A Study on the Transmission of Korean Dances as Intangible Cultural Heritages in the Western Region of the U.S.

The objective of this study was to examine the pattern oftransmission of Korean t dances as intangible cultural heritagesamong Koreans living in the western region of the U.S. This studyexplored Korean traditional dance organizations working mostactively in LA, Las Vegas, Seattle, and Hawaii mainly through fieldsurveys, and analyzed the methods of transmission andperformance styles of Korean traditional dances through in depthinterviews and related videos. By these works, we examined howKorean traditional dances were being handed down as overseascultural heritages.The results of this study are as follows.First, the transmitters are 1st‐generation immigrants, andefforts are being made to preserve and maintain the original formof Korean traditional dances according to individual dancers’history of learning. The transmitters in LA, Las Vegas, Seattle, andHawaii are transmitting dances designated as important intangiblecultural assets and created dances of new styles. That is, dancesdesignated as important intangible cultural assets of mainly LeeMae-bang line, Han Yeong-sook line, and Kang Seon-yeong lineare transmitted by group, and major dances transmitted are\textlessSalpuri Dance\textgreater, \textlessIpchum Dance\textgreater, \textlessTaepyeongmu Dance\textgreater, and\textlessShaman Dance\textgreater, and new dances such as \textlessFan Dance\textgreater and\textlessOld Man Dance\textgreater.Second, transmission is focused on the maintenance of thecultural identity of Korean people as a minority.Third, the important characteristics of modern dances wereconfirmed as historical materials showing the influence of ChoiSeung-hee and Pae Gu-ja, the two prominent leaders of newdance.Stella Kwon(Kwon Ryeo-seong) learned dance from ChoiSeung-hee for three years from 1948 to 1950, and as arepresentative leader of Korean dance in the 1960s, she expressedChoi Seung-hee’s new dance styles in her dances. The featuresobserved in creative dance \textlessFan Dance\textgreater such as formative poses,emphasis on diagonal lines formed through the twisting of theupper and lower body standing vertically, and staring at 45. reflectthe characteristics of new dance found only in Choi Seung-hee’smodern dances. On the other hand, the dramatic motions, staccaticmovements, and humorous gestures observed in \textlessShaman Dance\textgreaterand \textlessOld Man Dance\textgreater danced by the late Pae Hal-la, the firstdirector of Halla.Huhm Traditional Dance Research Institute,suggest the influence of her teacher Pae Gu-ja who tried totalmusicals combining music, dance, and drama, and consequentlycreated dances of Halla.Huhm Traditional Dance ResearchInstitute bear the mixture of diverse styles of traditional and newdances obtained through the cultural journey of Pae Hal-la whohad lived in Japan, Korea and Hawaii, so are distinguished fromdances in other regions in the U.S.