Korean traditional ensemble and Bulgarian folk musicians to perform together in Sofia and Plovdiv

published on 12/12/22 2:43 PM

Photo: ich.unesco.org

Eight years ago, the traditional Korean art of nongak was included in UNESCO's Representative List of the world's Intangible Cultural Heritage. The two performances of the Korean Folk Ensemble "Yeongcheon Nongak" in Bulgaria on December 13 at Nikolay Binev Youth Theatre in Sofia and on December 15 at the Music Academy in Plovdiv are dedicated to this anniversary.

The initiator of the events is the Yongchon Cultural Centre (South Korea), in cooperation with the Regional Center for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage in South-Eastern Europe under the auspices of UNESCO and the Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts "Prof. Assen Diamandiev" in Plovdiv.

As the organizers explain, nongak is a music-dance ritual complex that originated among Korean farmers and is practiced as a prayer for a rich harvest, expelling evil spirits, propitiating the gods. Gradually, this folk art received stage life. Nongak combines a percussion ensemble and wind instruments with dance, drama and acrobatic performances.

For the two concerts in Bulgaria, the Korean artists will be joined by Bulgarian performers of bagpipe (Petyo Kostadinov, Ivan Georgiev), kaval (Nedyalko Nedyalkov, Vasil Vasilev), tambourine (Vladimir Vladimirov), gadulka (Hristo Georgiev) and others.

The show consists of 12 parts, admission is free.