Aak (; ) is a musical genre of Korean court music. It is an imported form of the Chinese court music yayue,
Aak in Korea was facilitated and adapted through the gifting of instruments from a China emperor to Korea in the 12th century.
Background
Shrine,
Sungkyunkwan seowon]]
Aak is one of three types of Korean court music; the other two are
dangak and
hyangak.
Aak is similar to
dangak in that both have Chinese origins. All the instruments used in
aak are derived from Chinese originals, and very few of these are used in other kinds of traditional Korean music.
Aak was first performed at the Royal Ancestral Shrine in the
Goryeo period as ritual music of the court. The definition of
aak later became narrowed to music for Confucian rituals, although
aak in its broadest sense can still mean any kind of refined or elegant music and therefore can arguably encompass
dangak and
hyangak.
The music is now performed by members of the Kungnip Kugagwŏn National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts in Seoul, Korea.
History
Koryô Dynasty
Aak was brought to
Korea in 1116 through a large gift of 428 musical instruments, as well as 572 costumes and ritual dance objects from
China, a gift to Emperor Yejong of Goryeo from Emperor Huizong of Song.
The number of performers in Korea's
aak ensembles were reduced to 190 from the 400 required for China's ensembles.
Many of the musical pieces and instruments originally brought from
China would eventually be lost to deterioration and the 1361 invasion of Red Turbans from China.
Chosŏn Dynasty
A restoration of
aak occurred in the 15th century during the
Joseon, led by King Sejong
in an effort to promote Confucianism.
This revival of
aak tradition was based upon Chen Yang's writings on court ensemble
Yueshu or "Treatise on Music", Lin Yu's court music notation
Dasheng yuepu or "Collection of Dasheng Music", and
Aak Po or "Treatise on Ceremonial Music" (a chapter of the Sejong Annals)
, showing little resemblance to the
aak performances of the previous dynasty.
This caused a further decrease in the number of performers to about 20, notably without any singers or stringed instruments.
The
aak tradition suffered loss again due to invasions of the Manchu and
Japan in the 16th century, not returning until the late 17th century.
Modern Period
In 1910,
Korea was annexed by
Japan, causing the abolishment of the majority of court music pieces, leaving only the Confucian rites: The Sacrifice to Confucius and The Sacrifice to Royal Ancestors.
These continue to be the only surviving pieces from the 20th century through present times, though The Sacrifice to Royal Ancestors has not been considered to be part of
aak since the 15th century.
Performance
The music is now highly specialized, and it is played only at certain ceremonies, in particular the
Seokjeon Daeje held each spring and autumn at the
Munmyo shrine in the ground of Sungkyunkwan University in
Seoul to honour
Confucius.
It may also be performed at special concerts.
There are two instrumental ensembles – a "terrace" or tȗngga ensemble located on the porch of the main shrine, and a "courtyard" or hôn'ga ensemble located near the main entrance in front of the main shrine building. The music performances or munmyo jeryeak may be accompanied by dances called munmyo ilmu.
Sound
The modern repertoire of
aak consists of just two different surviving melodies.
Both the two surviving pieces have 32 notes that last around 4 minutes when performed, and one of the two is performed in a number of transpositions. The two ensembles perform in alternating turns, playing in musical keys with pitches corresponding to the concept of
yin and
yang from Confucian philosophy, the
tȗngga ensemble in
'yin' key and the
hôn'ga ensemble in the
'yang' key.
The music is played very slowly. Each note is drawn out for around four seconds, with the wind instruments rising in pitch at the end of the note, giving it a distinctive character.
This rise in pitch is believed to have been introduced in the 20th century, influenced by
China musical practice.
Instruments
Instruments utilised in aak music are classified by their primary materials through a system of
China origin, referred to as
p'arum or the "eight sound" system.
The eight types of instrument under the
p'arum system:
bamboo,
wood,
metal,
silk,
skin, stone,
gourd, and
clay.
The instruments used in the performance of The Sacrifice to Confucius are limited to the types of instruments present in Emperor Huizong of Song's gift to Korea's King Yejong of Goryeo, many of which only remain in use for aak.
List of instruments
Bamboo
-
Chi (instrument) – aerophone
-
Yak (instrument) – aerophone
-
Chuk (instrument) – aerophone
-
Paixiao – aerophone
Wood
-
Bak (instrument) – idiophone
-
Bu (instrument) – idiophone
Metal
Silk
-
Seul – chordophone
-
Guqin – chordophone
Stone
Players
See also
External links
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Old recordings of aak in the 1960s A collection of Korean court music videos
