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LOWER EAST

600 E 6th Street, New York, NY

UPPER WEST

150 W 83rd Street, New York, NY

917-733-0631

admin@ nyckoreanschool.org

logo

LOWER EAST

600 E 6th Street, New York, NY

UPPER WEST

150 W 83rd St, New York, NY

917-733-0631

nyckoreanschool @gmail.com

Samulnori

Samul Nori (사물 놀이) is a genre of traditional Korean percussive music that literally means “the playing (nori 놀이) of four (사 sa) objects (물 mul)”. These “four objects” consist of the janggu (장구) – hourglass/slim-waist drum, buk (북) – barrel drum, jing (징) – large gong, and kkwaenggwari (꽹과리) – small gong.

Samul Nori’s history comes from Nong Ak (농악), or “farmers’ music”, where music, dance, and singing were performed in celebration of farm work. The four instruments of Samul Nori each represent a different element of nature:

The Instruments

Lighting - Kkwaenggwari

The K’kwaenggwari is a small gong drum that is made of brass and makes a metallic sound. The player uses one hand to strike the drum with a bamboo mallet, while the other hand holds the drum to dampen the sound. This drum is often the lead instrument in farmer’s bands. Signaling transitions in the music. It represents the element of lightning.

Rain - Janggu

The Janggu has an hourglass shape with animal skins stretched over each end. One end of the drum plays a high-pitched sound and the other side makes a deeper sound. The drum is hung over the shoulder and played with a padded stick or a bamboo reed. Janggu drums represent rain and play the lead in making delicate rhythm changes.

Wind - Jing

The Jing is a large gong drum that is struck with a padded stick. It can be hung on a frame, hand-held, or played with tow hands. The Jing controls the tempo of the music. The “curved” sound it makes imitates the shape of the valleys of Korea. In ancient times it was used to call people together or to sound warnings. The Jing drum represents wind.

Lighting - Kkwaenggwari

The Buk is a barrel shaped drum. It is made out of a piece of hollowed-out wood and covered with leather skins that are tied to the wood on each end. The Buk drum is struck with a wooden stick. It produces the bass sounds in farmers’ music with its strong rhythms and loud volume. The Buk drum is associated with clouds.