Disabled musicians celebrate unity at eighth Great Music Festival

String and wind orchestra Ulsan Ripple Art Troupe performs Lee Ji-soo’s “Arirang Rhapsody” at the 2024 Great Music Festival, Korea’s largest competition that centers disabled musicians, at the Coex Auditorium in southern Seoul on Thursday. [PARK SANG-MOON]

 
The trill of a violin, accompanied by the heavy tones of a cello, pierced the air. A thunderous piano weaved between the string instruments of the Great Music Festival (GMF) at Coex Auditorium in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on Thursday. 
 
Six musical groups and Isaac Hong, winner of the third season of JTBC’s reality show “Sing Again” (2023-24) took the stage for the eighth edition of GMF, Korea's largest annual music competition that centers developmentally disabled artists. Though a hard-fought competition, the autumn afternoon was also a celebration of unity and the joy of music.
 
Teams of two or more were eligible to compete in either classical or applied music at this year's festival; at least one third of each team was required to be disabled. A total of 238 teams, or 2,500 musicians, have participated in GMF, which is co-organized by the Heart to Heart Foundation and SK Innovation, since its 2017 foundation.
 

Piano trio Ensemble Harmonia, made up of of pianist Cho Hyun-sun, cellist Cha Ji-woo and violinist Kang Ji-won, won the 2024 Great Music Festival grand prize with a rendition of Felix Mendelssohn’s “Piano Trio No.1 in D Minor, Op. 49." [PARK SANG-MOON]

 
Piano trio Ensemble Harmonia took the grand prize, and an award of excellence issued by the Culture Ministry, for a rendition of Felix Mendelssohn's “Piano Trio No.1 in D Minor, Op. 49.”
 
“The grand prize was completely unexpected, so it feels great. I want to thank all of our teachers who taught us with their all,” violinist Kang Ji-won said in the ensemble’s acceptance speech. The trio also included cellist Cha Ji-woo and pianist Cho Hyun-sun.
 
Judge Choi Bo-yeon, a professor at Sangji University, had praised the team for “playing harmoniously, as if they were conversing with each other [..] a beautiful song that befitted autumn.”
 
The other finalists were piano trio Vision Piano Ensemble, saxophone quartet Affinité Ensemble, string and wind ensemble Ulsan Ripple Art Troupe, drum team and three-time finalists Aria Nanta and samulnori (traditional Korean percussion) group Jewel Factory Friends (JFF).
 
All musicians, their parents and instructors shared their excitement about performing as finalists in the GMF as they introduced their songs and discussed the practice process they had up to Thursday's festival in videos prior to their performances. Many emphasized the hurdles they'd had to overcome to in order to work in sync as a team, but also the joy they felt to be playing on a large stage.
 
Culture Minister Yu In-chon and celebrities Kang Ho-dong, Jun Hyun-moo and Seo Jang-hoon cheered the teams on in congratulatory videos before the competition started.
 
“I hope this event will bring together musicians, either disabled or not,” Minister Yu said. “We will continue to host projects that support disabled artists’ creative work.”
 

Busan samulnori group Jewel Factory Friends (JFF) perform Yeongnam Samulnori, a compilation of tunes from the Gyeongsang area, at the 2024 Great Music Festival. [PARK SANG-MOON]

 
Come together the audience did, erupting into cheers after every performance. The concert's host, comedian Kim Ki-ri, buoyed the program with witty interludes, and 2023 grand prize winner Farasol Clarinet Ensemble closed the lineup before this year's champion was crowned.
 
All musicians, regardless of ranking, exited the venue in high spirits.
 
“There aren’t a lot of occasions for disabled musicians to perform. Events like GMF allow the participants to experience the stage and grow,” said Kim Su-ryong, Affinité Ensemble's instructor, in front of the auditorium.
 
"The beautiful melody that plays at the GMF every year feels like a prelude to how people with developmental disabilities take their steps forward in society," SK Earthon CEO Myeong Seong, who presented the second place team their prize, said in a news release.
 
“We ask for your warm support so that people with developmental disabilities can communicate with the world,” said Heart to Heart Foundation Chairman Oh Ji-cheol.

BY KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]