Gendered Practices and Conceptions in Korean Drumming: on the Negotiation of "Femininity" and "Masculinity" by Korean Female Drummers
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City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 10-2014 Gendered Practices and Conceptions in Korean Drumming: On the Negotiation of "Femininity" and "Masculinity" by Korean Female Drummers Yoonjah Choi Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/413 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] Gendered Practices and Conceptions in Korean Drumming: On the Negotiation of “Femininity” and “Masculinity” by Korean Female Drummers by Yoonjah Choi A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2014 2014 Yoonjah Choi All Rights Reserved ii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Music in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Date Emily Wilbourne, Chair of Examining Committee Date Norman Carey, Executive Officer Professor Jane Sugarman Professor Peter Manuel Professor Anderson Sutton Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii Abstract Gendered Practices and Conceptions in Korean Drumming: On the Negotiation of “Femininity” and “Masculinity” by Korean Female Drummers by Yoonjah Choi Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology Advisor: Professor Jane Sugarman Korean drumming, one of the most popular musical practices in South Korea, currently exists in a state of contradiction as drumming, historically performed by men, is increasingly practiced by women. Women drummers who enter this male-dominated realm confront the “masculinization” of the practice, which is naturalized and normalized through the field’s discourse and performance. At the same time, they seek a “femininity” that may help them to survive in the field. To examine these gendered conceptions and practices, I draw on the ways in which contemporary Korean traditional drum performers, predominantly professional female drummers, conceptualize, experience, perform, reinforce, and/or resist issues of gender in the field. My study presupposes that musical practices embody the underlying structures—shared meanings, values, and ideologies—that characterize a society, and that individuals both reinforce and challenge those structures through those practices. Based on the hypothesis that the supposed “masculinity” and “femininity” in drumming are constructed within the historical context of Confucianism, nationalism, and commercialization (in particular via mass media), I approach Korean drumming as a site in which gender conceptions are internalized, idealized, embodied, contested, or challenged by performers. To assess the state of women in Korean drumming, I pose the following questions: What kind of sociocultural environment encourages iv women’s involvement in Korean drumming? How has drumming been historically constructed as male, and to what extent does this naturalize men as drummers and exclude women? Taking into consideration that both masculinity and femininity are influenced by such historical structures, how do women drummers negotiate between expressing the “masculinity” central to drumming culture and performing qualities typically categorized as “feminine”? In answering these questions within the discussion of “masculinity” and “femininity,” women’s bodies emerge as the focus. My research is predominantly based on interactions with professional drummers, through interviews and participant-observation. These drummers include primarily women but also men, and are involved in a variety of drumming styles including pungmul (percussion ensemble practice), samulnori (a modernized version of pungmul), and contemporary genres, as well as the drumming accompaniment in such genres as pansori (a theatrical play of story-telling and singing) and shaman rituals. Through assessing and analyzing the discourse and experiences contained within this material, my exploration of Korean drumming, a historically male musical domain increasingly populated by women, may shed light on similar processes both in historical male realms of other regions and in capitalist societies emphasizing “femininity” within consumer culture. v Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to mention the love and support I received from family and friends in Korea. The very existence of my mother and father has motivated me to work on and finish this dissertation. My three older sisters and friends in Korea have cheered me on during the process, and helped me get out of ruts. I would like to express my gratitude to those who helped with the writing process. I am grateful for the advice from and encouragement of Prof. Jane Sugarman. She gave me positive responses to my research, and critical and meticulous comments on my writing, both enhancing my motivation and confidence about the work. I also thank all the committee members who read and gave valuable comments on my dissertation—Profs. Peter Manuel, Emily Wilbourne, and Andy Sutton. I would like to thank my primary editor Rebekka Gold for the work on my writing, and my colleagues in the Graduate Center Ethnomusicology program who offered their help with my writing as well. I am tremendously grateful to the many people who have helped with and been part of this work. My dissertation would not be possible without the contributions of the performers who shared their opinions and ideas with me in interviews. In particular, I would like to single out primary collaborators with whom I interacted the most: Park Eunha, Yim Mijoung, Oh Hyun-ju, Shin Heeyeon, and Yu Kyung-Hwa. I also appreciate the Korean scholars who provided guidance and introductions to some performers—Lee Bohyung, Chae Hyun Kyung, Kim Heesun, Kwon Do Hee, Kim Sejung, and Ha Juyong. Deborah Wong and Nathan Hesselink graciously shared their experiences and perspectives on Korean drumming with me. This research was possible through institutes who provided me with funding and resources. The CUNY Graduate Center Gilleece Fellowship and additional funds for travel made it possible for me to conduct field research. The Korean Cultural Service New York vi allowed me to access their considerable resources, including books, CDs, and DVDs related to Korean culture, as well as the electronic database of the National Assembly Library of the Republic of Korea. The National Gugak Center and Gugak Broadcasting System provided me with their own publications and recordings related to traditional music. I thank SamulNori Hanullim, Inc. and Prof. Yoon Yeochang of Seoul National University for sharing their private publications SamulNori: SamulNori Hanullim tansaeng samsip junyeon ginyeom [SamulNori: Commemoration of SamulNori’s 30th Anniversary] and Dure sasimnyeon [Forty Years of Dure], respectively. Finally, the gugak department of Seoul National University and the yeonhui department of Korean National University of Arts (Hanyejong) graciously provided me with statistical data on their student body. vii Table of Contents Abstract ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- iv Acknowledgement ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ vi Table of Contents ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ viii List of Figures ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- xi List of Tables ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- xv Notes on Romanization of Korean ---------------------------------------------------------------------- xvi Chapter I: Introduction ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Korean Drumming ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2 Drumming and Gender ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7 Women in the Male Musical Realm ------------------------------------------------------------ 10 Gender Ideologies in Korean Confucianism and Nationalism ------------------------------ 13 Gender Conceptions in Contemporary Korea ------------------------------------------------- 16 Field Research in Korea -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18 Overview of Chapters ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22 Chapter II. The Historical and Contemporary Contexts of Korean Drumming from a Gender Perspective --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25 Historical Transformation and the Emergence of Yeoseong Nongakdan ------------------ 26 Pungmul Practices in the Contexts of Village Events and Entertainment -------- 26 The Dismantling of “Community Culture” ------------------------------------------- 31 Yeoseong Nongakdan in the Late 1950s-1970s -------------------------------------- 34 The Growth of the Drumming Field in the Late Twentieth Century ----------------------- 39 Nation-building and Traditional Music ----------------------------------------------- 39 College Pungmul in “Cultural Movements” ------------------------------------------ 43 The Rise