Byeon Yeso from Jangheung-gun Wins Grand Prize in High School Division at the 35th National Youth Gugak Competition

Jangheung-gun native Byeon Ye-seo, who won the Grand Prize in the high school division at the 35th National Youth Gugak Competition (Photo by Jangheung-gun)

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Seo Young-seo] Byeon Ye-seo, a gayageum prodigy from Jangheung-gun, received the Grand Prize (1st place) in the high school division at the 35th National Youth Gugak Competition held last month and was awarded the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award.

The National Youth Gugak Competition, a prestigious event held since 1987, provides a venue for young people, the future leaders of our society, to directly experience and feel gugak imbued with the spirit of the nation, thereby contributing to the transmission and succession of gugak.

In particular, this award was even more meaningful as she performed the Choi Ok-sam style gayageum sanjo, named after the gayageum master Choi Ok-sam from Jangheung.

Byeon Ye-seo is the granddaughter of Byeon Dong-sik (former Gwan-san-eup chief, grandfather) and Joo Yong-jo (Chairman of the Nature Conservation Council, maternal grandfather), who reside in Jangheung-eup, and is currently a first-year student in the gayageum department at the National Gugak High School.

She has stood out as a next-generation gugak artist, winning the middle school division grand prize at the 2020 Jeonju National Gugak Competition and collaborating in the “Astana Symphony Concert with Conductor Yoon Ki-yeon” held in Kazakhstan in 2019.

Jung Jong-soon, the county governor, said, “We are very pleased that a student from Jangheung-gun has gained nationwide recognition,” and added, “We look forward to her future activities as an excellent gugak artist.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.