This study aims to examine the value and transmission directions of dances designated as cultural heritage from the Five Northern Provinces (Ibuk 5-do) transmitted in South Korea: Hwagwanmu from Hwanghae Province, Pyeongyang Geommu and Pyeongnam Sugeonnchum from South Pyongan Province, Gim Baekbong's buchaechum (Fan Dance), and Hambuk Seonnyeochum from North Hamgyeong Province. The research research draws primarily on historical literature and institutional materials from the Five Northern Provinces Committee. The study confirms how practitioners transmitters have preserved the cultural heritage of the northern provinces through the Japanese colonial period and national division, and analyzes the artistic, regional, and educational value of each dance. The findings suggests the need for a sustainable transmission system: first, securing transmission records through archiving; second, establishing a systemic framework for research on dance genealogy and related music; third, expanding the designation of new genres and strengthening collaboration within the Five Northern Provinces Committee; and finally, establishing an online platform for the cultural heritage of the Five Northern Provinces. These proposals lay the groundwork for future extension to include other dance genres and yet undesignated cultural heritage.

This study examines how Han Seongjun’s aesthetics in Jeukheungmu were transmitted to Gang Seonyeong. Using documents from the Joseon Music and Dance Institute and oral accounts from Gang and her successor Gim Miran, the study employs an interpretive method. Han’s instruction- “gcombine the learned movements and create your own dance”-shows his view of Jeukheungmu as a form of individuality and inner freedom. Gang embodied this lineage through affective contrasts of stillness and sudden release and the coexistence of joy and sorrow. Testimony on the “six movements” confirms Jeukheungmu as a core creative-pedagogical system reflecting Han’s aesthetics. This study clarifies how freedom and emotion are inherited within Korean dance.

The purpose of this study is to analyze and organize verbal descriptions articulating dance movements as a method to pass down a basic dance that epitomizes the unique stylistic features and techniques of an individual dancer in the contemporary and modern times when Gujeonshimsu(handing down orally and instruction with spirit) is the general teaching method in Korean dance education. The late Korean dancer and choreographer Choi Hyun is renowned for his commitment to performing and directing various genres of dance as well as nurturing students. As a highly acclaimed Korean dancer, his unique dance movements and skills are well worth being preserved for future generations. In this regard, this paper presents a method to hand down the legacy of Choi’s dance by classifying representative movements and techniques from his basic dance that integrates the creative skills and movements found in many of his performances, and by systemizing verbal descriptions of those movements. To that end, key movements of Choi’s dance were classified and their verbal descriptions were analyzed through examinations of previous studies of his dances, an analysis of his performances on video, and an empirical analysis on the repetitive practice of mimicking his moves. A summary of these research findings suggest the main features of Choi’s dance as described by previous studies as follows: artistic dance with transitional characteristics both contemporary and modern; theatrical expressionism; harmony between masculine and feminine; charm of impromptu motions found in Deotbaegi-chum, a representative dance of the Gyeongsangdo region; the inseparable relationship with music; upright postures and curved arms; metaphysical joy and flavor; and the beauty of emptiness and romanticism, etc. The movements featured in the videos of Choi’s dance performances are analyzed based on what characterizes his dance as found in previous studies. According to the results, the movements are largely classified into three categories: whole body movement; upper body movement; and lower body movement. With each category having four subcategories, the movements are classified into a total of 12 forms of movement verbally described. The whole body movement is demonstrated in four techniques: left and right body swinging and upward and downward closing movement; slight forwards and backwards walking with alternate leg crossing; fierce upward and downward body movement; and closing movement. The upper body movement is classified into four postures or movements: waist twisting; head tilting; circular arm movement; and cross-winding both hands. The lower body movement is displayed in four techniques: legs kept together and legs kept together while standing; short steps; low jumps; and legs-together standing posture. In conclusion, to identify the key elements of Choi Hyun’s basic dance movements and systemize verbal descriptions will be one of the ways to transmit the artistic value of his unique dance performances.

This paper was written from the perspective of non-reductive materialism to interpret choreographic changes and medium replacement in Korean traditional dance. Non-reductive materialism is a theory that all phenomena are mentally created from substances and that formed mental phenomena do not return to the substances from which they came. This principle was the matrix Danto used to explain the ontological status of artwork. Additionally, Margolis borrowed Strawson’s concept of person and applied it to assess art analogically. This same concept can be applied to explain dance; dance uses movement as a medium, which in turn uses humans as a medium, making humans the embodiment of a physical substance—the body. The physical substance, then, is the property of the medium, embodying the dance performance. Embodied dance contains the physical properties of the medium and intentional properties, such as mental phenomena, which do not belong to a physical property. Therefore, the relationship between medium, movement, and dance is non-reductive, and each is indivisibly soluble with the next. From this point of view, each dance performance produced from the same medium is independent and unique. Successive changes in Korean traditional dance are replacements of the fundamental medium. Successive dancers can obtain similarities to previous performances in their own dance by training with a former dancer. During training, breathing is a core principle of movement and an element that considerably influences dancers’ similarities. This process is called transmission. As a result, long-term similarity training is a primary factor when choosing successive dancers because they share the mental of traditional dances and choreography with their successors.

