Intersections and Parallels between Korean Music and Pakistani Qawwali
The First Recording of World Music Group “TAAL”
 
Nowadays it is not uncommon for Korean traditional musicians to collaborate with musical genres and styles from other cultures, especially from other parts of the Asian continent. However many attempts have failed to deliver new, fresh sounds through the intersections and parallels of the two distinctive musical traditions. The true core and essence and very spirit of the music[s] and culture[s] become merely the superficial mixing of melodic and rhythmic materials.
 
“TAAL”, an ambitious world music group consisting of three main members, includes Gnaseong, Koo Sung-mo and Yang Soung-whan. Each of these three musicians comes equipped with compelling musicality and artistic expression from their respective musical fields. As the name of the group suggests, the music and timbre of “TAAL” (or taal meaning rhythmic or jangdan) heavily reside in the Indian and Pakistani tradition of Qawwali - a Sufi devotional song and ensemble, which has gained immense popularity around the globe by the Pakistani legend and vocalist, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (1948-1997).
 
Being inspired by the powerful traditional of Qawwali, as well as the singer Nusrat, the members of TAAL begin to appropriate the style and soul of the genre interpreting them through their own artistic skills and experiences with Korean traditional music. Among the members, Gnaseong, originally a Korean percussionist, has extensively studied the voice and songs of the western region of Korean peninsula, called seodosori.  In addition to this he has studied Qawwali in Pakistan making frequent and extensive trips visiting the country in search of finding his own voice. Koo Seong-mo, a percussionist who specializes on tabla, has devoted his life learning and mastering the instrument in a variety of styles in India returning now to Korea with the important mission of disseminating and teaching. The composer and improviser, Yang Soung-whan, participates in the group playing the harmonium, a crucial accompaniment part providing both melodic and harmonic background of the genre. In the music of TAAL, Yang incorporates Korean melodic and Parkistani flavor mixing Jazz and other accumulated styles stemming from studying both composition and jazz at New York University.  
 
With music and form of TAAL, one can imagine it paralleling Korean shaman music, sinawi, which begins with slow introductory section called, alap. Here the musicians negotiate and select the mode and melodic characteristics for the particular performance of the piece. As music gradually moves forward with the melodic theme in a strophic form, the solo singing part along with the refrain section is established with a repetitive rhythmic foundation, which then gradually gains speed and tempo reaching the pinnacle toward the end. Just as with Korean shaman music TAAL creates the musical and spiritual momentum by repetition and heartfelt melodic and rhythmic development, eventually engaging the audience in a spiritual trance - an extremely powerful communication between the musicians and listeners.
 
As an ethnomusicologist I have never heard this sound and timbre before. The music of TAAL is one-of-a-kind, where Qawwali is alive in the spirit of Korean traditional music. I highly recommend the music of TAAL which will surely give you a special musical and cultural experience you will never forget!

Dr. Ju-Yong Ha
Ethnomusicologist