Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Medic]

Norebongs and singing rooms are everywhere, and I've often wondered why the Korean people have this need to sing. They do sing well, and are not ashamed to sing in public which is something you don't see in western
countries unless one is inebriated with alcohol. I just wish they could transfer their lack of musical shame to their English speaking skills. Children of all ages sing here too, and I think it's commendable.

The only Western country where people are unafraid to sing, and where they do so spontaneously is Wales. Oh I forgot. The people of the Pacific Islands are are also known for their love of singing as well.

As you go south in Asia the singing skills of the people aren't as pronounced. There is a shift from music to more minidrams, and dramatic short skits with satire as opposed to the use of music.

[little mixed girl]

.....

[VanIslander]

I knew my philosophy of music course would serve me well someday. Okay, here's what I remember about the history and politics of music, alongside tidbits I've recently picked up about the Korean context, for what it's worth.

Koreans have a long history of spontaneous public singing as recorded in the millennium-old complaints of Chinese conquerors in Korean Manchuria.

The Welsh likewise to the chagrin of the English. It's because singing is an ancient way of boosting morale, emphasizing community, re-inforcing language and preserving culture. It is no surprise that, before and after the public-private distinction became common law, the English banned most forms of singing in Wales in their determination to allow only organized, officially sanctioned public performances of primarily (back then, non-Welsh) protestant church songs.

The Germans also tried to do it in Hungary by limiting the performances of folk music to those that'd been turned into culturally-hollow classical music. The tactic was not new to the Hungarians, who'd struggled to defend their fertile plains for over a thousand years against invading forces. Yet, it's always been manly for Hungarian men to openly sing, and those Magyars have embraced the similar practices of gypsy and Jewish traditions, even despite the relatively recent suppressive Soviet history.

In all three cases, efforts failed to squash those peoples' spirit of resistance and survival. Which came first, the singing or the resistance? That's an open question. But the correlation remains: they are three cultures in which it's manly for men to openly and spontaneously sing despite a history of colonization.

One hypothesis is that colonizers try to immasculate the colonized by de-moralizing singing in the commoners as well as in the militia; an attendant hypothesis is that peoples with resilient cultures of singing preserve a sense of liberation.

The upshot of this position is that the unabashed singing of Korean men has functioned to help Korea survive the colonizing efforts of the Chinese and Japanese.

(Looking at the content of the music, that'd partially explain the sadness of Korean ballads.)

'Musical shame', to use Medic's term, therefore cannot be readily transferred to English language learning.

Class over. Students dismissed.

[itchy]

[Zyzyfer]

[Gord]

Wouldn't "bawng" be more phonically representative of how it should be said, because when I see "bang" I think of children running around saying "bang bang! You're dead!" which isn't how the word is pronounced.

No Ray Bawng is now the official spelling on this forum. Dave said so.

[Zyzyfer]

[Butterfly]

[Len8]

Norebangs are also little love motels at times. Some actually provide female company for a price. Was in a coffee shop talking to one of the girls there when her telephone rings, and she gets up to go saying "I have to go to a Norebang. They need me."

[indytrucks]

Noraebangs (however you want to spell it) are not solely limited in appeal to Koreans. It's all of Asia. Anywhere you go. Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, the Phillippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, China (and I'm sure other Asian countries) are mad for it. Any hellishly-long bus journey in southeast Asia wouldn't be complete without a karaoke machine blaring at 230 decibels.

For what it's worth, at least the majority of Koreans I know have a decent singing voice. The same cannot be said for the man who screeched his way through a Frank Sinatra repitoire from Vientiane to Pakse (12 hours of absolute torture).

[just because]

I think the ones that provide the company are not noraebangs but Norae Ju Jeoms. if you can read hangul you will see many of these Ju Jeoms in the seedier areas of towns. just to stir my girlfriend up I'll say I'm off to the Ju Jeom(she worked i one for a week and hated it).
i think Noraebangs are so popular here because it lets them belt out some of their frustration in a nicer way than fighting after being tanked up on soju. I must admit after i've had a few i don't mind going down to the old singing room to belt out a bit of Pearl jam(or unfortunantly Loveholic and Lee Joeng Hyun these days). My how my music tastes have changed since I got here.

[Cthulhu]

Yes, definitely noraejujums. Went with our professors to one last week (one of their post prof meeting rituals) and they called in a number of ladies for the event. Usually alcohol is served as well; it certainly flowed in copious quantities last week...

[Len8]

I think Koreans call their best song, or the one they can sing best as their "No 18 song". Seems the English songs they like best are those of the Beetles. They like us native speakers to sing them for them so they can practice their English.

I am a fan of Che Jin Ee as far as Korean songs go, and I'm trying to get a few of them down pat to impress the ladies. (last part was a joke. I genuinley enjoy some of their music)