Investigating a Musical Biography in Korea: The Theorist/Musicologist Pak Yŏn (1378-1458)

Author(s): Robert C. Provine

Source: Yearbook for Traditional Music, Vol. 32 (2000), pp. 1-15
Published by: Cambridge University Press
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3185240
Accessed: 04-05-2020 22:12 UTC

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INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY IN KOREA:

THE THEORIST/MUSICOLOGIST PAK Y(N (13 78-145

by Robert C. Provine

Introduction

Pak Y6n (1378-1458) was an important figure in Korean music history

whose effects on court music, ceremonies, instruments, and theory are still
being felt after five and a half centuries.' Together with his sovereign, the
famous King Sejong (reigned 1418-1450),2 he was enormously influential in
the development of court music, especially the ritual music aak which derived
ultimately from twelfth-century Chinese court ritual music and which was
always considered to reflect Chinese musical style. Aak and its specialized
musical instruments were used, largely at the instigation of Pak Y6n, for a
variety of court events, including the state sacrificial rites (chesa or killye)
which were also based on Chinese models. Pak is the single most prominent
and widely documented figure in pre-modern Korean music history.
Pak's biography is reasonably well known in Korean musicological
circles,3 and a volume of his surviving writings has in recent times been
translated into modern Korean by Professor Kwon Oh Sung (Kw6n Os6ng
1993). These Korean musicological writings are, of course, intended for
modern Korean readership, and my purpose in this first article arising from a
long-term project is to reinvestigate the surviving materials, both primary and
secondary, by and about Pak Y6n and recast them for a Western audience,
employing the gradually developing concepts of historical ethnomusicology.
Because of the substantial amount of data to sift and interpret, this project will
take some years to complete, and in this article I wish merely to demonstrate
what sorts of biographical materials exist, together with some observations
about their nature and interpretation.

Chronology
Pak Y6n was contemporary with Dufay and Dunstable in Europe, but we
know far more, and in much finer detail, about Pak's life than theirs, or
indeed any other European musician of that time. Born in 1378, he was a
member of the Miryang Pak clan, a highly distinguished aristocratic (yangban)

1. I am grateful to Martina Deuchler, Song June-ho (Song Chunho), Mark Peterson, and
Frank Hoffmann, among many others, for helpful advice concerning the materials in
this article. The Korea Section of the Harvard-Yenching Library, especially the librarian
Yoon Choong Nam (Yun Ch'ungnam), has also given valuable assistance. Travel funds
from the University of Durham enabled parts of the research.
2. Sejong was responsible, among many other things, for the development of the
Korean alphabet, scientific achievements, philosophical thought, printing technology,
literature, and medical compendia. He is widely considered by Koreans to have been
the greatest ruler in their history. A survey of his achievements is Kim-Renaud (1997).
3. For example, the biographical sketch in Chang Sahun (1982:68-72); the study of Pak's
accomplishments by Lee Hye-Ku (Yi Hyegu) (1967:167-80); and the numerous citations
of Pak in vol. 2 of Mun S6ngny6p (1988).

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2/2000 YEARBOOK FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC

lineage during the Chos6n dynasty (1392-1910).4 He passed the preliminary

(saengwdn) and final (munkwa) civil service examinations in 1405 and 1411,
achieving the highest grades amongst all the candidates in the final exam.s
Pak first came to royal attention even before his examination success: he
dwelled in a hut next to his parents' graves for six years, and his admirable
filiality was rewarded with a "filial gate" (ch6ngmun, see Deuchler 1992:76)
from the king in 1402; this was a rare honour, bestowed only by the king, only
on individuals displaying extraordinary filiality, and normally only granted
posthumously. He was, as a result of his filiality, not a particularly young
exam passer, completing the final exam at the age of 33. His official career
proceeded for the most part impressively and smoothly: by 1423 he held a
civil Junior 6 (chongyukp'um) rank, that is, on the lower side of the sixth rank
from the top. By 1444, he had risen to a Senior 2 (ch6ngip'um) rank, very
nearly at the top of the civil service scale.6 His official career came to an
abrupt halt in 1454 (when he was 76), however, when he was banished back
to his home village near Y6ngdong in modern North Ch'ungch'6ng province
(very near the geographical center of modern South Korea), because one of
his sons (Pak Kyeu) had become embroiled in a royal succession dispute. He
died in 1458, at the age of 80.
Pak's descendants still form a distinct and proud lineage within the
Miryang Pak clan, and there is now not only a lineage committee and a small
lineage house, but also a large and impressive memorial building and
compound in Pak's native village of Kodangni, near Y6ngdong. I have spoken
with a seventeenth-generation descendant still living in the village, and she
was kind enough to lead me to the tomb of Pak and his wife on the hill
behind the village.
Pak Y6n was the Korean national cultural figure for the month of
September 1993, and his portrait adorned local hotels and the bus station in
Y6ngdong, as well as bookshops nationwide; one wonders where else, if
anywhere, in the world such adulation has been accorded a musicologist.

