Pansori Fantasy

“Pansori Fantasy” is primarily inspired by the pansori (판소리), a 17th-century Korean epic saga. It is performed by a single vocalist who narrates and sings and is accompanied by a barrel drum player.  While my piece does not quote a pansori excerpt, it uses materials drawn from some characteristics of the pansori, like how a pansori singer speaks, how the drum part sounds, rhythmic patterns, and how notes are embellished and vibrated.    

In addition to standard competition rubrics like accuracy and artistry, I considered the assessment points to include a convincing interpretation of a new piece based on traditional Korean music tradition and effective fingering and hand assignments.    

The piece also pays homage to Alberto Ginastera, whom I admire as a great example of incorporating non-Western influence, and Unsuk Chin, my former (but forever) mentor, an exemplary keyboard composer.