10 Questions with Composer-in-Residence and guest artist Jin Hi Kim

Q: When did you know that you wanted to make a career in performance?

A: I thought I was not going to be komungo soloist when I came to the USA, but I met Henry Keiser (guitarist) in San Francisco and we started improvising together, then I was introduced to many other leading musicians and invited to festivals throughout the world as a komungo soloist. So I became a professional performer. Over three decades I have been the soloist for my own composition with  orchestras and chamber ensembles.

Q: Did you have a particular teacher or mentor that influenced your career / performance choices? If so, how?

A: As many American composers were influenced by Cage, so was I by getting to know about his musical philosophy. I interviewed him for Korean music magazine, and  In 1989 I was invited to a gathering of composers in a residency with John Cage called “Composer to Composer” in Telluride, Colorado, which was directed by Charles Amirkhanian. I was deeply inspired by Cage, because he was a rare model for crossing Asian philosophy with America?s liberal spirit. His works are full of message and surprise. I recalled the Asian ritual aesthetic of irregularity through his works of happening. I am very familiar with silence in music through my Korean court music, but his silence dealt with physical sound around the silence. This fascinated me, because he was the first composer who challenged my old traditional belief of silence in music.

Q: Describe what it’s like to be a composer/performer as opposed to simply a composer or simply a musician. What are the inherent challenges?

A: I have double pleasure being a composer and performer. I want to introduce many Korean instruments to the west, but I can’t find a great Korean musicians in the USA, so I compose new pieces using my primary instrument komungo, and my new invention electric komungo, tall and colorful barrel drums and janggo drum. It is real pleasure to create new music, and perform my own music with other musicians. I like the collaborative process of learning new piece together, and I can improvise my part further during the performance, which is very luxury situation.

Q: If you could play any other instrument other than your own, what would it be and why?

A: I play various drums as I mentioned before. In Korea all musicians play janggo drum because the music is based on highly stylized rhythmic cycles on janggo drum. They do not have a conductor in traditional orchestra, instead musicians listen to the janggo rhythmic cycles. So every body including singer and dancer plays the drum. Once learning the various rhythmic cycles, it is easy to play another drums like dancer’s barrel drums that I will play in my Monk Dance with NHSO on April 22 at Woolsey Hall.

Q: If you could play (or sing) any piece (regardless of instrument) what would it be and why?

A: Improvisation. I love to make new sound every time as every day is different in our life.

Q: What do you feel is your greatest musical accomplishment?

A: My work is all about collaboration between Korean and non-Koreans. My intension of cross-cultural music creativity is for aesthetic balance and aesthetic equality between Korean and Western (dominated musical power) as well as collaboration with world music masters. I have devoted to learning and understanding other cultures besides my Korean music.  I have had the privilege and opportunity to collaborate with many leading improvisers around the world in various traditional and contemporary settings.  These experiences have made my life richer and helped my musical creativity to expand in scope. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is for me to be creative in my life and respect and embrace unique individual voices with respect to cultural and ethnic backgrounds.  I believe these cross-cultural efforts may contribute to a deep and healthy exchange of many different attitudes in music making.

Q: What is the non-musical accomplishment you are most proud of?

A: I was grown up under Confucianism attitude in Korea: Male is better, the Older is better.  I was rare Korean woman who has become very strong with individual belief. I know that young generation of female in Korea are impressed and influenced by me.

Q: How does “Monk Dance” speak to the performer and the audience?

A: I composed Monk Dance for Western orchestra and Barrel Drums. The orchestra captures the feeling of slow monk’s dance, and I develop a vivid energy on drums. So the whole performance balances yin and yang, slow and fast, gracious and vigorous. The drum solo is derived from the Buddhist monk’s drumming on a big barrel drum for enlightenment. My way of playing drums is dance like. (not dancer’s dance, but musician’s dance). The rhythmic patterns, inner energy and body movements are all integrated on the drums and drum sticks.

Q: What should the audience be listening for in terms of technical and thematic areas during the piece?

A: Imagine a female monk is dancing when the orchestra plays slowly and graciously, and enjoy the vigorous energy from the drums. Be ready for new sound from the orchestra. It is good to be shocked once in your life.

Q: What do you find most challenging about “Monk Dance”?

A: The orchestra members have to put some Korean spices on notes. In string sections there are many graphic symbols for performing techniques, which is I call “Living Tones”. This is different attitude of making music.- each note has own life, tone gestures and energy.  I think the musicians may find the Living Tones strange first, but it will be only for the first time. I am sure that they will get to use to that and they may like them as they try Korean food first time.

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