There is a belief that seodo-minyo can be properly sung only when the singer drinks the river water of Daedong-gang. Seodo-minyo refers to the songs from northwestern provinces such as Hwanghae–do or Pyeongan-do, and Daedong River runs through this region. In a nutshell, people believed that one had to be born and raised in the same region to fully express the sentiment of the area.

But South Korea and North Korea have been divided for nearly 70 years now. Thereby, it would be difficult to expect such a sori performer from the northern region. What’s more, it’s reported that the traditional folk sori in North Korea is almost lost. In that sense, we are thankful for the precious seodo-sori still available in the South. It was possible thanks to master singer Oh Bok-nyeo, the last sori performer raised in the northern region. In today’s program, we’ll meet master singer Oh Bok-nyeo. First here is “Susimga” by Oh and her disciples.

Susimga / Sori by Oh Bok-nyeo and disciples

Susimga sings the sijo composed by female poet Lee Ok-bong who lived during mid-Joseon era. The sijo sings of the yearning to see one’s flowery love. The singer expresses how one has frequented to see one’s love in a dream and describes that if the visits leave traces, half of the gravel path in front of the house must have turned into sand. The special feature of seodo-minyo is the thin voice mixed with a slightly nasal sound that gives a sad feeling.

Master singer Oh was born in Pyongyang in 1913. While attending Pyongyang Seomun Girls’ High School, she learned gagok and seodo-sori. After mastering gayageum and court dance, she earned her reputation as a popular gisaeng myeongchang.

After getting married, she settled down as a happy housewife. But, soon, the Korean War broke out. Her husband was abducted and sent to North Korea and three of her children were killed in the bombing. With her only surviving son, she fled to South Korea and eked out a living by selling vegetables, rice cakes, porridge and so on. She underwent many hardships which caused her to suffer from a crooked spine that made it difficult for her to walk later on in life. It is said that, in later years, she always had a double-headed janggu hung around her whenever she had to appear on stage to conceal her poor figure and deformed back. This time, let’s listen to Gin-ari by Oh Bok-nyeo and her disciples.

Ginari / Sori by Oh Bok-nyeo and her disciples

Ginari is a kind of Arirang song that’s sung in a very slow tempo. It seems like the singer pours out the deep resentment and sadness through the slow-tempo tune.

Master Oh came to Seoul in the 1960s. She renewed her life as a sori singer when she met other seodo-sori singers such as Jang Hak-seon, Kim Jeong-yeon. At the time, Myeongdong Art Theater held gyeongseodo-sori recital three times a day for four days. Through the occasion, seodo-sori drew attention of scholars and Oh Bok-nyeo was designated as the artistic-holder of seodo-sori in 1971.

In 1990, she had a chance to showcase her sori performances in her hometown of Pyongyang through the Inter-Korean Unification Concert. When the curtain went up, her repertoires Susim-ga, Nanbong-ga, and Gaetaryeong started to thaw the hearts of North Korean audiences and their faces brightened up. In the end, she received a huge round of applause. They were so glad to listen to forgotten tunes again.

Ten years later, in 2001, Oh passed away. But she left many albums she had recorded while she was alive. We’ll sign off today’s program as we listen to “Maengin Deokdamgyeong,” or “A Blind’s Well-wishing Remarks,” that wishes all the best of luck to everyone in the New Year.

Maengin Deokdamgyeong / Oh Bok-nyeo