Daegeum
Encyclopedia
The daegeum is a large bamboo 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 folk music, as well as in contemporary classical music
, popular music, and film scores.
Smaller flutes in the same family include the junggeum
(hangul: 중금; hanja: 中琴 or 中笒) and sogeum (hangul: 소금; hanja: 小琴 or 小笒), neither of which today have a buzzing membrane. The three together are known as samjuk (hangul: 삼죽; hanja: 三竹; literally "three bamboo"), as the three primary flutes of the Silla
period.http://munye.bizhomep.com/?pagecode=m02&albummode=singlist&sw=&intalbumseq=11
The solo performance called daegeum sanjo
was pronounced an Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea by the Cultural Heritage Administration
of South Korea in 1971.http://www.cha.go.kr/english/search_plaza_new/ECulresult_Db_View.jsp?VdkVgwKey=17,00450000,ZZ&queryText=V_EKDCD='17'&requery=0
of Silla
was informed by Park Suk Jung, his caretaker of the ocean (海官) in 618
that a small island was floating toward a Buddhist temple in the Sea of Japan
(East Sea). The king ordered his caretaker of the sun to test whether this was good luck. The caretaker replied that a dead king who turned into a sea dragon, and two great warriors are giving a gift to protect Silla, and if the king would visit the sea, he would receive a priceless gift. The king soon sent a person to look for the gift. The person replied that a bamboo tree on the top of the island becomes two in the morning and one in the night. On the next day, the world shook and it rained and wind blew, and the world was thrown into darkness for a week. When the king went to the island himself, a dragon appeared and told him that if the bamboo on the top of the island was cut down, made into a flute, and blown, the country would be peaceful. The king cut down the tree, and the flute made from the bamboo was called Man Pa Sik Juk (萬波息笛).
Timbre
In music, timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production, such as voices and musical instruments, such as string instruments, wind instruments, and percussion instruments. The physical characteristics of sound that determine the...
. It is used in court, aristocratic, and folk music, as well as in contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music can be understood as belonging to the period that started in the mid-1970s with the retreat of modernism. However, the term may also be employed in a broader sense to refer to all post-1945 modern musical forms.-Categorization:...
, popular music, and film scores.
Smaller flutes in the same family include the junggeum
Junggeum
The junggeum is a medium-sized bamboo transverse flute formerly used in traditional Korean music. Unlike the larger daegeum, it does not have a buzzing membrane...
(hangul: 중금; hanja: 中琴 or 中笒) and sogeum (hangul: 소금; hanja: 小琴 or 小笒), neither of which today have a buzzing membrane. The three together are known as samjuk (hangul: 삼죽; hanja: 三竹; literally "three bamboo"), as the three primary flutes of the Silla
Silla
Silla was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and one of the longest sustained dynasties in...
period.http://munye.bizhomep.com/?pagecode=m02&albummode=singlist&sw=&intalbumseq=11
The solo performance called daegeum sanjo
Sanjo (music)
Sanjo, literally meaning 'scattered melodies' and is a style of traditional Korean music, involving an instrumental solo accompanied by drumming on the janggu, an hourglass-shaped drum...
was pronounced an Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea by the Cultural Heritage Administration
Cultural Heritage Administration
The Cultural Heritage Administration or CHA, formerly the Cultural Properties Administration, is an agency of the South Korean government charged with preserving key aspects of the Korean cultural heritage. It is headquartered in the city of Daejeon at the Daejeon Government Complex...
of South Korea in 1971.http://www.cha.go.kr/english/search_plaza_new/ECulresult_Db_View.jsp?VdkVgwKey=17,00450000,ZZ&queryText=V_EKDCD='17'&requery=0
History
According to Korean folklore, the daegeum is said to have been invented when King SinmunSinmun of Silla
Sinmun of Silla was the thirty-first king of Silla, a Korean state that originated in the southwestern Korean peninsula and went on to unify most of the peninsula under its rule in the mid 7th century. He was the eldest son of Silla's unifier-king, Munmu and Queen Jaeui...
of Silla
Silla
Silla was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, and one of the longest sustained dynasties in...
was informed by Park Suk Jung, his caretaker of the ocean (海官) in 618
618
Year 618 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 618 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* The Sui Dynasty ends and the Tang Dynasty...
that a small island was floating toward a Buddhist temple in the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Asian mainland, the Japanese archipelago and Sakhalin. It is bordered by Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific...
(East Sea). The king ordered his caretaker of the sun to test whether this was good luck. The caretaker replied that a dead king who turned into a sea dragon, and two great warriors are giving a gift to protect Silla, and if the king would visit the sea, he would receive a priceless gift. The king soon sent a person to look for the gift. The person replied that a bamboo tree on the top of the island becomes two in the morning and one in the night. On the next day, the world shook and it rained and wind blew, and the world was thrown into darkness for a week. When the king went to the island himself, a dragon appeared and told him that if the bamboo on the top of the island was cut down, made into a flute, and blown, the country would be peaceful. The king cut down the tree, and the flute made from the bamboo was called Man Pa Sik Juk (萬波息笛).
See also
- JunggeumJunggeumThe junggeum is a medium-sized bamboo transverse flute formerly used in traditional Korean music. Unlike the larger daegeum, it does not have a buzzing membrane...
- SogeumSogeumThe sogeum is a small bamboo transverse flute used in traditional Korean music. Unlike the larger daegeum, it does not have a buzzing membrane...
- Music of Korea
- Traditional Korean musical instrumentsTraditional Korean musical instrumentsTraditional Korean musical instruments comprise a wide range of string, wind, and percussion instruments.-String:Korean string instruments include those that are plucked, bowed, and struck...
- Dizi
- Di moDi moThe dimo is a special membrane applied to the transverse Chinese flute called dizi , giving the instrument its characteristic buzzing timbre....