Gayageum lessons or upcoming workshops in Seoul?

Question

I'll be in Seoul for late March/most of April and wanted to try a gayageum lesson while I was there (I've been learning the koto for 4.5 years or so and am curious to give it a try!)

From some googling I found that the National Gugak Center run a 12 week course twice a year which I'd love to do one day but unfortunately the timing wont work out for my next trip. I was wondering if anyone knew of any upcoming/recurring 1-day workshops or teachers that would do non-recurring lessons? I don't speak any Korean so the option for lessons in English would be preferred, but I also spoke barely any Japanese when I started with my koto teacher so a teacher who doesn't speak English but will be patient with foreign students is also OK!

christellajunge · Answer

honestly with ur koto background you'd probably hate the touristy taster classes, they spend 20 mins just on how to hold the pick. i'd skip insadong for that reason. there's a woman named hwang yoona who teaches out of a tiny studio in bukchon, near the gahoe-dong alleyways, she does one-off private sessions and speaks enough english to explain the basics, she's more into sanjo style than folk music so if you want technique she's better than the gugak center's intro stuff. her kakao id is like yoona_gayageum or something, i found her through a korean music forum, just message her in english and she'll reply.

another angle is the seoul foundation for arts and culture, they run these random weekend workshops at cultural centers across the city, usually posted on their korean site only like a week before. they're cheap, like 10,000 won, and sometimes the instructor is a working musician who'll let you linger after class to ask questions. you'd need a korean friend to book though, the online system is a pain even for locals.

for tuning, the gayageum strings are definitely looser than koto, you'll feel it in the left hand, the pressure is way lighter, and the bunjae is actually easier to get a clean sound on because the tension gives you more room to slide. the picks are

sofiahartung · Answer

One place that flies under the radar is the Seoul National Gugak High School area in Seocho, there are a few small private studios tucked around the streets near Yangjae Station that cater to adult hobbyists. I've seen a couple of them post trial class notices on Naver blogs, though you'll need a Korean speaker to help you navigate the booking since they rarely have English pages. For a more spontaneous option, check the Seoul Global Center in Jongno, they run cultural programs for foreigners and have had traditional instrument tasters in the past, it's worth stopping by their office to ask about April's schedule. With your koto background, even a short session will feel rewarding because the right hand technique transfers almost directly, but the left hand pressing on the strings is where you'll notice the difference in string tension. If you end up in Insadong, the Ssamziegil building sometimes has pop-up music stalls on weekends where a gayageum player will let you try the instrument for a few thousand won, it's not a lesson but it gives you a feel for the instrument before you commit to a proper session.

jeannine · Answer

fwiw i think the koto background will actually throw u off more than help with the sanjo style, the bunjae on gayageum is way more percussive and the left hand does a lot of the ornamentation that koto players usually skip. anyway, have u looked into the seoul music week stuff? late march to mid april is when a bunch of indie venues in hongdae and mangwon host these "traditional fusion" nights, sometimes the performers do short workshops before the show. i saw a gayageum player do a 30 min crash course at a place called veloso in mangwon last year, it was like 15,000 won and she let people try her actual instrument, not a rental. check the instagram hashtags for #가야금워크숍 and #가야금체험, a lot of teachers post last minute openings there, especially for foreigners. also, if u can get to the seoul national university area in gwanak, there's a guy who teaches out of his studio near the art campus, he does english lessons but he's more of a jazz gayageum guy, so it might not be what ur looking for if u want pure traditional. honestly ur best bet might be to just show up to the national gugak center's april performance schedule and ask the box office staff if any of the musicians do private teaching, they're usually happy to point u to someone even

anica · Answer

the national gugak center is ur best bet for structured stuff but theyre pretty rigid with scheduling. for a one-off, try the seoul gayageum association or check out hongdae area music studios, a few of them do trial classes on weekends. i know a teacher named kim seonyeong who does private sessions near anguk station, shes worked with foreigners before and is super patient, but u gotta message her via instagram or kakao since she doesnt have a website. also the korean traditional music experience center in insadong sometimes runs 2 hour workshops, theyre tourist friendly but pretty basic, more of a taster than real technique. honestly with ur koto background u might find the basic class boring, so id push for a private lesson where u can skip the beginner stuff and focus on the bunjae and the different tuning, the gayageum is tuned in pentatonic like the koto but the strings feel looser and the picks are different, u'll pick it up fast. if ur flexible on location, the jindo area has some folk teachers but thats a day trip. ur best bet is emailing the gugak center anyway, they sometimes have one-off events that dont make it to the english website, ask if any instructors do private lessons on the side, theres a couple who do but they keep it lowkey

Neu aus Seoul