Korean traditional dance is a well-established traditional art as years go by. Recently, Korean traditional dances have seen renewed popularity, but in the process, new interpretations and transformations have eroded the historical and spiritual values inherited in these traditional dances. This study is to rediscover these historical and spiritual values by re-examining the life and dance philosophy of Han Sung-Jun (韓成俊, 1874-1941), and how these had been handed down to Han Youn-sook and Lee Ae-ju. The research reviews existing literature with comprehensive and in-depth analysis. Han Sung-Jun, who came from a long line of dance artists who inherited and developed dance practices reflecting the unique identity of the Korean people, believed that it was through dancing that the human body could truly manifest its natural vitality and emphasized patient learning and training. Han Sung-jun's philosophy was passed on to his granddaughter, Han Young-sook (韓英淑, 1920-1989), who emphasized the exclusion of foreign imitation and of exaggeration by utilizing the spontaneous characteristics of Korean dance. She particularly criticized the blind following/copying of foreign dances and emphasized a focus on traditional Korean dances. Lee Ae-ju (李愛珠, 1947-), who in turn inherited the school of thought from Han Young-sook, took the view that it was through dance training that the mind and soul could have release towards full realization of the human nature. She emphasized the training that all of the body's energy sprang from the lower abdomen to introspect within oneself and served as the foundation for all Korean traditional songs and dance.

This study aims to analyze dance moves of Munmu and Mumu, two kinds of Ilmu of Jongmyojerye (the royal ancestral rites music) in order to identify significance and symbolism of the dance moves. The findings show that "Gyeonpa" was a dance move that was always included in 11 pieces of Botaepyeong(music to praise the cultural achievements of Jeseon's kings) and Jeongdaeeop(Music to extols the military attainments of Jeseon's kings) each. In Munmu, dancers would collect the energy, which has been circulated and spread before their faces with the knees bending and stretching and two hands open sideways each of the pieces by performing dance moves of spreading, gathering, turning, and repeating in most cases. After this Gyeonpa, the dancers expresses symbolically the wish for Botaepyeong, which achieves unity between the Heaven and Earth and hopes for a reign of peace for many years, in attitudes of respect and humility. In Mumu, they would maintain the Gyeonpa move of erecting a wooden sword(spear) straight and raising it high during long beats through the arm movement with no knee bending and stretching or perform Hyeokjeong with power and discipline 12 times, expressing Uideok(virtue) symbolically. The dance move of Gyeonpa is representative of the unique nature of Jongmyoilmu. It is important that the moves of spreading Mundeok in the combination of Yak and Jeok, circulation of yin and yang, and harmony of Ye and Ak would connect to flexible and soft dance moves of Haphyung in Munmu. In Mumu, it is important to maximize the solemn mood by erecting the wooden sword(spear) straight and stopping it with moves of embodying the achievements of distinguished military service with discipline.

This examines the formation background of Han Seong-jun’s Janggo-chum, the performance activity of his disciple Kang Seon-young, and its transmission to Yang Seong-ok.

The celebrated drummer Han Seong-jun understood fully the united relation between dance and rhythm, and developed it into a traditional dance through musical elaboration.

Kang Seon-young, a pupil of the Joseon Music Dance Research Association led by Han Seong-jun, was attached to his dance and idea to preserve and hand down the Korean Dance. In 2000 she presented the performance, restoring the prototypic repertoire of nine pieces of Korean traditional dance including Janggo-chum performed by her master in 1930s. This study focuses on the transmission aspect and analyzes the characteristics of the dance movements presented in literature, performance pamphlets, moving pictures, and interviews.

First, the composition puts emphasis on playing the hand beat that can back up dance movements so that a dancer skilled at beating by hand can dance without help of a drumstick. Second, the music is made up with a ballad tuned accompaniment, starting from the lengthy tune over to fast, and back to lengthy in the end. Third, the dance contains the Korean beauty of moderation in the harmony of elegant movements and light rhythm according to the musical change. Fourth, the costume consists of a white upper garment with indigo cuffs and purple garment strings, and a crimson skirt. Fifth, the genealogy is from Han Seong-jun to Kang Seon-young, again to Yang Seong-ok, and there are many successors today.