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In Search of Korean Traditional Opera: Discourses of Ch'angguk

This is the first book on Korean opera in a

language other than Korean. Its subject, ch'angguk, is a genre that has been developed over the last hundred years from the older practice of p'ansori musical storytelling, whose distinctive husky vocal tone it retains. Conceived from the beginning at least in part as a medium for presenting images of Korea to the outside world, ch'angguk presents an intriguing case of the "invention of tradition" in that, a century later, efforts to establish it as "Korean traditional opera" remain inconclusive.

While p'ansori has attracted numerous studies both in Korean and in English, ch'angguk has been largely neglected by scholars as an "inauthentic" modern derivative of a more highly valued "traditional" art form, despite its often considerable popularity and cultural importance. This study positions itself outside the ideology of "authentic tradition" to assess the historical development and contemporary aesthetics of ch'angguk as a set of "discourses" about Korean national identity, tradition and modernity.

Drawing on three years of fieldwork that included direct observation of countless rehearsals and performances, interviews and day-to-day interaction with ch'angguk artists, and close study of primary and secondary sources, the book presents a systematic account of ch'angguk's history, addressing such controversial questions as the foreign influences that lay behind its origins, the status of tradition-based art forms during the Japanese colonial period and the gender dynamics of the all-female version yosong kukkuk. It also presents an original analysis of ch'angguk's p'ansori-based musical system and of the meanings and themes of its repertoire of stories. The book thus fills an important gap in the literature on Asian theatre as well as music.

Indicators of impact:

Reviews in Ethnomusicology Forum, The World of Music, Choice, Pacific Affairs.

Invitation to give book launch event hosted by Asian Performing Arts Forum, London.

This 300-page book required the collection and

analysis of a large body of material, as reflected in its 15-page bibliography. It required the use of primary sources which were especially extensive, complex and difficult to access, in that they were in the Korean language and available only in Korea. The book draws on three years of intensive fieldwork, including archival work, interviews and direct observation, followed by a decade of refining and updating the original findings in the light of newly emerging evidence, theories and practices. This long research process made possible the book's new factual findings and critical insights.