Jeonju World Sound Festival Music Market "Sound Next" to be Held
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Lee ByungJae(2025-08-11 20:59:45)
The Jeonju World Sound Festival explores new possibilities for traditional music in the global market.
The 2025 Jeonju World Sound Festival (hereinafter referred to as the Sound Festival, organized by Chairman Lee Wong-jun) will host a music market called 'SORI NEXT' in various locations in Jeonju, including the Jeollabuk-do Provincial Art Museum, Woojin Cultural Space, and The Musician, from the 13th to the 17th.
This year, the Sound Festival was selected as a festival for the '2025 Genre Market Hub Support Project' sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Arts Management Service Center, expanding the festival's outreach into a market. Through this, it is expected to leap as a platform that supports the domestic and international market entry of traditional music-based arts organizations and promotes work distribution and practical collaboration.
The Genre Market Hub Support Project was planned to propel the future through the distribution of Korean works by leading festivals in Korea, enriching the existing festival events to promote the festival's 'scaling up.'
'SORI NEXT' will feature planning and open call showcases, talks, farm tours, networking programs for experts. Additionally, various programs such as 'Sound Camp' and 'Master Class' for students and 'Children's Sound Festival' for general audiences will be available.
■ A music market with 22 domestic and international experts
A total of 22 domestic and international experts will participate in the market, from selecting artists for showcases to performing on the festival stage. Notably, the planning team includes Chun Jae-hyun (traditional arts director, Sound Frontier artistic director), Kye Myung-guk (Jara Island Jazz Festival director), Kim Mi-so (DMZ Peace Train Music Festival general director), Lee Soo-jung (DMZ Peace Train Music Festival artistic director), who will lead the Jeonju World Sound Festival's music market for the next three years.
This year's market will see the participation of eight foreign performing arts experts, including Jean Lee (IMG Artists Executive Producer, USA), Claudia Balladelli (Axé Worldfest director, Canada), Lisa Branigan (Re-Play Music C.I.C & Green Futures Festivals founding director, UK), Bożena Szota (Ethno Port Festival director, Poland), Haiying Song (Productions Yari director, Canada/China), Shandy Gan (West Kowloon Cultural District program coordinator, Hong Kong), and Rachel Cooper (Asia Society USA Headquarters & Global Branches director, USA).
Ten domestic performing arts experts, including Kim Soo-yeon (Sulim Cultural Foundation senior producer), Park Jun-woo (Korean Popular Music Awards office director), Baek Hyun-tae (Gangneung Arts Center performance planning team PD), Ahn Ju-eun (Busan Cultural Center performance arts team leader), Lee Jae-hoon (Newsis team leader), Jeon Seon-mi (Jeju Art Center performance operations team PD), Jo Jung-ho (National Asian Cultural Center Foundation Cultural Business Department head), Cha Hyun-na (Seoul Namsan Traditional Music Hall director), Tak Yeon-jae (Goyang Cultural Foundation performance business team manager), and Han Yoon-jin (Seoul Namsan Traditional Music Hall performance arts team manager), will also be part of the festival.
These experts will participate in talk programs on August 14 (Wednesday) and 15 (Thursday), focusing on projects, insights, connecting and expanding the Asian cultural and arts ecosystem, transitioning traditional arts for international markets, and exploring strategies.
Experts and artists attending 'SORI NEXT' will explore the potential for joint planning and collaboration, providing an opportunity to experiment with new possibilities for the distribution ecosystem based on the identity of traditional arts.
■ Showcase with 12 teams coexisting traditional and experimental sounds at 'SORI NEXT'
The showcase will feature a total of 12 teams, including eight 'Planning Showcases' and four 'Open Call Showcases,' taking place from August 13 (Wednesday) to 15 (Friday) at Woojin Cultural Space, The Musician, and Jeollabuk-do Provincial Art Museum.
The 'Sound Choice (Planning Showcase)' consists of artists with different musical identities and colors, combining tradition with contemporary sensibilities and experimentation to create their own musical worlds. These teams have been recommended by experts and have been actively engaged in creative activities on the global stage, aiming to explore the next stage of traditional music distribution. The 'Sound Frontier (Open Call Showcase)' selected teams through open calls to support the discovery of new Korean traditional music artists and their entry into domestic and international markets. Expanding the project, which has been a project for discovering Korean traditional musicians, the festival aims to present the selected teams to domestic and international stakeholders.
The 'Sound Choice' includes a variety of teams such as , a band formed around geomungo player Hwang Jin-ah called , an alternative electronic music band blending good music and techno <64ksana>, creating contemporary music based on Korean traditional music, psychedelic shamanic funk , a duo composed of cellist Kim Sol Daniel and gayageum player Yoon Da-young , creating music based on Korean traditional music and present-day Seoul, and expressing the diversity of haegeum through dramatic narratives.
The 'Sound Frontier' will feature four teams selected through the first and second rounds of auditions held in June, presenting experimental traditional music. Audiences can experience experimental traditional music from , a crossover band combining rock, ambient, and contemporary sounds centered around Korean traditional instruments , led by creator Kang Tae-hoon breaking the boundaries of genres and instruments for imaginative musical experiments, and exploring new horizons of sound where traditional instruments and ecological sensibilities meet.
■ Diverse educational and experiential programs for children and professionals
The Genre Market Hub Support Project was planned to propel the future through the distribution of Korean works by leading festivals in Korea, enriching the existing festival events to promote the festival's 'scaling up.'
The 'Children's Sound Festival' for family audiences will feature various children's performances. The 'Polish Traditional Song Classroom ' with a four-woman ensemble from Poland will take place at the Our Playground Marudal on August 13 (Wednesday) and 14 (Thursday). Additionally, the immersive performance 'XR Pansori Enjoyed through Games ' based on extended reality (XR) will be presented at Namboo Market Moyijang from August 15 (Friday) to 17 (Sunday) for families to enjoy together.
The educational program 'Master Class' will provide an opportunity for pansori students to learn directly from masters, with performances by Lee Nan-cho, the holder of the national intangible cultural heritage pansori Heungbo, on August 15 (Friday), and Yoon Jin-cheol, the holder of the Jokbyukga, on August 16 (Saturday) at Hayan Yangok House.
The 'Sound Camp' for traditional music majors selected 20 participants through the second recruitment this year, taking place from August 14 (Thursday) to 16 (Saturday) at the Korean Sound Culture Hall and various locations in Jeonju. With the theme 'Finding the Memory of Scattered Sounds: Diasporic Approach,' the program consists of on-site practical training and education, including performance viewing, expert lectures, and exchanges with domestic and international artists. The program is highly anticipated as a field-focused educational program for majors to grow into professional artists and explore career paths.
Kim Hee-sun, the festival's executive director (head of the Sound Next planning team), stated, " will be a significant exchange platform where traditional artists and experts are connected, providing opportunities for artists to enter domestic and international markets. Through this, we aim to firmly establish the network of the traditional performing arts industry and expect sustainability and activation of domestic and international distribution. Furthermore, the Sound Festival will strive to expand its outreach as a global platform and fulfill its role faithfully."
