Korean Culture Festival with ASEAN

By: Ng Ai Ping Audrey

Melodious sounds and sweet notes filled the air at the National University of Singapore’s University Cultural Centre during the Korean Culture Festival with ASEAN held on Oct. 17.

Organized by the National Arts Council of Singapore and the embassy of the Republic of Korea, highlights of the night included the performance by world renowned Korean break dance group, Rivers Crew.

Guest of Honour for the event, RAdm(NS) Lui Tuck Yew the Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts of Singapore, said that “this event has an added significance for Singapore as we seek to broaden exchanges and promote greater understanding among member economies.”

The evening started off with performances from Singapore that showcased the nation’s racially diverse culture. Among the performers was Chinese folk dancer Serene Tan, the Bhaskar’s Arts Academy Music Ensemble, an Indian performing arts group, as well as the Malay dance group Sriwana.

This was followed by the Korean performances that featured the richness of Korean culture, from the Hwagawnmu, a dance put on for the aristocracy, and the Haegeum, a two-string fiddle played in court music, to the Sogo Dance, a dance put on by farmers, and the Taepyeongmu and Samulori, which are traditional folk dances.

The event was targeted mainly at the Korean public in Singapore but NUS students get to know the event through online publicity efforts carried out by the Korean Cultural Interest Group during the Korean Cultural Week.

Vivian Liu, president of the NUS Korean Cultural Interest Group said that the Korean Embassy had approached them to help publicise the event to the NUS population.

Year 3 Statistics major Joanna Koh who heard about the event from the group’s Facebook page said she liked the fact there were performances that were both traditional and modern and she “especially enjoyed the Gayageum Ensemble that played traditional Singapore songs on a Korean instrument.”

Teaching assistant Ng Li Ting from the Communications and New Media department went for the event as she was interested in Korean culture and was looking forward to seeing the B-boys, a professional break dance team.

Park Hyo Jae a Korean Permanent Resident who has lived in Singapore for five years enjoyed the performances from Singapore and thought the event was a “good way to expose Koreans and Singaporeans to each others’ cultures.”

The Korean Culture Festival with ASEAN is part of the Korea Festival 2009 that seeks to promote greater opportunities for cultural exchange between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Korea.