Jung-Hee Oh Performs Traditional Korean Music at New Canaan Library on May 17

In celebration of its inaugural Spring Edition fundraiser, featuring author Min Jin Lee speaking about her bestselling novel Pachinko, New Canaan Library welcomes acclaimed musician Jung-Hee Oh. The performance will take place on Thursday, May 17 at 6:30 p.m. in the Adrian Lamb Room. Please register online at newcanaanlibrary.org.

Delight in the beautiful music that emanates from the Gayageum, a traditional Korean musical instrument first attributed to the Ga-ya empire (B.C. 42 to 562) and King Ga-sil. Ms. Oh will demonstrate the Gayageum Sanjo, a traditional Korean musical genre that embraces the elements and stylistic features of Korean folk music traditions. This genre reflects a “Pan-musical” style that is quintessentially Korean. She will also perform Gayageum Byeongchang, another Korean traditional genre in which a singer accompanies herself with her Gayageum. Gayageum Byeongchang is highly sophisticated and can only be performed by a singer who can sing pan-so-ri and gayageum sanjo.

Jung-Hee Oh is a Korean traditional music artist of “Gayageum Byeong-chang” and “pansori.” She is recognized under the Korean Government’s Ministry Of Culture as a “holder” (yisuja) of Intangible Cultural Property No. 23: Gayageum sanjo - Gayageum Byeongchang and studied with An, Suksun, Living National Treasure of pansori and gayageum. Ms. Oh received her master’s degree in music from Chung-Ang University in Seoul. She is currently a music director and teaching artist at The New York Korean Performing Arts Center based in Manhattan, and teaches in the Greater New England area.