Geommu (Sword Dance)

Origin & history: Geommu is a traditional Korean sword dance dating to the Silla kingdom (around 660 CE). Legend traces it to Hwangchang, a gifted boy dancer of Silla whose skill let him approach and kill the king of rival Baekje; executed in turn, he was mourned by the people of Silla, who danced wearing masks made to resemble his face - a dance called "Hwangchangmu." During the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) the royal court and the kisaeng performance institution formalized and refined the dance and discontinued the mask.

Cultural & social context: Preserved chiefly as the Jinju Geommu of Jinju, South Korea. Under the 1962 Cultural Properties Protection Act, Geommu was designated South Korea's Important Intangible Cultural Property No. 12 in 1967.

Character & feel: Graceful and solemn with martial elegance, performed by a group of (typically) 6-8 women.

Costume: A stylized Joseon-dynasty military uniform - hanbok (chima skirt and jeogori jacket), a kwaeja overcoat, a jeondae belt, and a jeonrip military cap - with regional color schemes (for example, Jinju's blue chima and jade-green jeogori).

Technique / movement: Combines chumsawi (dance motions such as ipchum-sawi facing rows, anjeon-sawi kneeling, and the circular yeonpungdae rotation) with changdan (rhythmic cycles). The replica swords (kal, also dando) have ringed, swiveling blades that sound during the dance, and special emphasis falls on the harmonized movement of the sleeves.

Music & rhythm: The samhyeon-yukgak ensemble - haegeum, janggu, buk, daegeum, and two piri - with changdan drum cycles set by the janggu and buk.