Songpa-gu Hanseong Baekje Cultural Festival, Seocho-gu Seoripul Festival, Gangnam-gu 2024 Gangnam Festival Crowds Continue on 29th Following 28th
It is the perfect festival season at the end of autumn.
During the day, the heat continues, but as the sun sets, the cool breeze and air feel wonderful.
In this beautiful season, there are great opportunities to come out holding hands with family, listen to music, and enjoy delicious food happening all over Seoul.
Last Day of the Hansung Baekje Cultural Festival in Songpa-gu
Songpa-gu (Mayor Seo Gang-seok) will hold the 24th Hansung Baekje Cultural Festival, a high-quality cultural and arts festival, from the 27th to the 29th at the Peace Plaza in Olympic Park.
This year’s festival theme is ‘The Power of Culture Connecting Hearts.’ It signifies the cultural power that has flowed for 2,000 years from the roots of Hansung Baekje culture, spreading beyond South Korea to the world, connecting people’s hearts and uniting them as one.
Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, explained, “The Hansung Baekje Cultural Festival is continuously evolving to live up to Songpa-gu’s reputation as a leading tourist city in Seoul. We have planned a festival that is more modern, artistic, and entertaining so that residents and visitors from home and abroad can all enjoy it together.”
In particular, since 2022, the district has selected themes centered on ‘The Power of Culture’ to showcase the charm of culture and arts that transcend eras. The 2022 theme, ‘The Power of Culture Flowing Proudly,’ evolved into the 2023 theme, ‘The Power of Culture Crossing Rivers and Seas,’ presenting differentiated stages such as fashion shows, musicals, K-Pop, and game music.
On the evening of the second day, the 28th, the ‘Hansung Cultural Concert,’ where attendees enjoyed traditional music melodies, was held.
From 7:30 PM to 10 PM, the stage featured ▲traditional music such as daegeum solo and jeongga ▲traditional dances including seungmu, chun-aengmu, and crane dance ▲and changgeuk (traditional Korean opera).
Especially, centered on the gayageum performance by Professor Choi Jin, a holder of the Important Intangible Cultural Property, an ensemble of 20 gayageum players, along with seonbi dance and yeoryeong dance, showcased the profound elegance of tradition.
Additionally, performances by the ‘Saengdonggam Crew’ with LED dance and the fusion gugak group ‘AUX’ brought the audience a joyful blend of tradition and modernity.
Seoripul Festival in Seocho-gu Closes Today
Hosted by Seocho-gu (Mayor Jeon Seong-su) and organized by the Seocho Cultural Foundation, the Seoripul Festival is an urban music festival held every September. Since its first event in 2015, it has grown into a representative autumn music festival attracting over 980,000 visitors through 2023.
This year marks the 7th festival, themed ‘Seocho is the Music A-Z (Everything about Music).’ It signifies a festival created by everyone?from top domestic artists to amateur performers, from classical to K-Pop, and from staff to volunteers.
The venue is the Banpo-daero area, the core axis of the nation’s only music culture district (from Seocho Station on Subway Line 2 to Seocho 3-dong Intersection). The scale covers about 28,500 square meters along a 900-meter stretch of a 10-lane road.
During the two days of the festival, exciting music filled Banpo-daero, and diverse programs for children and families were held. The car-free 10-lane Banpo-daero became a space for free indulgence and healing, where people could eat and enjoy themselves to their heart’s content.
Banpo-daero, transformed into a cultural street flowing with music, featured three main stages: the 3,000-seat ‘Main Stage,’ the 10-meter ‘Welcome Stage’ near Seocho Station, and the truck stage ‘Joy Stage’ near Gyodaeipgu Intersection. Various performances from classical to jazz, K-Pop, and dance continuously filled the autumn streets for 48 hours.
This year, unique programs were prepared using morning and nighttime hours, making the festival packed from dawn to midnight. In addition to the usual festival hours from 11 AM to 10 PM, on the 28th from 9 PM to 11 PM, the ‘Seoripul Silent Disco’ allowed participants to enjoy their own rhythm through headphones in the quiet night, and on the 29th from 7 AM, ‘Seoripul Good Morning Yoga’ was held on Banpo-daero surrounded by skyscrapers.
Over 100 special programs unique to Seocho for children and families were also available. The 10-lane road became the largest sketchbook on the ground for families to draw together, and the festival featured the handmade crafts market ‘Seoripul Art Salon’ and the outdoor library ‘The Music Library’ on the lawn.
