quartet & Korean Traditional Music Performance. It could have been anything and I still would have been overjoyed just to have somewhere to go, but the prospect of being treated to such a special musical performance as the official welcome back to live functions was like the cherry on top of an already-delicious sundae.

And what a welcome back it was! Guests were greeted at the plaza by staff of the Korean Cultural Centre, who were handing out free packages of delicious Korean snacks, candy, and hand-warmers for when the sun went down. The packed seating area left standing room only and the audience buzzed with positive energy. I think everyone was grateful to be out and about at events again.

Now, enough of my delighted rambling: let’s talk about the event and its extraordinarily talented performers.

As the sunset cast long shadows across the plaza full of seated audience members and curious lookers-on, Keung Ryong Chang— Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Canada —walked to centre stage with a smile so big it warmed the chilly evening air. Evidently, I wasn’t the only person who sorely missed others in the community.

“This is our first in-person event since the pandemic started,” The Ambassador’s voice was filled with happiness, which I personally found contagious, unable to stop myself from grinning ear-to-ear. "I'm grateful to be able to host tonight's performance."

Following His Excellency’s introduction, four sharply dressed young men took their places on the stage. These men made up the Strings Quartet; Byungchan Lee on violin, Heemin Choi on violin, Alejandro Valdepenãs on viola, and David Liam Roberts on cello.

What I can tell you that they played String Quartet No. 9 in C major, Op. 59, No. 3, by Ludwig van Beethoven. What I can’t tell you is how beautiful and stirring their musical performance was, at least not in words. So I’ve attached a small clip below.

Though it was truly a different kind of experience to see and hear this quartet live, capturing them on video does at least convey their immense talent and honed skills.

Next up to perform were another four musicians who captured my attention so thoroughly with their gorgeous traditional Korean garments that my eyes didn’t wander from the stage for a moment throughout their entire set. I swear, any time I see someone in a hanbok, I think they look so beautiful that I want to wear one too.

And how else could this lovely group play traditional music than with traditional instruments? We had the honor of seeing Sosun Suh, who played the haegeum; ChoongHeon Baek, on the janggu; Taewook John Lee, who played mainly the daegeum; and Hyunyoung Roa Lee, on the gayageum.

I was actually so excited when the MC announced the traditional musicians would be playing a rendition of Arirang— a personal favorite ever since BTS covered it —that I think I startled some other guests around me with my enthusiastic clapping. You can watch the whole song below, because I was not about to miss capturing it.

Again, video isn’t the best way to experience this kind of event. If you’re ever given the opportunity to see these incredible musicians live, I highly recommend it.

The other songs played by the traditional performers were Legend of Jeol-Young by BongChun Kang, and The First Step by Roa Lee.

To close out the night of many melodies, the Strings Quartet returned once more to grace us with two final songs. First was Langsamer Satz by Anton Webern, and last was, to my absolute glee, another variation of Arirang. It was the perfect way to end the event.

As I’m sure was made incredibly obvious through every word in this blog post, being able to attend this special in-person musical performance made me so very happy. I am looking forward to experiencing even more this year as more and more live events become safe to host. Thank you so much to The Embassy of the Republic of Korea and The Korean Cultural Centre Canada, as always, for providing me the chance to attend.

*This event was hosted in compliance with national COVID-19 guidelines.