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Stunning Performances at Korean Cultural Evening

ABU DHABI — As the curtain lifted to reveal masked men dancing to some sort of a tribal music, one got the impression that they were going out to hunt.

It was not so. This was Korea’s Cheoyongmu, a court dance regarded to have the power to expel evil spirits. Cheoyongmu was listed on the ‘World Cultural and Natural Heritage’ of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in 2009.

‘Vitality: A Grand Performance of Korean Traditional Music and Dance’ was held on Monday night for the second time in the UAE, the last was in 2000. The show was part of the ongoing efforts to promote cultural exchange between the UAE and South Korea.

The evening was not only well attended by the Korean community but also by Emiratis, other Arab nationals, some Asian and European expatriates keen to learn about Korea’s rich cultural heritage.

Cheoyongmu was the opening act for the evening which featured a variety of stunning performances such as court and folk repertoire and a dynamic percussion of musical ensemble including ‘Frontier’, the official music of 2002 Busan Asian Games by Korean-Japanese composer and pianist Yang 
Bang-eon.

Taepyeongmu, Salpuri and Buchaechum or the traditional fan dance were also performed. During the fan dance, the graceful flicks of each hand by women in colourful dresses to form shapes by folding or spreading the fans received a good applause from the crowd. All dances were accompanied by Korean musical instruments Yanggeum (dulcimer), Piri (oboe) and Taepyeongso (conical oboe).

The most entertaining act of the evening was the semi-acrobatic stunt of the percussion ensemble, Samulnori.

“It’s fantastic. I felt proud to see our culture represented here, it also made me miss home,” gushed Mira Cho, a Korean nurse in Abu Dhabi.

“It’s really amazing. These are new things for me, it makes me want to know more about their culture,” said Iman Majed, an Emirati student who recently took Korean language lessons.

olivia@khaleejtimes.ae