Dongbaek Agassi ... 'Composer Baek Young-ho Biography' Book Concert Held

On the 28th at 2 PM, Modern History Museum Annex, Life Story of the Late Baek Young-ho including 'Dongbaek Agassi' and 'Yeo-ro'

Eldest Son Baek Kyung-kwon to Give Lecture on Baek Young-ho's Life and Oral Records, Special Performance by Pansori Sin

The Busan Modern History Museum will hold a book concert for the ‘Composer Baek Young-ho Biography’ (author Baek Kyung-kwon) at 2 p.m. on the 28th in the humanities complex cultural space annex.

The book concert for 'Composer Baek Young-ho: The Eternal Lover of Dongbaek Agassi.'

The late Baek Young-ho (1920?2003), from Seo-gu, Busan, was a popular music composer who left numerous hit songs including the national folk song ‘Dongbaek Agassi’.

This book concert is an opportunity to look back on the footsteps of Baek Young-ho, who led the development of the Korean popular music scene.

The ‘Composer Baek Young-ho Biography’ introduced at this book concert is a book directly recorded by his eldest son, Baek Kyung-kwon, about the life of composer Baek Young-ho.

The author Baek Kyung-kwon’s main profession is an internal medicine doctor. Driven by his love and respect for his father, who loved music and Busan, he cared for patients during the day and continued writing by classifying and organizing vast materials at night. The recording work, which began in December 2018, was completed after about five years and published as a 360-page book.

The book is divided into five parts. Part 1 covers the background that led Baek Young-ho to become a composer (The Path of a Composer), Part 2 tells the story behind the birth of ‘Dongbaek Agassi,’ which opened the era of selling one million records for the first time in Korea (The Birth of ‘Dongbaek Agassi’), and Part 3 details his golden era as a hit composer in the 1960s and 1970s, who was in charge of television drama theme songs (The Golden Age of Composing). Part 4 sheds light on Baek Young-ho’s life as a senior composer, which had been little known until now (Senior Composer Baek Young-ho), and Part 5 honors his achievements through writings and voices of many people (Part 5 ‘Leaving Behind Dongbaek Agassi’).

Through the ‘Composer Baek Young-ho Biography,’ where famous songs, singers, and titles of movies and dramas that touched the hearts of the entire nation come together, one can explore the modern history of Korean popular music.

The late composer Baek Young-ho from Seo-gu, Busan, is a figure deeply connected to Busan. His existence reveals the role Busan has played in the modern Korean popular music scene.

Baek Young-ho began his activities based in Busan and established himself as a popular music composer loved by the entire nation. He was born in Seodaesin-dong, Seo-gu (1920), and after liberation, he started his full-fledged composer career at Corona Records in Yeongdo, Busan, and Midopa Records in Nambumin-dong.

After hitting songs such as ‘Memories of a Serenade’ (1955) and ‘Haeundae Elegy’ (1958) in Busan, he moved to Seoul and within a year composed the national folk song ‘Dongbaek Agassi’ (1964), rising to the top ranks of domestic composers with about 100 hit songs. He also composed about 200 movie theme songs including ‘Cry, Yeolpung’ (1965), ‘Song of Dongsook’ (1966), and ‘A Woman’s Life’ (1968), as well as about 50 TV drama theme songs such as ‘Assi’ (1970) and ‘Yeo-ro’ (1972).

In recognition of these achievements, composer Baek Young-ho received numerous composition awards hosted by media companies, including the Republic of Korea Cultural Medal, and was inducted into the Korean Music Copyright Association Hall of Fame.

The late Baek Young-ho said that although Seoul brought him his heyday, he never forgot his hometown Busan throughout his life and considered Busan the root of his musical world.

To recall the affection and significance of Baek Young-ho for Busan, his family and eldest son Baek Kyung-kwon donated 11,265 handwritten scores, records, and 25,766 other popular music-related materials left by the late Baek Young-ho to the city before the opening of the Busan Modern History Museum. This is the first case in Korean popular music history where scores and records were systematically collected.

The book concert event, prepared to commemorate the publication of the biography containing the life story of the late composer Baek Young-ho, a figure Busan must remember, will be held in two parts.

Part 1, ‘The Life and Music of Composer Baek Young-ho,’ will be presented by the author in the form of a humanities lecture, introducing the process by which the late Baek Young-ho became a top composer in the Korean popular music scene. Baek Kyung-kwon, who has worked hard to promote his father’s legacy with respect and affection, will reveal photos, videos, and voice recordings that have never been publicly shown before. This will be a particularly meaningful time for popular music enthusiasts.

Part 2, organized as a small concert, will feature a time to enjoy the late Baek Young-ho’s precious masterpieces. The author, who inherited some of his father’s talent, will accompany the performance in Part 2. Baek Chi-woong, the late Baek Young-ho’s grandson and composer, will take the stage to perform ‘Haeundae Elegy.’ It is worth looking forward to a stage created by three generations through composing, performing, and singing.

Rising trot singer Chae Soo-hyun will also participate, expressing ‘Memories of a Serenade’ by singer Nam In-soo, released over half a century ago, with a new sensibility.

The finale of Part 2 will be performed by Jang Sa-ik, honorary ambassador of the Busan Modern History Museum and a longtime acquaintance of the late Baek Young-ho. On this day, Jang Sa-ik will sing Baek Young-ho’s representative song ‘Dongbaek Agassi.’

Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum Annex.

Kim Ki-yong, director of the Busan Modern History Museum, said, “This event will be a time to look back on the life of Baek Young-ho, who greatly contributed to the development of modern Korean popular music, and also to confirm the role Busan has played as a mecca of popular music.” He added, “In the future, the materials and achievements of Baek Young-ho, a representative popular music composer from Busan, will be shared with the public through our museum’s academic research and exhibitions.”