Documentary sources
The many and varied documentary sources for information on Pak Y6n
range from official government records to an example of his calligraphy, and

4. The number of Korean surnames is rather small, and a few surnames are
overwhelmingly common: about 40% of Koreans share three surnames - Kim, Pak, an
Yi (also written Lee, Rhee, etc.). For each surname claiming an aristocratic lineage, ther
are various sub-lineages or clans identified by a location felt to be the original clan sea
(pon'gwan). Thus the Miryang Pak comprise the subset of the Pak surname which has it
clan seat in the town Miryang. Within each such clan, there may be numerous lineages
in various locations. Two important studies of Korean kinship systems are Deuchle
(1992) and Peterson (1996).
5. A concise description of the Chos6n period examination system is Wagner (1974a).
6. The civil service was divided into nine ranks, with rank one at the top. Each rank wa
subdivided into Senior and Junior. Pak's highest rank of Senior 2 was thus only tw
steps below the very top. The specific references are in Sejong sillok 19.27a (1423/3) and
105.12b (1444/7). According to the genealogy Miryang Paksi sebo (see below an
Appendix), as yet unverified by the Annals, he rose as high as Junior 1.

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PROVINE INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY/3

they are not unlike the sources used for the biographies of other h
figures in Korea. The following is an overview of the main sources.
A. Annals of the Chos6n Dynasty (Chos6n wangjo sillok)
Official chronological annals were compiled posthumously for ea
of the Chos6n dynasty, based on daily records kept by court historian
the reign itself. These provide a nearly day-to-day record of event
royal court from 1392 to 1910, and often they contain complete te
literary Chinese) of "memorials" (so, petitions and other documents p
to the king by a minister), together with summaries of discuss
decisions taken.7 Over fifty of Pak's memorials are preserved in th
from 1425 to 1450, on topics as diverse as state sacrificial rites, tun
bronze bells, dance, pitch pipes, and construction of many ty
instruments.

Figure 1 shows the opening of the text of one of Pak's memorials (beginning
in the thirteenth column from the right, just below the open circle which
marks the start of a new entry), presented in the fourth (lunar) month of 1426

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Figure 1. Pak Yon Memorial. Annals of the Chos6n Dynasty

(Sejong sillok 32.10ab). This memorial discusses var

Chinese music theory and their application to c
printing reproduced in the figure dates from 160

7. Further general information on the Korean sillok may

34). On the corresponding Chinese shilu, see Wilkinso
Korean Studies 1996-8 extracts and translates (into mo
references from the sillok, and Song Bang-song (1991) is a
the sillok.

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4/2000 YEARBOOK FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC

printed edition of 1472, which in turn was prepared from the manuscript
original of 1454. The Annals also record such data as promotions, and for Pak
there are about twenty entries recording his promotions or citing his rank
over a period of thirty years, giving a clear picture of how his official career
progressed.

B. Korean Encyclopedia of Documents and Institutions (Chii ngbo Munh6n pigo)

A substantial number of Pak Y6n's memorials are also preserved in this
large encyclopedia, first drafted in 1770, revised in 1790, and published in an
expanded and widely circulated edition in 1908 (Provine 1988:61-64). In
addition to providing second versions of the memorials in a clear modern
printing,8 the prominence of Pak Y6n in the Music Section (akko, chapters
90-108) of this work is testimony to the esteem in which he was held during
Korea's Confucian revival of the eighteenth century and in later times.

