IIn recent years, K-pop, K-drama and other forms of Korean pop culture have attracted great attention worldwide and increased interest in the cultural creativity and expressiveness of Korean society.
In this context, the term "K-democracy" shows that Korea's democratic experience goes far beyond politics and institutions - it is lived and shared in art and culture, especially in music.
Music has functioned as a form of civic expression and solidarity in Korea for decades. During the authoritarian period, people sang protest songs (minjung-gayo) that symbolized hope and resistance. Today, similar forms of cultural solidarity can be observed in the collective actions of K-pop fan communities.
Thus, Korean democracy has grown together with music - and is now seeking new artistic languages to communicate with the world.
This event is not aimed at a political debate, but aims to shed light on the cultural context of Korean democracy through art and music - as a form of empathic and aesthetic democracy.
Especially in Germany, a country that shares the experience of division and reunification and in which art has always carried a political reflection, this concert symposium is intended to open an intercultural dialog.
Singing Democracy does not see itself as a one-off event, but as the starting point of a long-term cultural platform that conveys and shares the values of democracy through art on a global scale.
Participants:
- SeoJenogMinGap - music critic, presentation
- Dr. Beate Kutschke - Musicologist, Discussion
- Byeong Heui Son - singer-songwriter (Minjung-Gayo)
- Gang-jin Han - Tenor
- Eunbi Jeong - Marimba
- Moderator - Prof. Dr. Jin-Heon Jung, anthropologist
- Director - Jae-hyun Cho
Organizer / Curator: A&Tstory Co, Ltd.
With the support of:
Korean Federation of Artistic & Cultural Organizations, Korean Studies, Freie Universität Berlin, International Isang Yun Society e.V., German-Korean Society, Korea Democracy Foundation.