Using wood, silk to produce traditional sound
Go Heung-gon, 63, Important Intangible Cultural Asset No. 42 in traditional music instrument making, put together the “haegeum” or two-stringed traditional instrument in this file photo. / Courtesy of Go Heung-gon
By Kim Ji-soo
Go Heung-gon was busy winding silk threads to make a batch of 12 that he would need for the “gayageum” or 12-stringed Korean zither. He worked constantly, even as he answered the phone, received guests and talked at his workshop in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul.
When more nylon-wrapped steel and brass strings are used in modern-day gayageum, Go keeps on to the traditional method.
“The (silk) strings are responsible for the clear sound,” he said.
Because he worked non-stop, one is naturally drawn to watch his hands that have done this task for 40-plus years; and you notice one hand is just as big as his face. When you mention this, he goes, “Ah...because I guess I did so much work with my hands,” chuckling a bit.
Go works on the strings for the “gayageum” or a 12-string Korean zither in this file photo. The 63-year-old master artisan in traditional Korean string instrument has both an office in Seocho-dong, Seoul and a workshop in Hannam, Gyeonggi Province, where he produces the array of the traditional instruments.
Go, 63, is Important Intangible Cultural Asset No. 42 in traditional music instrument making. He’s the master of string instruments — the gayageum; “geomungo,” a six-string zither; and “haegeum” a two-stringed violin-like instrument. The Korean gayageum dates back to around the 6th century. His clients include big names such as renowned gayageum player Hwang Byeong-gi. But his clients are also students of traditional Korean music whom at this time of the year rush en masse to Go to have their strings tuned.
As a boy, living next to the late traditional musical instrument artisan Kim Gwang-ju in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, he would steal wood from his neighbor to make sleighs.
“I didn’t know that the wood was so important,” Go said.
Several decades later, he knows its importance, which is crucial to determining the sound. Also as an artisan dedicated to succeeding in the traditional method of producing traditional Korean instruments, he goes to extra lengths to secure material.
“In traditional Korean instruments, the body (made from the Paulowinia tree) determines the sound. Making these instruments is actually dealing with the art of sound,” Go said. “The beauty of Korean string instruments is that they are the sound of nature,” he said.
Therefore, he works through a network to secure the best Paulowinia trees, after which he cuts them up and lets them air dry for 10 years before he uses it.
“We have to let the fiber die down,” he said. He said the best woods are the dark ones.
Go Heung-gon’s “gayageum” used for more rapid, free-style traditional music known as “sanjo.”
The silk strings are harder to procure these days because silkworms are used as health supplements. Fortunately, he has a supplier in Jeonju, South Jeolla Province.
Overall, there are more than 200 processes involved in making the gayageum. When Go joined his late teacher’s workshop in 1969, he first started out with planing wood. Then, he took up learning sawing, chiseling, making the bridge and knotting the strings. He said the working with the strings in itself entails about 20 processes.
Asked among which of the more than 200 processes he found most difficult or most rewarding, he said.
“Well, it’s the complete process so that it’s really hard to pinpoint one stage, “ he said. “It is however rewarding when a player performs well with my instrument,” he said.
In fact, it was difficult to get a clear-cut answer from the music instrument master because he obviously saw the process as a holistic one, not from a to b to c. It’s part of the education he obtained from his teacher that a premium product is actually a product of passion more than skilled hands.
“Usually, it’s the musical instruments that stand at the height of one’s culture because without them, it would be hard to play music, and that even extends to dance as well,” he said.
A set of “haegeum” or two-string fiddle made by Go
He mainly learned to create the “sanjo,” a gayageum developed in the late 19th century and used for improvised rapid music from his teacher, but he didn’t stop there and mastered restoring the “jeongak,” the classical gayageum. The sanjo gayageum is smaller than the jeongak, the latter allowing for wider and broader delivery of sound. Go said that after the jeongak gayageum was revived, he’s seeing more of it on the modern stage.
Go said the spirit behind traditional Korean music instruments showed how ancestors tuned the strings in the main room of a house, washing away life’s concerns or to simply appreciate the arts ringing through the clean, distinct sound of the gayageum. He said he wants to convey that sound, that ambience through his instruments.
To lift the confines of the sound of Korean traditional strings music, Go has sought to innovate, producing 18- and 25-string zithers. More strings mean a broader body and increased pitch range to accommodate contemporary music. He also improvised on the geomungo, creating a “daryugeum” that would be fit for a trio performance.
Popular musicians collaborate with players of the gayageum, “geomungo” and the “haegeum” that Go produces and tunes. In fact, the popular rocker/singer Hong Gyeong-min just recently married a haegeum player who often visited Go’s office to tune her strings.
“Oh, they already got married, huh,” he said, when told of the news.
Go has won numerous awards including the Prime Minister’s Award in 1985 before his designation as a cultural asset in 1996. He often goes to concerts of the players whose instruments he has created to check whether the sound is okay and whether the instrument is in harmony with the player. A leader in his field, he still produces about one a month. He has about eight core students that are expected to succeed him in the traditional method of making the string instruments. His most expensive gayageum commands a tall bill of 15 million won. But he spoke vocally about producing premium, posterity-succeeding gayageum products.
“We have to reach deeper into our tradition and deepen its perfection,” he said.