Nothing could've expressed the beauty of friendship between Korea and ASEAN nations more than the music of the ASEAN-Korea Traditional Orchestra that finally performed after a year-long period of preparation. The orchestra, made up of 52 types of 79 traditional instruments from Korea and ten Southeast Asian countries – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – produced an unbelievable harmony that opened people's eyes to new possibilities of musical collaboration amongst neighboring nations.
The ASEAN-Korea Traditional Orchestra on Thursday (June 4) made its first public performance in Seoul, after its premiere concert was held on May 31 in front of Korean President Lee Myung-bak and ten visiting heads of state from ASEAN nations at the Jeju International Convention Center.
Sparkling blue light shone down the stage and the theater, which could accommodate over 1,500 audience members, was filled up quickly, leaving standing room only. True to the theme of an orchestra built on friendship and cooperation across borders, many foreign residents, especially from Southeast Asian countries living in Seoul, were in the audience. Everybody was looking forward to the performance of an orchestra of unusual make-up, and wondering how the traditional songs of their countries would sound.
The opening piece of the night was a Korean folk song called “Kwae-Jina Ching-Ching” based on a mythological story by Gyeon-am, a scholar of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). Not only the choir but all the musicians joined in the singing.
The first piece of music from an ASEAN nation was “Reverie” from Cambodia, a soft, flowing tune that told the story of a fantasy journey of romance in a concerto form, featuring the Khmer (Cambodian) musical instruments called kloy, tror so tauch, tror ou, krapeu and roneat aek.
Yu In-chon, minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism lauds the performance of the ASEAN-Korea Traditional Orchestra on Thursday (June 4).
The theme of love was also big in “Japin Laila Senbah & Joget Baju Putih,” a song of marriage from Brunei, “Fantasy Vietnam” from its namesake and “Tap Xoua Fa Din” from Laos, about love and friendship between a boy and a girl.
Other countries featured various aspects of the circle of life in their folk songs. Myanmar's “Kyaeletpadaytha” was based on not one but five folk songs combined. The tune from Thailand was called “Rice's Life” and depicted the lifecycle of rice: how it is planted, nurtured and harvested. Malaysia's tune “Seloka” expressed happiness, joy and harmony in life.
Not all tunes were accompanied by singing, but those that were delighted the audience with their costumes and impassioned crooning. Indonesia was represented by a beautiful singer named Sruti Respati who sang Bengawan Solo, a song with a melancholy sound that praised the beauty of the longest river on Java Island.
Junelie O. Barrios from Philippines showed off her powerful voice with her rendition of Orde-e, a song that unites the heart of overseas Filipino workers scattered throughout the world and missing their homeland. The song starts off slow and becomes powerful, bright and booming; audience members were moved to tap their feet along with the music.
A young and handsome music celebrity from Singapore named Taufik Batisah sang “Singapura” in English at first and then Malay, describing the land of beauty that is that island nation.
One of the fun things to watch every time a new piece was played from another country was the new featured musician. For example, Myanmar's pat waing (drum circle), made of 21 drums hung vertically on cords and played by a drummer seated in the middle – the drum set and drummer rose on a platform from below the stage to the delight of the audience.
From Laos there was the kaen, a free-reed mouth organ with 16 pipes made of bamboo. Thailand had the khong wong, 16 brass gongs arranged by size. Some instruments produced an unexpected sound that clearly led the way for the other instruments, while others blended into the orchestra to make a new kind of harmony.
The finale of the night was “Love ASEAN,” a song whose lyrics are made up of the phrases “Hello,” “I love You” and “Thank You” in 11 languages, with the big screen showing the national flag and representative images of each respective country, symbolizing friendship and good relations.
After this there was an encore of the Korean folk song “Arirang,” to celebrate the goodwill of the host country. The song repeated the word “Arirang,” encouraging just about everybody to sing and clap along. From all countries solo singers, music composers, conductors and directors came to the front of the stage, to once more bring a feeling of togetherness and friendship.
It was an unusual experience to hear an orchestra so different from the standard western one – all traditional instruments largely unknown in Europe outside ethnological museums played by people in their national folk costumes – but the synthesis produced was overall a pleasing one. It is to be hoped that this experiment in international musical fusion will not be a one off, but rather will grow into something lasting and meaningful.