The district plans to make this festival a sustainable and mutually beneficial event created together with local residents. The first youth volunteer group, ‘Seoripul Runners,’ will actively participate as partners in making the festival.
On the first day, the 28th, starting at 1:30 PM, the exciting opening parade by the Crown Marching Band marked the beginning of the event, followed by the ‘Largest Sketchbook on the Ground’ event where the vast asphalt transformed into a canvas.
Starting at 2 PM, the ‘Largest Sketchbook on the Ground’?the festival’s most popular program?allowed participants to freely draw with chalk on the 10-lane Banpo-daero street, the world’s largest sketchbook, expressing creativity to the fullest. It offered an experience of liberation and escapism that was previously only imaginable.
Following last year, students from Baekseok Arts University supported various preliminary sketches symbolizing music, enabling people of all ages and genders to participate, draw, and color their own pictures, creating unforgettable memories. Over 100,000 colorful chalks needed for participation were provided free on-site.
At 3 PM on the 28th, the ‘Seoripul Choir Festival’ was held on the Main Stage, uniting people beyond religion, gender, and age through music. About 320 members from seven choirs representing Buddhism, Christianity, Catholicism, and others delivered beautiful harmonies.
Participating choirs included the Gwanmunsa Geumgang Choir, Declare Ensemble of Sarang Church, Seocho Catholic Church Choir, Seocho-gu Women’s Choir, Seocho Father Center Seoripul Men’s Choir, Somdari Choir of Yangjae Comprehensive Social Welfare Center, and Sahyanggain Alumni Choir of Seoul National University of Education.
This year, the Yongsan-gu Choir and the acapella group ‘Only Voice,’ known for their fantastic medley on MBC’s ‘Hangout with Yoo,’ also performed congratulatory shows.
The opening performance starting at 7 PM featured the Seocho Symphony Orchestra & Seocho Orchestra Academy, returning from a New York performance in early September, presenting a rich mix of classical, gugak (traditional Korean music), and popular music artists. Vocalists with unique tones, John Park and Jung In, performed, and the eternal diva of popular music, Jung Hoon-hee, collaborated with the Seocho Symphony Orchestra.
Additionally, violinist Park Su-ye and the project group ‘SG FOREST’ led by gugak composer Kang Sang-gu delivered impressive performances. Jazz artist Laure Zaehringer from Paris 15th District, a sister city overseas, captivated the audience with a splendid jazz concert. The event was hosted by KBS announcers Lim Ji-woong and Lee Sun-young.
Gangnam Festival Continues with Fashion Show and More
Gangnam-gu (Mayor Jo Seong-myeong) will hold the ‘2024 Gangnam Festival’ from September 26 to 29 and on October 3 at COEX and Apgujeong Rodeo.
Directed by performance director Park Kal-lin, the festival is planned under the slogan ‘COME BE YOUR GANGNAM STYLE,’ encouraging everyone to create and enjoy their own Gangnam style.
Moreover, emphasizing the latest trend of ‘eco-friendliness,’ the festival involves residents, businesses, and domestic and international sister cities, aiming to realize cooperation and coexistence through sharing with marginalized groups, evolving into an ESG festival.
This festival will be centered around the main stage at the COEX East Plaza. Featuring a large LED screen and a specially designed protruding stage that interacts with the audience, dazzling performances will continue daily. The festival program consists of 11 events: six main programs including ▲Opening Ceremony ▲Gangnam Fashion Festa ▲Open Air Concert ▲Yeongdong-daero K-POP Concert ▲Gourmet Travel & K-Culture Zone ▲International Peace Marathon, and five sub-programs including ▲Festival Pre-show ▲Late-night Healing Theater ▲I’m Also a K-POP Star ▲Fashion Exhibition ▲Street Performance.
On the 28th, from 12 PM to 9 PM, the Fashion Festa took place. The fashion show, previously held at Starfield Library until last year, returned to the fashion street of Apgujeong, offering an immersive outdoor fashion show. As an ESG Festa, it showcased upcycled and natural dye clothing, along with a pet fashion show involving residents, and trendy Apgujeong charm presented by local fashion designers and Apgujeong Rodeo shops.
Following that, from 7 PM to 10 PM, the Open Air Concert was held. Targeting the 70s and 80s generation with retro vibes, seven teams performed: Kim Wan-sun, Kim Won-jun, Rula, Young Turks Club, Zaza, Koyote, and Cool (Lee Jae-hoon).
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