Hoengseong Hoedaji Sori Folk Culture Festival to be Held for 2 Days Starting from the 19th

Ucheon-myeon, Hoengseong-gun, Gangwon Province...
Regional music performances including Baebangi Gut from Pyeongan-do
Rare opportunity to experience funeral chants and Hoedajisori firsthand...
Various side events also available

Hoengseong-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province (Governor Kim Myung-gi) announced on the 14th that the 37th Hoengseong Hoedajisori Folk Culture Festival (Chairman Son Chung-ho) will be held for two days from the 19th to the 20th in Jeonggeum Village, Ucheon-myeon, Hoengseong-gun.

A funeral procession scene during the 'Hoengseong Hoedajisori Folk Culture Festival' held in Jeonggeum Village, Ucheon-myeon, Hoengseong-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province. Photo by Hoengseong County Office

Organized by the Hoengseong Hoedajisori Transmission and Preservation Society and sponsored by Hoengseong-gun, this folk culture festival is a representative festival of Korea that preserves and transmits the sounds and songs of the nation’s life, continuing for the 37th year since the Taegi Cultural Festival in 1987.

Hoengseong Hoedajisori is a chant sung during funeral rites, consisting of a funeral procession and Hoedaji songs. The Hoedaji song is sung while placing soil mixed with lime around the coffin after the burial and tamping down the soil. It won the grand prize at the 1st Gangwon-do Folk Arts Competition in 1983 and the President’s Award at the 25th National Folk Arts Competition in 1984, and it is designated as an intangible cultural heritage of Gangwon-do.

An announcement poster for the 37th Hoengseong Hoedajisori Folk Culture Festival, held for two days from April 19 in Jeonggeum Village, Ucheon-myeon, Hoengseong-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province. Image provided by Hoengseong County Office

Especially this year, under the theme “The voice of people carrying the sky and reporting to the earth,” professional planners in traditional culture and arts were invited to overcome the limitations of the existing festival and focus on communicating through modern sensibility content.

Also, the Hoengseong Hoedajisori Transmission and Preservation Society and village residents took the lead in planning and operation to highlight the identity of Hoedajisori while newly illuminating the cultural value of the village community.

On the first day, the 19th, the festival will open with a special performance by the Icheon Turtle Play Preservation Society, designated as Gyeonggi-do Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 50, followed by the opening performance of Baebangi Gut (holder Park Jung-wook), designated as Pyeongan-do Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 5.

Then, through the public presentation of the original form of Hoengseong Hoedajisori and the traditional funeral procession, visitors will have the rare opportunity to directly experience the funeral chants and Hoedajisori songs.

Various attractions such as the mime performances “THE Gam,” “Binsangyeo Nol-eum,” “Fire Art,” and “Mime Citizen Suitman” will also be showcased to further elevate the festival atmosphere.

On the 20th, for the closing performance, local groups including the Hoengseong Eoreori Preservation Society, Wonju Eorirang Preservation Association, and Chuncheon Uibyeong Arirang Preservation Association will take the stage together, creating a venue for the exchange of Gangwon-do intangible cultural heritage.

Various side programs for visitors will also be operated to enhance the enjoyment of the festival.

These include urban sketch experiences directly participated in by local residents, Bangsangtal content experiences (cutting board experience, eco-bag making), personalized coffee roasting experiences, school uniform experiences, nostalgic Jjondeugi (traditional snack) experiences, and a children’s play zone.

Additionally, the Hoengseong Social Economy Support Center (Director Lee Mi-sook) will host sellers from the “On (溫) Heart Market” participating in the event to exhibit and sell local specialties and handicrafts.

Chairman Son Chung-ho said, “We hope that the 37th Hoengseong Hoedajisori Folk Culture Festival will become a festival venue where more people can participate in line with the changes of the times,” and added, “We look forward to this being an opportunity to rediscover the communal value of Hoengseong Hoedajisori and to explore new cultural attempts.”