By Ryu Jin
Staff Reporter
Renault Samsung Motors hosted the 4th Korean Song Contest Wednesday evening in the main hall of the National Theater of Korea. Project group ``Bi’’ composed of 12 men and women received the Grand Prize for its song ``Elegy.’’
Kang Hyeong-wu won the Gold Prize, four-member team ``T.I’’ got the Silver Prize and Lee In-wu and Lee Mi-ri took the Bronze Prizes. Winners of the grand prize, gold, silver and bronze received a total of 20 million won in cash prizes along with trophies.
Renault Samsung launched the annual contest in 2004 together with the theater with the aim of promoting popular songs with a Korean flavor and scouting for talented people who could popularize the peculiar melodies and rhythms of the country.
In this year’s event, 11 groups and people picked from a total of 57 entries through two preliminary rounds mounted the main stage to perform in various styles such as traditional, jazz, ballads, progressive metal and new traditional-style pop songs.
Bi, composed of 12 male and female composers, players and singers, won the top prize with its ``Elegy,’’ a Korean-classical style song, inviting a roaring applause from the audience.
About 1,500 people and dignitaries including Renault Samsung Motors CEO Jean-Marie Hurtiger, National Theater of Korea President Shin Sun-hi and Dean of the College of Performing Arts at Dongduck Women’s University attended the contest.
``We’ve been exerting our best efforts to make this event as an authoritative contest to popularize peculiar Korean songs,’’ Renault Samsung Vice President Cho Don-young said.
Renault Samsung said that Wednesday’s event of the 4th Korean Song Contest had been filmed for television broadcasting on Nov. 9 through KBS 1TV and would be distributed in DVDs.