Gwangju Goryeoin Culture Center Holds Special Exhibition on Oral Folk Songs

16 Exhibition Items Including Photographs, Manuscripts, and Books Unveiled
Goryeoin Identity Revived Through Ethnic Music

Gwangju Goryeoin Village is presenting a special exhibition highlighting oral folk songs under the theme "The Existential Situation of the Diaspora and Songs of Longing." The exhibition is being held at the Permanent Exhibition Hall 2 of the Goryeoin Culture Center and will run from May 1, 2025, through the end of April 2026.

According to Goryeoin Village on May 14, this special exhibition revives the roots of ethnic music that had been passed down only orally, through 16 exhibition items?including photographs, composition notes, and related books?collected by tracing the traces of Goryeoin oral folk songs.

Gwangju Goryeoin Village is holding a special exhibition at the Goryeoin Culture Center that highlights the oral folk songs of the diaspora Goryeoin. Provided by Goryeoin Village

In particular, the exhibition centers on the journey of composer Han Yakov, inspired by the requests of two figures dedicated to the restoration of ethnic music: playwright Yeon Sungyong and folk singer An Miahil. At the age of sixty, Han Yakov traveled through Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Russia to collect oral folk songs, and, in collaboration with poet Kim Byunghak, published "In Search of the Songs of the Soviet Goryeoin." This book is regarded as a definitive work that revives the identity of the people.

Afterward, the two created "Goryeo Arirang," leaving the name "Goryeo People" as a song for future generations. This piece received an enthusiastic response throughout the Goryeoin community and spread worldwide.

Han Yakov composed "Long Live the Goryeo Theater" as the last song of his life and passed away in 2021 due to COVID-19. However, his passion did not fade. The songs remain, and within them, the heart of the Goryeoin people continues to beat.

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