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| Kim Yul-hee / Courtesy of Kim Yul-hee |
By Jon Dunbar
Many music scholars consider folk music universal across all cultures. This may help explain why pansori, a traditional Korean narrative musical genre, blends so well with reggae, a Jamaica-originated musical genre drawing on its own local traditions.
The latest _ but not the first _ Korean pansori-reggae project is a collaboration between reggae band NST & the Soul Sauce and sorikkun (pansori singer) Kim Yul-hee.
"There seems to be some point where reggae and pansori meet," Kim told The Korea Times. "Of course, the breathing cannot be quite the same. But it is more fun than difficult when attuning together. When the existing pansori is combined with reggae, we sometimes reduce or attach some lyrics, or compose repetitions, composing the song with flexibility according to the styles or ideas of the music."
The collaboration came together at last year's Muju Film Festival, where Kim connected with the reggae band, led by bassist Noh Seon-teck, performing live as part of a film piece titled "Reggae Inna Film, Heungbu."
Since then, Kim has remained as a guest vocalist with the band, recording together and accompanying them on global tours. She went with them in June to Sierra Nevada World Music Festival in the U.S., where they performed with legendary Jamaican producer Lee "Scratch" Perry, and to Colombia for the CirculArt Tour from Oct. 31 to Nov. 7.
They have a handful of songs together. On NST's brilliantly named album "Back When Tigers Smoked," she provides vocal sounds for the song "Red Tiger." Their repertoire also includes "Monk Song" and "Madame Ppaengdeok" from the pansori play "Simcheongga." Kim says they have more songs and will continue to record together this year.
She also sings a more modern style with the jazz fusion group NEQ, whose album "Passing of Illusion" won a Korean Music Award in 2016 for Best Crossover Album.
But this Gwangju-born sorikkun hasn't lost sight of traditional pansori. She has been in pansori for about 20 years since her youth, and studied under the late Sung Woo-hyang, Park Ae-ri and Han Seung-suk. She won the grand prize at the 2013 National Namdo Folk Song Contest and is a member of Baraji, a band of traditional instrument players.
"I sometimes go for modern when I do collaborations, but my pansori style is mostly traditional," she said.
"Pansori is called the flower of traditional Korean music. Its sound is tough, but it is the most delicate. There exist both joy and sorrow. There are triumphs and tragedies. I think pansori is the biggest bowl that could contain all those emotions."
To hear NST & the Soul Sauce and Kim Yul-hee, visit the "Eastern Standard Sounds" channel on YouTube.
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