Learning the Gayageum

Thanks to an introduction from a friend, I started learning the Korean gayageum instrument. The gayageum is a zither-like instrument similar to the Chinese guzheng or the Japanese koto. It is named as such since tradition posits its origins from the ancient Gaya states; the instrument was said to have been introduced into Gaya from China. The one I'm learning is the traditional gayageum with twelve strings and apparently, it's mostly played by women (although a number of gayageum masters are men). My instructor explained that this is because its sound is seen as being more "feminine" in comparison to the "masculine" geomungo. People here seemed quite surprised that I chose to take up this particular instrument instead of the daegeum (large woodwind) or janggu (hourglass drum). I explained to them that it's not unusual in Chinese and Vietnamese cultures for men to play the guzheng and dan tranh and that I wanted to play something more unusual since foreigners seem to be more interested in the janggu and samulnori than the more classical music.

The lessons have been going good although my fingers are becoming quite sore from all that plucking. Playing it and figuring out the musical scales is far more difficult than it seems! I don't have any musical background, but according to a friend, this is actually an advantage because Korean instruments and methods of performing music are so different from Western ones. My instructor charges a high price for lessons, but her abilities are quite impressive and she also happens to be a renowned musician. She doesn't speak much English, unfortunately, so we sometimes have to struggle to communicate through broken English and Korean. Nonetheless, I'm learning faster than I expected. Here's to hoping that I can at least play Arirang before my time in Korea is up!