User:Titan Atlas473/sandbox/Seong Gyeong-Lin

Seong Gyeong-Lin (Musician)
Seong Gyeong-Lin (Korean: 성경린, Hanja : 成慶麟) was a South Korean gugak (Korean traditional music) musician, musical scholar, and geomungoplayer. He is credited with founding the Korean Traditional Music Society along with Yi Hae-Gu and Jang Sa-Hoon. Seong served as the director of the National Gugak Center and helped to preserve traditional Korean music and served as the conductor of the annual Jongmyo Jerye, a musical rite performed in veneration of Korea’s royalty. The Jongmyo Jerye and Seong Gyeong-Lin himself are both designated as UNESCO-protected Intangible Cultural Heritage. Seong served a long, decorated, and distinguished career as a musician and educator in the traditional court music forms of Korea. He also fulfilled multiple committee member and advisory roles throughout his career from 1948 up until his death in 2008.

Early life and education

Seong Gyeong-Lin was born on September 18, 1911, in the Gyeongseong department of Seoul during Japanese colonial rule. Seong was the third of five children. Seong’s father, Seong Han-Young passed away when he was 5 years old and he and his five siblings continued to live with their mother, Yi Hae-Sook. Seong and his family had to endure extreme poverty during his early years.

In 1920, at the age of 9, Seong was enrolled in Seoul’s Seongdong Christian school. He had initially wanted to become a writer, and read and wrote prolifically, even contributing to the school newspapers and magazines. However, continuing his education was complicated due to his family’s financial situation. After Seong had graduated from the Seongdong Christian school, he was suggested to enroll in the Yi Wangjik Aakbu (Korean: 이이왕직 아악부원) training center by a relative from his mother’s side. Seong took the entrance exam to enroll in the Yi Wangjik Aakbu Center, a prestigious music training school specializing in traditional Korean court music and responsible for preserving and performing many of the Neo-Confucian and royal court musical numbers and rites such as the annual Jongmyo Jerye. He passed the exam, enrolling in the Akbu center in 1926.

Seong married at the age of 25 in 1935 and had 3 sons and 4 daughters. Six years later in 1941 he would complete his training to become a full traditional musician, or aaksa (Korean: 아악사). Seong would help found the Korean Traditional Music Association (Korean 한국국악학회) in 1948 alongside Yi Hae-Gu and Jang Sa-Hoon. By 1950, Seong was promoted to director of the National Gugak Center which he served up until 1972. In 1954 he became a member of the Korean Academy of the Arts. Ten years later in 1964, he earned the distinction of being designated as the conductor of the Jongmyo Jerye-ak rite. This annual court music rite is designated as a UNESCO-protected piece of Intangible Culture.

In 1970, Seong became president of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Association. By 1972 he was also fulfilling the role of principal of the National Gugak High School, the modern successor of the Yi Wangjik Aakbu Center. In 1973, he served the role of chairman for the Gagok Preservation Society. Seong was also an advisory member of the National Gugak Center in 1977. In 1982 Seong additionally served the role of vice-chairman and second subcommittee member of the Cultural Heritage Committee. By 1983 he became an elder member of the Korean Academy of Arts and fulfilled the role of chairman of the 4th subcommittee for the Cultural Heritage Committee from 1985 to 1993. From 1986 until his death in 2008, he served as an elder instructor at the National Gugak Center.

During his lifetime, Seong contributed to the popularization of Korean traditional music through broadcasting and public speaking appearances. Seong performed Korean Gugak music in numerous overseas performances at venues in Japan, Taiwan, the United States, and Canada. In 2000, he also donated 100 million Korean won to the ‘Gwanjae Gugak Award’ fund to honor students who contributed and studied Korean Gugak music.

Seong passed away on March 5th, 2008 at the age of 96. His funeral ceremony was held at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital at 10 am on March 7th. He was survived by his seven children including his three sons Tak-Yeon, Ho-Yeon, and Pil-Yeon.

Seong would remark on his life as, “a life lived with pathetic melodies floating in the sunset by entrusting it to nature with the spirit of pungryu.” In addition to his many achievments, commitee and director roles, he was known in lifetime as being a fastidious and devoted practicioner of court music and the geomungo instrument.

Awards and accolades

Medal of the Order of Hong Joseon (1962) Cultural Medal of Korea (1963) Peony Medal of National Order (1972) Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit (1990)

Books and publications

"Aak of Joseon" 1947 "Joseon Music Reading Book"1947 "The Book of Korean Folk Songs"1949 "The Book of Ahak"1975 "Gugak Appreciation Book"1976 "Korean Dance Book"1976 "My Theory of Life, A Book of Melodies in the Sunset"1978 "The Journal of Korean Traditional Music" 1992