Rediscovering Jongmyo Jeryeak Dance, the 'Perfect Blend' of Tradition and Modernity

Seoul City Dance Company to Perform 'Ilmu' at Sejong Center Grand Theater May 19-22
Director Jeong Hyejin, Director Jeong Guho, and Choreographer Kim Jaedeok Collaborate, Drawing Attention

The Seoul Metropolitan Dance Company will perform "Ilmu" at the Sejong Center Grand Theater from May 19 to 22. Photo by Seoul Metropolitan Dance Company

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] “The king deeply understood musical tones. The rhythm of the new music (Sinak) was all established by the king, who completed the beat by tapping a stick on the ground in one evening.” - Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, Sejong 31st year, December 25, 1449

King Sejong, who had profound knowledge beyond scholarship into music, is said to have personally created the ancestral ritual music of Jongmyo Shrine while questioning the practice of playing Dangak during ceremonies, saying, “Why do we listen to Hyangak while alive but play Aak after death?” This Jongmyo Jeryeak combined instrumental music, singing, and dance, expressing gratitude to ancestors for a peaceful year and asking for their continued protection. This dance was called ‘Ilmu (佾舞).’

The Seoul City Dance Company presents this ‘Ilmu’ with a modern sensibility, maintaining its dignity while offering a diverse and rich composition to the audience. Since the intangible cultural heritage system was established in 1964, Jongmyo Jeryeak has been designated as the first cultural heritage and is recognized by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

The term ‘ak’ in Jongmyo Jeryeak refers to the unity of music, dance, and song, making it a comprehensive art form. Along with the ritual procedures of ‘ye (禮),’ the dance Ilmu symbolizes the unity of human sincerity and mind-body harmony through gestures, achieving harmony. The Ilmu of Jongmyo rituals is a unique form of dance based on 11 pieces of Botaepyeong honoring the civil virtues of past kings and 11 pieces of Jeongdaeeop honoring their military achievements.

This ‘Ilmu’ performance features not only Jongmyo Jeryeak but also newly created court dances and Ilmu. The first act interprets Ilmu while preserving tradition as much as possible. The music in Act 1 uses a total of 15 instruments (chuk, bak, jeolgo, vocal, daegeum, janggu, jwago, ajaeng, eo, piri, haegeum, banghyang, pyeongyeong, pyeonjong), notably adding a contrabass.

The Seoul Metropolitan Dance Company will perform "Ilmu" at the Sejong Center Grand Theater from May 19 to 22. Photo by Seoul Metropolitan Dance Company

Choreographer Kim Jaeduk, responsible for the music, explained, “We carved out the low tones of the contrabass to create a sound that is somewhat like an ajaeng but not quite, and used a singing bowl struck with a marimba stick to produce sounds resembling Korean instruments. We also removed the high-pitched sounds of instruments like taepyeongso and piri from the recordings to reduce heaviness.”

In the second act’s court dance research, the traditional Chun-aengjeon and the court dance Gainjeonmokdan are newly reinterpreted with the original choreography and formations, performed over fast and intense music. The highlight of this performance, the third act, applies a contemporary perspective reflecting the present era after inheriting and developing tradition, reinterpreting the meaning and aesthetics of Ilmu in choreography, music, stage, and costumes. The ‘Shin Ilmu’ (New Ilmu), expressed in contemporary language, realizes a new traditional art blending tradition and modernity through a completely different form from Acts 1 and 2.

‘Ilmu’ focuses on the dancers finding their places and aligning in rows on stage, reflecting social changes rapidly recovering from the disrupted daily life caused by COVID-19. Starting as a single row, it creates various transformations, offering the most Korean dance world through the beauty of lines and spaces formed between rows.

Artistic director Jung Hyejin stated, “Through the dancers’ formations, precise group choreography, and rows, we seek our traditional spirit and hope that all generations living in the present can empathize and move forward together through the stage.”

The performance will be held four times over four days from May 19 to 22 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts Grand Theater.

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