C. Collected Writings of Pak Yin (Nan'gye s6nsaeng yugo)

The surviving writings of Pak Y6n were not collected and published until
1822, but the texts appear to have been preserved independently of the official
works already mentioned. In addition to thirty-nine memorials, the Collected
Writings contains eight poems and two other writings by Pak Y6n not
preserved in other works, together with eulogistic pieces by
nineteenth-century scholars (Provine 1988:43-45). The texts of the memorials
are somewhat more polished in language and more concise than the versions
preserved elsewhere.9 This is the work translated by Professor Kwon Oh Sung
(1993).

D. Clan genealogies
In Korea, the clan or lineage genealogy plays a more important historical
role than corresponding works in China (Wagner 1974; Wilkinson 1998:110-
113). The genealogy is a reflection of the importance of clan and lineage in
Korea, especially in the aristocracy. Modern scholars may, however, be
disappointed in the severely male orientation of these genealogies: women
are usually identified either by the name and achievements of their husbands
(in the case of women in the clan of the genealogy marrying into another clan)
or by the clan and parentage from which they come (for women who marry
into the clan of the genealogy); their names are typically not given.
One of the Miryang Pak genealogies, the Miryang Pakssi sebo (Pak Naehak
1904?), gives a chart of Pak Y6n's relatives from his grandfather down to
himself, plus several generations on his paternal uncle's side. After the chart,
the genealogy gives a detailed account of each generation from Pak's
grandfather down through his children and grandchildren. The description of
Pak Y6n in this work is probably the best biographical sketch, as such, in the
historical sources. From it, we learn, for example, his dates, his various

8. The memorial given in Figure 1, for example, is recorded in 92.9b-12a.

9. The memorial in Figure 1, for example, is found on pages 6b-9b.

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PROVINE INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY/5

pseudonyms, the story of his filiality, his civil service exam successes
the official ranks he held, the problems encountered in 1454 when
banished, posthumous honours, the clan of his wife, and the locati
grave. A draft translation of the entire biography is given in the
below.
Figure 2 shows the first page of Pak Y6n's entry in the Miryang Pakssi
sebo, in the third horizontal frame from the top. The first two columns identify

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Figure 2. Pak Y6n's entry in Miryang Pakssi sebo

the genealogy and the particular lineage (i.e., the one from Pak's grandfather).
Pak Y6n is the eldest son in the third generation. More detailed and extended

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6/2000 YEARBOOK FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC

genealogies of Pak Y6n's line probably exist, but as yet I have been unable to
locate and examine them.

E. Writings about Pak Yon in other authors' collected works

Pak is mentioned by a number of other scholars of his time and later, and
such writings sometimes reveal informal aspects of a person which would not
appear in official writings or a clan genealogy. The most important piece on
Pak was written by a noted official and writer at the end of the fifteenth
century, S6ng Hy6n (1439-1504), in a collection of witty and informal essays
called Yongjae cli'onglhwa [Collected Notes of S6ng Hy6n], published
posthumously in 1525 (Provine 1988:61).
What S6ng Hy6n tells us boils down to three anecdotes: first, Pak Y6n's
abilities in flute playing; second, the precision of his hearing (and that of King
Sejong) in connection with constructing a set of stone chimes; and third, his
departure from Seoul when he was banished. As a sample, this is a translation
of the third anecdote:

His son (Pak) Kyeu was involved in the uprising of 1453, and because of that Pak
Y6n was dismissed from office and sent home to his native place. His close friends
entertained him at the Han River bank [just south of Seoul]. He had only one
horse, a servant boy, and a little baggage. All together, they sat down in the
middle of the boat and set up drinks. Pak pulled at his sleeve [to wipe his tears]
and was about to depart, when he untied his knapsack and pulled out his flute. He
played three strains and then departed. Those who heard it were all grieved and
moved to shed tears. (S6ng 1525:471 and 289)

S6ng Hy6n is better known in musicological circles as the chief compiler

of the important 1493 treatise Guide to the Study of Music (Akhak kweb6m)
(Provine 1988:54-61). The Guide preserves much that Pak Y6n advocated
earlier in the century, but it only mentions his name once. That single citation
(Introduction, 2a) states that Pak's contribution to the musical achievements
of King Sejong's reign was only one part in 10,000, but this may be interpreted
either as a criticism of Pak or as a sly way to be sure his name was mentioned
at the right place, in amongst a formalistic litany of royal names.

