''Sanjo'', literally meaning 'scattered melodies', is a style of traditional
Korean music
Korea refers to music from the Korean peninsula ranging from prehistoric times to the division of Korea into South and North in 1945. It includes court music, folk music, poetic songs, and religious music used in shamanistic and Buddhist traditi ...
, involving an instrumental solo accompanied by drumming on the ''
janggu
The ''janggu'' (, also transliterated as ''janggo'' or ''changgo'') or sometimes called ''seyogo'' (slim waist drum) is the most representative drum in traditional Korean music. It is available in most kinds, and consists of an hourglass-shaped ...
'', an
hourglass-shaped drum. The art of ''sanjo'' is a real crystallization of traditional Korean melody and rhythm which may have been handed down by rote generation after generation.
The drummer who beats the ''janggu'' also makes ''
chuimsae'' (exclamations) in order to please the audience.
The audience can also express their excited feeling with ''chuimsae'' while listening to ''sanjo''. A big ''chuimsae'' indicates a good performance, so the musician can make a better performance. Like ''
pansori
' () is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer.
The term ''pansori'' is derived from the Korean words ''pan'' (Hangul: 판) and ''sori'' (Hangul: 소리), the latter of which means "sound." However, ''pan' ...
'', ''chuimsae'' plays an important role in ''sanjo''. Without ''chuimsae'', the music is meaningless. ''Chuimsae'' connects musician and audience during a ''sanjo'' performance. Almost every Korean traditional musical instrument is used in ''sanjo'':
gayageum
The ''gayageum'' or ''kayagum'' (in Korean 가야금, 伽倻琴 in Chinese characters) is a traditional Korean plucked zither with 12 strings, though some more recent variants have 18, 21 or 25 strings. It is probably the best known traditional K ...
,
geomungo
The geomungo (also spelled ''komungo'' or ''kŏmun'go'') or ''hyeongeum'' (literally "black zither", also spelled ''hyongum'' or ''hyŏn'gŭm'') is a traditional Korean plucked zither with both bridges and frets. ''Geomungo'' is a representative ...
,
daegeum
The ''daegeum'' (also spelled ''taegum'', ''daegum'' or ''taegŭm'') is a large bamboo flute, a transverse flute used in traditional Korean music. It has a buzzing membrane that gives it a special timbre. It is used in court, aristocratic, and f ...
,
haegeum
The ''haegeum'' () is a traditional Korean string instrument, resembling a vertical fiddle with two strings; derived from '' xiqin'', traditional Instrument of Xi people, which was introduced in Goryeo Dynasty through Northern Song. It has ...
,
piri
The ''piri'' is a Korean double reed instrument, used in both the folk and classical (court) music of Korea. Originating in Central Asia, it was introduced to the Korean peninsula from China, and has been used there as early as the Three Kingdom ...
,
taepyeongso
The ''taepyeongso'' (lit. "big peace wind instrument"; also called ''hojok'', ''hojeok'' 호적 號笛/ 胡 笛, ''nallari'', or ''saenap'', 嗩 吶) is a Korean double reed wind instrument in the shawm or oboe family, probably descended from th ...
,
ajaeng
The ''ajaeng'' is a Korean string instrument. It is a wide zither with strings of twisted silk. It is played with a slender stick of forsythia wood that is drawn across the strings in the manner of a bow (music), bow. The ''ajaeng'' mainly plays ...
,
danso
The ''danso'' (also spelled ''tanso'') is a Korean notched, end-blown vertical bamboo flute used in Korean folk music. It is traditionally made of bamboo, but since the 20th century it has also been made of plastic. It was imported from China ...
.
''Sanjo'' was said to be developed around 1890 by
Kim Chang-jo (1865–1920) for the ''
gayageum
The ''gayageum'' or ''kayagum'' (in Korean 가야금, 伽倻琴 in Chinese characters) is a traditional Korean plucked zither with 12 strings, though some more recent variants have 18, 21 or 25 strings. It is probably the best known traditional K ...
''. Thereafter, it was expanded to other traditional Korean instruments, including the ''geomungo'' and
Korean flute
Traditional Korean musical instruments comprise a wide range of string, wind, and percussion instruments. Many traditional Korean musical instruments (especially those used in Confucian ceremonies) derive from Chinese musical instruments.
String
K ...
s. Its early development was informed by other genres of traditional music, including ''
pansori
' () is a Korean genre of musical storytelling performed by a singer and a drummer.
The term ''pansori'' is derived from the Korean words ''pan'' (Hangul: 판) and ''sori'' (Hangul: 소리), the latter of which means "sound." However, ''pan' ...
'', ''
sinawi
''Sinawi'', sometimes spelled ''shinawi'', is a traditional Korean music. It is performed improvisationally by a musical ensemble, and traditionally accompanies the rites of Korean shamanism. The style first emerged in the Chungcheong and Jeol ...
'', and the performances of
Korean shamanism
Korean shamanism or Mu-ism is a religion from Korea. In the Korean language, alternative terms for the tradition are ''musok'' () and ''mugyo'' (무교, 巫敎). Scholars of religion have classified it as a folk religion. There is no central auth ...
.
''Daegeum sanjo'', played on the ''daegeum'' (a traditional Korean
transverse flute
A transverse flute or side-blown flute is a flute which is held horizontally when played. The player blows across the embouchure hole, in a direction perpendicular to the flute's body length.
Transverse flutes include the Western concert flute ...
) was developed in the 1920s. It has since become one of the most popular forms of ''sanjo''. Its leading practitioner today is
Yi Saenggang
Yi Saenggang (born 1936), also known as Lee Saenggang, is a South Korean musician and a leading practitioner of ''daegeum sanjo'', an instrumental style of Korean music played on the ''daegeum
The ''daegeum'' (also spelled ''taegum'', ''daegu ...
.
Sanjo is traditionally identified as a form of ''
minsogak
Sogak is an abbreviation of ''pungsogeumak'', which means music that expresses people's emotions. It represent one of the two categories of the traditional Korean court music from Joseon Dynasty. It includes genres such as hyangak, dangak and s ...
'', or folk music.
Composition
The composition of ''sanjo'' varies depending on the people, instruments and time. However, usually ''sanjo'' starts with a slow ''
jinyangjo'' rhythm (hangul: 진양조장단; very slow rhythm used in ''pansori'' or ''sanjo'') and becomes faster, ending with a very fast rhythm like a ''
danmori'' rhythm and creating enthusiasm in the audience. Starting from a slow rhythm, the audience can gradually sink into the melody of the song. ''Sanjo'' expresses various aspects of the player. ''Sanjo''s are not fixed music. The musician can make new music with original variations. ''Sanjo'' has endless melodies in which musicians make new compositions that change with the times.
[The story of Korean traditional music, Sungjae Lee]
See also
*
List of musical genres
This is a list of music genres and styles. Music can be described in terms of many genres and styles. Classifications are often arbitrary, and may be disputed and closely related forms often overlap. Larger genres and styles comprise more specifi ...
*
Music of Korea
Korea refers to music from the Korean peninsula ranging from prehistoric times to the division of Korea into South and North in 1945. It includes court music, folk music, poetic songs, and religious music used in shamanistic and Buddhist tradit ...
External links
Asianinfo on MinsogakDoctoral thesis on Daegeum Sanjo
h2>
Listening
from Robert Garfias site – links to audio do not work
Video
''Sanjo'' videos
from Robert Garfias site
References
Korean traditional music
{{korea-stub