Mountain and Field: 한국의 맥박

Sunday, December 11, 2011

한국의 맥박

In the history of humanity, the second oldest musical instrument after voice is probably percussion. From the day he knew how to beat, the pursuit of the primeval aesthetics of sound became his life's mission. Choi Sori's (born Choi Gyeong-seop) musical life began when he started hitting the cover of his lunchbox during elementary school. He was about to complete his middle school when he ran away from his hometown in Jeolla-do with the money his parents got from selling their cow. His devotion to drumming never stopped as he eked out a living working as an odd job labourer and delivering newspaper and jajang-myeon. He only returned home to complete his high school when he could not understand the English which appeared in the music books.

Holding drumsticks at the age of twelve, Choi Sori isolated himself twice from the world by moving into the mountain to concentrate on his study of musical instrument. During one of his self-imposed isolation, he built a hut in Mt. Jiri and stayed there for three years. The wholehearted pursuit of one's passion always comes at a price. Choi suffered from noise-induced hearing loss due to long term exposure to high-decibel sound. However, he was not one bit perturbed by the possibility of turning deaf. He said, "If I am to lose my hearing completely, I will be able to hear the sound of my heart and imagination better."

Choi Sori is the creative director of "Arirang Party", a 100-min non-verbal performance which harmonises the art of eastern and western percussion, Korean traditional dance, B-boy and Taekwondo into the heartbeat of Korea. It took him ten years to conceptualise and plan the performance which made its debut in 2007. It has since become a cultural brand of Korea with a permanent performing theatre in Jeju Island.