F. Other soutrces

Bits and pieces of information on Pak Yon may be found in a variety of other
sources, mentioned only briefly here.
1. Traditional biographical collections, of which there are many, tend to
repeat each other and earlier descriptions of individuals.10 In the case
of Pak Y6n, it is generally the anecdotes of S6ng Hy6n that reappear.
2. Unofficial histories written by individual scholars often cite Pak Y6n
in connection with musical reforms undertaken during the reign of
King Sejong. The value of these histories is that they sometimes

10. A collection of extracts from such traditional biographical sources may be found in
Yi Sang6n (1990). Two biographies of Pak Y6n appear in volume (2:1,244-1,245).

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PROVINE INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY/7

contain orally transmitted stories or legends, as well as material

on sources other than those used in official compilations.

4x

416. OL17 i i~. ;

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aff 4 s
_~ t1ti iA! ~

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Figure 3. Pak Y6n's genealogy entry.

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8/2000 YEARBOOK FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC

3. National and local gazetteers are geographically organized

documents including not only geographical and demographic data,
but also names of locally resident clans and (usually short)
biographies of famous historical figures from the area. There are
many historical examples of these gazetteers, which continue to be
produced today." Figure 3 shows two pages from the (Sinjil ng)
Tonggiuk y6ji sil ngnamn [New Edition of the Korean National Gazetteer] of
1530 (16.23a-24b), naming and locating such things as schools,
bridges, temples and other landmarks in and around Y6ngdong.
There is a brief statement about Pak Y6n in the sixth and seventh

columns from the right in the lower frame, to the effect that he ros
very high in the civil service ranks, was noted for his filiality, was
exceptionally proficient in music theory, and assisted King Sejong in
the systematizing of ritual music.
4. Portrait: there is an undated portrait of Pak Y6n and his wife, now
kept at the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Art
(Kungnip kugagw6n) in Seoul (see Figure 4). The inscription at the
top, not necessarily contemporary with the painting itself, refers to
Pak by a posthumous title that he received in 1768. The painting is
reasonably well known in Korean art history circles.
5. Calligraphy: Pak was evidently known for his good hand, and
fragment of his calligraphy survives (Figure 5). The text is six lines o
an eight-line poem, the full text being preserved in his collected
works (Kim S6kpae 1975:pl. 39; Pak Y6n 1822:1a).
6. Examination rosters: complete rosters for the civil service
examinations during the entire Chos6n dynasty still survive, and
these allow us to check the data reported, for example, in the clan
genealogy. Figure 6 shows part of the list of passers for the
examinations of 1411 in a roster called Kukcho pangniok (ca. 1894), of
which there are numerous manuscript copies; Pak Y6n's citation is in
the third column from the left. As the first entry in the category of
clhinsa, the final civil service exam, he ranked highest in his group of
passers. The entry reports that Pak had passed the lower exams, and
it gives his pseudonym (Nan'gye), the first form of his given name
(Y6n), the fact of his excellence in music, and his highest post
achieved. In the lower part of the column, his father's name and clan
are recorded, along with a few facts about other relatives.

Observations and conclusions

The information provided by these documentary sources is extensive,

though it may not be what we are searching for. For example, there is n
music directly associated with Pak Y6n, though separate notated sources d
preserve music which clearly shows the influence of his theories (Provine

11. Two examples of recent gazetteers with information on Pak Y6n are Yi Sangh
(1996:35-37) and Ch6ng T'aeyong (1960:29b-30a).

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PROVINE INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY/9

1988:141-171); except for his filiality, there is little on his personal chara
how he interacted with other people, apart from formal statements
Annals.
The sources tell us about Pak's attainments in official rank, his written
legacy (mainly poems and texts of memorials), the honour he brought to his
family, and anecdotes about his superlative attributes. In other words, they
give us the sorts of biographical observations that are typically found in
Chinese and Korean sources in the Confucian literary tradition.
Confucianism strongly emphasizes history and writing, and its essential
attitude toward the present and future is that progress is best made by careful

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Figure 4. Portrait of Pak Y6n and his wife, (National Center for Korean Traditional
Performing Arts, Seoul)

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10/2000 YEARBOOK FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC

study of the past and emulation of great achievements in history, especially

those of the mythical utopias of Chinese antiquity. The same attitude of
admiration for the past is revealed at the family level in respect for one's
parents and veneration for one's ancestors.

