‘Gagok’ concert held in memory of great Korean composer Lee An-Sam

By Seok-Jae Kang
GCS International Secretary-General
Vice President of the Asian Journalists Association

SEOUL: A ‘gagok’ concert was held in memory of the great Korean composer Lee An-sam in Seoul, Korea on August 12.

The first Lee An-Sam Gagok Concert was held at the Chamber Hall of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. Gagok in Korean refers to a genre of vocal music using lyrics from a poem.

The gagok concert was promoted by the Lee An-Sam Café and organized by the Café Arisu Sarang to honor the late composer Lee, who passed away in August 2020 at age 77. The concert was supported by GCS International, the online news media Sejong Economy, Dongin Music ,,.

The concert featured 22 gagok pieces, which were all composed by Lee An-sam. The gagok pieces were performed by 11 renowned Korean vocalists: soprano Kim Jee-hyun, soprano Lim Chung-hwa, soprano Huh Mee-kyung, soprano Jung Sun-hwa, soprano Cho Jung-soon, soprano Lee Yoon-sook, soprano Kim Sung-kye, tenor Lee Jeong-won, tenor Lee Hyun, tenor Lee Jae-wook, and baritone Song Ki-chang.

Soprano Kim Jee-hyun and tenor Lee Jeong-won were appointed as “GCS Peace Ambassadors” in 2019. A total of 21 poets, including Dr. Han Sang-wan, Mr. Chang Jang-sik, Mrs. Choi Sook-young, Mrs. Jeon Se-won, Mrs. Chun Kyung-ae, Mr. Moon Jyo-chi, Mrs. Ko Ok-ju, Mrs. Cho Jae-sun, Mrs. Hwang Yeo-jung, and Mrs. Seo Young-soon, attended the gagok concert.

Soprano Kim Jee-hyun performed “The Love of Wolnyeonggyo,” a song written by poet Seo Young-soon, drawing a big applause from the audience. Soprano Lee Yoon-sook performed “If You Were a Flower,” a poem by poet Chang Jang-sik.

Korean gagok is gaining more popularity among Chinese vocalists and gagok can be another form of the Korean wave or “hallyu,” said soprano Kim Jee-hyun, a professor of vocal arts of Sangmyung University in Seoul, Korea.