Changbu Taryeong
Artist: Unknown (Gyeonggi Oral Tradition)
Region
Seoul–Gyeonggi
Genre
Gyeonggi Folk Song
Usage
Recreational Song
Changbu Taryeong is the most widely sung folk song of Seoul and the central region. It began as a shaman's ritual song performed at gut ceremonies, then spread among ordinary people until it became the signature song of the Gyeonggi folk tradition. This record is archive material collected to organize and preserve the representative lyrics and the transmission context of Changbu Taryeong.
Commentary & Notes
Changbu (倡夫): The name comes from the Changbu-geori, the part of a Seoul gut ceremony that honors the spirit of entertainers, a reminder of the song's ritual roots.
Ani nojineun motharira: "I cannot help but play." It is sung together with wordless vocables (diriri…) that burst out when the singer is carried away by joy.
The song is set to the gutgeori rhythm in the Gyeonggi mode. Singers phrase it in two-cycle units, but stretch or shorten lines freely to suit their own style.
Cultural Background
Originally the 'Eorang Taryeong' of the mountainous Menari-jo style, it became widely known as 'Singosan Taryeong' as lyrics were added to capture modern scenery after the railway was laid and the restless spirit of a rural maiden. A 3:2 cross-rhythm leads the entire song, and its sorrowful yet spirited melody continues to convey the sentiments of the northern mountain villages today.
Lyrics
한 송이 떨어진 꽃을
낙화 진다고 설워 마라
한번 피었다 지는 줄을
나도 번연히 알건마는
디리리 리리리리리
아니 노지는 못하리라
Do not grieve for a single fallen flower
Just because its petals fall
That what blooms must one day fade
I, too, know all too well
Diriri ririririri
No, I cannot help but play
