Adapting to New Cultural Environments: An Analysis of the Yiwangjik aakpu Regular Concerts (1932–1945)

Abstract:This article investigates repertories of the Yiwangjik aakpu regular concert to examine how court musicians in colonial Korea reacted to the continuing influx of Western musical culture. The Yiwangjik aakpu was formerly the Changagwŏn in charge of music performed at the royal palace of Chosŏn Korea. The name change, along with a reduction in the number of affiliated musicians, occurred with the fall of the dynasty and the establishment of the Japanese colonial government. In the face of declining court music, court musicians established a training institute for younger generation court musicians and held monthly concerts from 1932 to 1945 to preserve their music. They provided the public with opportunities to enroll at the training institute and watch the regular concerts. This article reveals that court musicians incorporated elements of Western classical music, which held a dominant position in the performing arts fields during the 1930s, into their concert programs in addition to promoting institutional changes. The court musicians' new attempts, beyond merely preserving an old tradition, demonstrate their adaptation to the rapidly changing musical culture of the time. These findings overall elaborate on the innovative and adaptive efforts of Korean court musicians, thereby expanding the range of prior studies on the Japanese colonial period.