Saturday, November 15, 2008

Traditional Korean Drum Ensemble

Ok so I waited til the weekend so you can play this video at home instead of the office. See how considerate I am? This is a great example of Samgomu, a traditional Korean three drum dance. It is a drum dance of ancient Korea which is said to have been inspired by Buddhist monks dances and shamanistic rituals. This video is a bit grainy, but it is one of the best examples of Samgomu I could find. I plan on incorporating Samgomu and other Korean drumming into my Seven Kingdoms sequel, if I ever get the opportunity to work on the sequel, that is. But it is fun for me to watch this and think that my Mom, when she was younger, was an excellent drummer. I've always loved drums, and drums are such an integral part of Korean culture, that it clearly flows in our blood.

So I hope you enjoy a little bit of Korean culture.

15 comments:

Charles Gramlich said...

Lana and I watched some of this drumming last week and it was amazing. I'm looking forward to seeing more.

JaneyV said...

That's really amazing. Not only is it tremendously athletic, it has an incredible grace too. Beautiful.

Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

When I lived in CA, I worked at Laguna Beach United Methodist Church, and there was a Korean drumming group (from LA, maybe? At least Santa Ana) that would come and play in our worship services a couple of times a year - it was breathtaking.

Kimbra Kasch said...

Oh, if only I were musical - at all.

That was beautiful. I could do the back bends but that's about all :(

My husband loves ”Nordic Roots” music. I think it's great to stay in touch with your heritage.

Unknown said...

That was awesome - just love it! It's amazing how evocative drumming can be. Thanks so much for sharing!

And by the way... I've tagged you for a meme over at my place... ;-)

Travis Erwin said...

Very cool. I'm amazed they keep their rhythm with all that bending and twisting. I'd be dizzy as a one legged wino.

Jacqui said...

That is amazing. I love drums -- wanted to play when I was little and got told it wasn't "feminine" (grr).

I can't wait to see how you describe it in writing.

Lana Gramlich said...

As a former hand-drummer, myself (until my bursitis got too bad a couple of years ago,) I LOVE this kind of stuff! Thanks so much for sharing. :)

Kappa no He said...

Gorgeous! I love drums. Korea was all over the Japanese news today. It's entrance exam time and quite a big deal. So sweet to see everyone rooting for their classmates, friends, family.

Akasha Savage. said...

Oh.My.God. That was just amazing. thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

Loved the video - thanks for sharing! I didn't realize how athletic it would be....
- Tinamarie

pacatrue said...

Enjoyable to watch. My office looks out over the university's Korean Studies building, so I get to be serenaded by this periodically. Actually, a co-worker runs a little Korean drumming camp here and attended some famous "workshop" in rural Korea once. Supposedly, it was almost literally like boot camp. They get you up at 6:00 AM and you just drum for hours and hours.

Aine said...

Fascinating-- I've never seen that before. Thanks for sharing! Drumming and dancing blended so gracefully. That's something I would love to try!

March2theSea said...

neat!!!

Cat Moleski said...

Amazing, beautiful, fantastic!