Seopyeonje Boseong Sori Festival, National Pansori Masters Competition Successfully Concluded

Kim Dajeong Wins Prestigious Pansori Master Category Presidential Award

Pansori Resonance and Gosu Buk Sound Heat Up the Scene

Boseong-gun, Jeollanam-do announced that the ‘26th Seopyeonje Boseong Sori Festival,’ held from the 4th to the 6th to widely promote and preserve the beauty of traditional pansori, successfully concluded.

The competition took place during the ‘47th Boseong Dahyang Grand Festival’ at the Boseong Cultural and Arts Center and the Boseong Pansori Sacred Site, where pansori masters from all over the country participated and showcased their honed skills.

Kim Cheol-woo, Bosung County Governor, Cho Sang-hyun, Honorary Chairman, Kim Hyun-jin, Promotion Committee Chairman, and Lim Yong-min, Chairman of the Bosung County Council, are taking a photo together.
Photo by Bosung County

The grand prize in the master singer category, the Presidential Award, the highlight of this festival, was awarded to Kim Dajeong (41 years old, female), who received a trophy and a prize of 40 million won.

The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award in the gosu (master drummer) competition went to Lee Gangto (25 years old, male), who won the grand prize in the master drummer category and received a prize of 10 million won.

The ‘26th Seopyeonje Boseong Sori Festival’ enriched the event with various programs beyond the main competition, including a memorial ceremony honoring master singers who preserved the legacy of Boseong sori and trained successors at the Boseong Pansori Sacred Site, diverse traditional Korean music congratulatory performances, a tea sound poetry exhibition, traditional instrument-making experiences, caricatures, and food booths.

Notably, this year’s festival provided a real-time video streaming service of the master singer category finals and award ceremony to village halls within Boseong-gun for elderly residents in remote areas who could not visit the festival site, receiving great acclaim from many.

Additionally, the newly established ‘Seong Changsoon Master Singer Award,’ created to honor the late master singer Seong Changsoon, was sponsored with 2 million won by the Seong Changsoon Master Singer Bereaved Family Association and awarded to Park Minjeong (41 years old, female), who won the top prize in the pansori master singer category.

Jo, a representative of the Seong Changsoon Master Singer Bereaved Family Association, stated, “We will continue to support the development of Boseong sori and carry on the artistic spirit of master singer Seong Changsoon.”

Kim Cheolwoo, the governor of Boseong-gun, said, “It is very meaningful to have created a place to widely promote the true value of pansori and bring together all those who love it to share their passion.” He added, “We hope this festival will continue to be an important catalyst for the development of Korean traditional culture, and we look forward to the enthusiastic participation and interest of all pansori lovers in next year’s festival.”

Boseong = Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Cheonseok hss79@asiae.co.kr

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