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A Study of Pungmulgut Performers in Jwado, Honam -Focusing on Soijaebi (Kkwaenggwari players) of Pungmul Gut in Gwado-

Yang JIn Sung 1

1원광디지털대학교

Candidate

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this paper is to study the lives of Pungmulgut entertainers of Honam Jwado region focusing on the history and the characteristics of performances by each individual performer. Both paper research and field research have been carried out to obtain the personal information, related anecdotes, career history and the characteristics of the distinguished Pungmulgut performers in Honam Jwado region. The results are as below. Pungmulgut performers of Honam Jwado region used to be the Sangsoe (a leading kkwaenggwari player of the Pungmul band) or kkwaenggwari players of the village ceremonies. Early characteristics show that they settled in their hometown and took the role of leaders of Gutpae (a performing band of Gutpae) as members of villages. Aprt from this, they also did farming as a main occupation for living. Some cases of exceptions are found, however. Lee, Hwa-Choon is from Shman family, so he is moreover a professional performer. The family background of Khi, Chang-Soo is unknown and he is said to make it as his vocation to play the kkwaenggwari for Gut. It is assumed that the major performing area may have been limited to the regions in and around their hometown. Only brief Information about the history of their performances is found from the relevant literatures or oral documents. The information concerns primarily the professional Gutpae (shaman ritual group) or performers who payed the kkwaenggwari for their living. Immediately after the liberation in 1945, a number of group called 'Jwado Pungmulgul Tteunsoe' were organized to actively stage performances of "Pungmulgut' as their living profession. Yoo, Han-Joon and Choi, Sang-Geun formed a 'Pojang Geolippae' under their names to do performances and Jang, Doo-Man, Kim, Soo-Dong, Kang, Tae-Moon, Yoo, Myeong-Cheol seemed to be the performing members of such groups. Such trend has become more prevailing where the purpose of Pungmul performance gets closely tied with means of living. The reasons can be attributed to the more various choices available for social-economic activities, a renewed understanding on economic value of artistic culture, changes in living culture of farming industry, inefficacy of Dure (communal labor organization), increase of Nongak performances in competition styles and others. Professional performers in such environments include Kang, Tae-Moon, Shin, Ki-Nam and Yoo, Myeong-Cheol and others. However, environmental changes can not be considered as the absolute influence on the performing activtiies of those performers. One of the most representative cases include Kim, Bong-Yeol, Jungpyeong-gut performer in Jinan, and Yang, Soon-Yong, Pilbong-gut performer in Imshil. The two performers did farming as their main means of living and combined both farming and performing activities until they passed away. One common point of the two performers is found in that they did their performances in response to the communal objectives and needs of their villages, the most fundamental nature of Maeulgutpae (band for village ritual). The author of this paper defined such kind of performing activities corresponding with the genuine nature of Maeulgut, in contrast to performances for living, as "performing style for communal culture'. The lives and performing activities of Pungmulgut performers in Jwado region can be understood not only as specific individual history but also as the overall regional characteristics of Jwado Pungmul area.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.