)~KC'

,d IF[

Figure 5. Pak Y6n's calligraphy.

Pak Y6n's work clearly em

music were formed and jus
writings on music, from the
memorials show him consta
should emulate authoritative
parents was exemplary. He wa
and the memorials preserve
progressive and increasingly
less supportive of Pak's in
practices.

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PROVINE INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY/11

4r r - - *-*. - -

r AV- ,eup
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Figure 6. List of examination passers in 1411.

King Sejong, as I have explained elsewhere

invented the Korean alphabet that made widesp
act, among others of a similarly Korea-centered n
dominance of Chinese writing and thought in Ea
attacked by ministers who had risen to powe
examination system which examined Chinese
composition. Literacy amongst the people wa

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12/2000 YEARBOOK FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC

ministers' power, and many opposed Sejong in his alphabet project. Pak
Y6n's insistence on the use of Chinese ritual music in the Korean court needs
to be seen in the historical context of such developments.
A main task, then, will be to put the biographical information about Pak
Y6n into historical, theoretical, and musical context. Just as music has a
context which ethnomusicologists examine carefully, people, their careers,
and their writings have contexts which make their character, meaning, and
influence clearer. Pak Y6n's influence on the Korean ritual music aak can still
be heard today, and it may also be found running throughout many musical
sources from the fifteenth century to the present. His was the main voice to be
heard in the Akhak kweb6m treatise, a work which has defined court musical
practices in Korea since the late fifteenth century.
The readership of the documentary sources described here was the
educated, ruling elite of traditional Korea, together with Pak's own
aristocratic clan. The primary sources can speak only rather indirectly to a
foreign audience of the twenty-first century, and indeed they do not speak
very clearly even to a modern Korean readership: while Pak Y6n's name is
recognized by nearly every educated Korean as a famous figure in the history
of Korean music, very few Koreans are now aware of the nature of his
influence and achievement.

APPENDIX

An annotated, draft translation of the biography of Pak Y6n foun

Miryang Pakssi sebo 1.1a-2a (see Figure 2 above). Translations of gove
offices and ranks are taken from Wagner 1974b:125-133.
Pak Y6n's first given name was Y6n [written with a different C
character]; his courtesy name [name taken around age 20] was T'anb
his pseudonym was Nan'gye. He was also known as Songs61ldang
born in 1378, on the 20th day of the 8th (lunar) month.
Pak was extremely intelligent and outstanding in letters. His na
disposition tended toward filiality, and he dwelled in a hut by his
graves for six years. His influence was extraordinary. In the secon
King T'aejong's reign (1402) it was reported to the king, and he rec
"filial gate" [an honour bestowed by the king on exceptionally filial s
In 1405, he passed the preliminary civil service examination, and
he passed the final civil service examination, placing top in the ran
obtained a post as Oktang [one of a number of ranks at Junior 6 t
level in the Office of the Special Counselors] and held positions in th
of Royal Lectures, the Bureau of State Records, and the National A
He was Minister [p'ans5, Senior 2] in the Board of Personnel and Fou
Councillor [Junior 1] in the State Council, concurrently being Deputy
[Junior 2] of the Pomun'gak [reference unclear] and Director [Senior
Office of Royal Decrees.
For three reigns [i.e., King T'aejong (1400-1418), King Sejong (1418
and King Munjong (1450-1452)], he set rites and made music.

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PROVINE INVESTIGATING A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY/13

In 1454, because of the royal succession disputes, Pak's third son K

was martyred, and Pak Y6n returned to his native village. He wrote s
"Family Precepts" in seventeen sections.
He died in 1458, on the 26th day of the third month, aged 81
Western reckoning].
In 1556 [or 1554, a discrepancy of dates here] Pak was enshrined a
Hoegogw6n [Confucian school?] in Y6ngdong. In 1613, his spirit tablet
moved to the Confucian academy in Ch'ogang [near Y6ngdong]. In 176
was awarded the posthumous title Munh6n. Further details may be fo
his collected writings [i.e., Nan'gye s6nsaeng yugo].
His wife came from the Y6san Song clan. Her father, Song Pin, wa
Minister [Senior 2]. Their graves are located behind Kajaedong ham
Kodang village, west of Y6ngdong. They are seated facing north. Ther
upper and lower mounds, a tombstone inscription, a table stone, and
posts.

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