Korean Composers Festival: Concert No. 2

All are welcome to attend the Korean Composers Festival September 23–24. The Korean Composers Festival will feature not only musical performances, but also presentations, lecture-recitals, and a Korean cuisine–inspired dinner reception. A full schedule of events is available on the festival’s website.

The program for the Korean Composers Festival Concert No. 2:

Variations on Arirang
by Soomin Kim (b. 1995)

This piece is a set of variations based on “Arirang,” which is a folk tune that is close to every Korean’s heart. Each variation highlights different characteristics of Arirang; for example, the first variation introduces the five notes of the scale in the order that they appear in the original folk tune; the fourth one, the longest and the most chromatic, is based on a diminished version of a pentatonic scale. The original tune is finally revealed at the very end with luscious harmony.

The meaning of “Arirang” remains unclear to this day. Regardless, Arirang to me means resilience and perseverance that my people have shown for centuries in the times of war, colonization, financial crisis and national tragedy. This piece is my homage to the folk tune that has seen Korea through the centuries of hardship and to the people that survived through it.

Collection of Distant Memories for Guitar and Clarinet
by Nicky Sohn (b. 1992)

I. Grilled Chestnut
II. Ramen and Nine-Holed Coal
III. Mom and Mackerel

These clarinet and guitar pieces are based on well-known Korean melodies. The first evokes memories of roasted chestnuts on winter streets. The original melody is transformed to reflect nostalgia. “Ramen and nine-holed-cole” is a playful tune from an animated TV show, with the melody hidden and stretched out in the composition. Lastly, “Mom and mackerel” is a famous pop song from the 80s, expressing love through food, a common love language for older generations. Despite the upbeat and energetic nature of the original song, the composition shares an intimate sentiment. Overall, the pieces are groovy, cheerful, and evoke memories of beloved foods and cherished moments.

Keeheon Nam, clarinet • Austin Wahl, guitar

Dear Mommy and Sister
by YoungJo Lee (b. 1943)

Young Jo Lee ranks among the most outstanding and internationally renowned Korean composers. His first major teacher was his father, Heung Ryul Lee (1909–80), one of Korea’s most important composers of art songs. Young Jo Lee earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Yonsei University in Seoul. In 1975, he continued his education at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Munich where he studied composition with Carl Orff (1895–1982) and Wilhelm Killmayer (1927–2017). Lee earned two doctorates from the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago, in composition (1987) and in horn performance (1989).

Lee was chairman of the theory and composition department at the American Conservatory from 1989 to 1994. Upon returning to Seoul in 1994, he became professor of composition at the Korean National University of the Arts, and was dean there from 1997 until his retirement in 2008. He later became dean of the Korea National Institute for the Gifted in Arts and chairman of the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

The original choral version of Dear Mommy and Sister dates from 1962. The version for soprano, trumpet, and piano was completed in 2017 and is dedicated to Craig B. Parker. The premiere performance of this version occurred on January 19, 2018 at the second Composition in Asia Symposium and Festival by Jumi Kim (soprano), Craig B. Parker (trumpet), and E. J. Choe (piano). The English translation of the original Korean is as follows:

Dear mommy, dearest sister,
Let us live beside the river
With the light
With the glittering sand in the courtyard
With the song of the rushes
Blowing beyond the walls
Beside the river
Let us live
Dearest mommy, dearest sister.

Jumi Kim, soprano • Craig Parker, trumpet • Koeun Grace Lee, piano

Distant Memories
by HyeKyung Lee (b. 1959)

Distant Memories was commissioned by/written for Ralph Farris (of Ethel). Some memories are vague, some are blurred, and some are even absent. Some memories are distant, but still stay vivid and evoke various emotions of that time. The piece utilizes the uneven repetitions of the notes, fluctuating arpeggios, and frequent changes of the meter and keys. The piece explores distant memories in the past.

Dahm Huh, viola • HyeKyung Lee, piano

가위 (“Scissors:”): Fantasia Toccata
by Jiyoun Chung (b. 1982)

In her work, 가위 (“Scissors”): Fantasia Toccata for solo piano, Chung portrays Korean traditional percussion music through the visual and rhythmic features, as well as through her own interpretation of the sounds and pitches from the instrument. In addition to the Korean instrument, she incorporates a particular object used in an act derived from Korea that may not be familiar even to native Koreans; “Scissor Hitting”. While integrating traditional Western style musical technique, in her own way, Jiyoun Chung emphasizes and brings into light a unique aspect of Korean culture.

April Ryun Kim, piano

Pali-Pali!
by Texu Kim (b. 1980)

Pali-pali is a common Korean expression, which is similar to ‘chop-chop’ in English but much more present, almost as a lifestyle – hard working AND efficient. Many South Korean people seem to believe this to have played a significant role in South Korea’s rapid economic growth in the late 20th century.

The title of this piece “Pali-pali!” came from the situation in which I actually had to compose the piece very quickly, due to the last-minute commission. I did not just accept but ENJOYED this challenge (all thanks to this Pali-pali spirit I inherited), by making this piece about a composer dealing with deadlines!

The opening of this piece is somewhat auspicious and contemplative, as when one begins a new composition project. Then, the music becomes anxious, depicting the moment when the composer becomes aware of the deadline approaching but tries to stay calm and focused. The music becomes frenetic and frantic, eventually to explode! Will the composer make it to the deadline? We will figure it out!

Yu-Fang Chen, violin • Peter Opie, cello