I had the opportunity to speak with Groove& ahead of their performance as part of the K-Music Festival, and to learn a little bit more about the trio, the music they make, and what we can expect from their performance on the 19th October where the trio will be joining forces with DUO BUD to deliver a dynamic showcase of Korean percussion and electrifying double-bill performance. The performance will allow the audience to experience ‘the seamless fusion of ancient traditions and modern innovation as they unveil intricate rhythmic patterns, employ nuanced techniques, and create enchanting sounds’ which all sounds very exciting, and concert goers can look forward to experiencing a ‘sensory-rich journey that pulsates with rhythmic energy, capturing the vibrant essence of Korean percussion.’
‘Groove&’ comprises members: Min-Ju, Ha-kyung & Sang-kyung. Groove& are an all female percussion ensemble that uses traditional music to showcase percussion on stage, with what the trio describes as a ‘more meticulous and solid texture’. Their music is delicate, yet sensual, and together the trio aims to create “music that is more than ‘sum’ in the process of unleashing and merging talents and capabilities as an artist.” They are driven by the passion to create a good performance, which they feel is something that occurs when the theme or energy they hope to convey is also experienced by the audience.
The trio began their respective musical careers at a young age. Min-ju and HK undertaking their musical education at a high school that specialises in Korean traditional music. Sang-kyung began playing the melodic instrument ‘Daegum’ (a Korean flute) in her early teenage years, but changed her major to percussion aged 17. Sang-kyung shared with me that she feels free to use traditional scales when composing her music.
The trio met while at university, where they majored in the same field and formed ‘Groove&’ in 2017 following graduation. Talking about the music they make, Groove& shared with me that when they work together they receive positive stimulation from each other, and are happy that they have achieved synergy in their activities and ideas thus far. In particular, Min-ju and Ha-kyung have experience learning traditional Korean music that would have been performed by farmers, and the trio draws a lot of inspiration from this genre of traditional music. Together they strive to share a beguiling exploration of Korean music.
The trio describe themselves as ‘Traditional percussionists’ but given the love and passion they have for music, not to mention their talent for music making, this largely feels too humble a description. They put a great deal of love and thought into all of their creations, as evidenced by the trio’s name: they create music from the idea that percussion can make anything groove, the ‘&’ represents all the infinite possibilities open to them to create and potential of imagination that the audience can dream up.
“We have been playing traditional Korean percussion instruments for a long time, and all of our songs are based on traditional Korean rhythms. I mainly write songs based on things I see and feel in my daily life. When I have a topic I want to express, I find the traditional Korean ‘jangdan’(Korean rhythm) that best suits it.” – Lee Sang-kyung.
Groove& describe the music that they make as bringing out the hidden charm of traditional Korean percussion instruments. They shared with me a little bit about what inspires them, and their compositions: “Everything in everyday life seems to be inspiration. We write songs based on everything we encounter around us. To get inspiration, we often attend performances of other genres, musicals, and exhibitions.” Talking about how they go about composing, they shared with me that in most cases, they start with creating the overall rhythm, which is based on Korean traditional rhythm, and from there they add in the melody.
The trio have two songs that they are particularly proud of. The first of which is their song “Exit”. This is especially meaningful to the them because it is the song that best showcases their team’s colours. The second song they are proud of is titled ‘Run, Ran, Run’, which is precious to the trio as it is a song that gave them a grand prize.
I was really interested to know more about the tradition and history associated with each of the instruments they play. For those who might not be familiar with the traditional instruments the names are Yanggeum, Ulla & Janggu. “Ul-la”, they shared, “is a melody percussion instrument mainly used in the king’s marching music. It’s like a bell tree. The Yang-geum is an instrument similar to the sitar and santur, and is played with a stick by placing an iron string on top of a tree. Janggu is Korea’s representative percussion instrument, and its main characteristic is that it is played by holding different sticks in both hands.”
We spoke about their projects “Groove&-RE+CLAP” and “Groove&-GLUE”. Talking of this, the trio shared that the biggest characteristic of percussion instruments is that “everything we come into contact with can be used as a percussion instrument because it produces sound by hitting everything.”
Korean traditional musical instruments, they informed me, are classified into eight natural materials: “iron, stone, thread, bamboo, gourd, soil, leather, and wood.” I tried making music using these raw materials as a motif, and that is GLUE. On the contrary, Re-clap is a song made with used and discarded materials. I thought that ‘recycling that I could do as a musician’ was to create music with discarded items. These two projects are projects where you can feel the contrast between the materials before they were made and the materials that were used up and discarded.”
The trio will be performing in London on 19 October 2023 as part of the K-music festival. We spoke a little about what we can expect and look forward to, and Groove& shared with me that their performance will bring the freshness and newness of Korean music to the British people, but also a “heart-pounding feeling for Koreans.”
In 2023 alone the trio has performed at:
