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A conductor’s guide to select choral works composed by Hyo-Won Woo between 2012 and 2018

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A Conductor’s Guide to Select Choral Works
Composed by Hyo-Won Woo between 2012 and 2018

By

Yewon Lee

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC THORNTON SCHOOL OF MUSIC
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS
(CHORAL MUSIC)

May 2020

ii

For Davis and Aspen

iii
Acknowledgements
First of all, I would like to thank my family, Daniel, Davis, and Aspen for their endless
support and love. I am grateful to them for their patience, sacrifice, and encouragement to finish
my studies at USC.
Also, I would like to express my special gratitude to my professors at the University of
Southern California: Dr. Jo-Michael Scheibe, Dr. Nick Strimple, Dr. Cristian Grases, Dr. Tram
Sparks, and Prof. Larry Livingston for their inspiration, guidance, passion, and advice. Great
thanks to my mentors and teachers: Dr. Dirk Garner who gave me the very first conducting
lesson, Prof. Paul A. Smith who believed in my talents, and Kenneth Merrill who believed in me
and inspired me to become a better musician.
Tremendous thanks to Hyo-Won Woo for her generosity of her time, manuscripts, and
inspirations. She was extremely patient to talk on the phone with me many times and answer all
of my questions.
Finally, I would like to express sincere gratitude to my parents. Without their prayers,
support, and love, I would not be able to pursue my dreams. You prepared and shaped me into
who I am today. I love you, mom and dad.

iv
Table of Contents
Dedication ii

Acknowledgments iii

List of Tables vi

List of Examples vii

List of Figures x

Abstract xi

Introduction 1

Methodology 3

Chapter 1: About The Composer Hyo-Won Woo 4
Biography: Hyo-Won Woo 4
Hak-Won Yoon 7
Partnership: Hak-Won Yoon and Hyo-Won Woo 9

Chapter 2: Creo 12
Intro 17
1. In Principio 18
2. Chaos 21
3. Dixit Deus 25
4. Lux et Tenebrae 28
5. Firmamentum 33
6. Terra et Botanica 39
7. Luminaria 42
8. Piscis et Volatile 46
9. Animal terra et Homo 46
10. Requietio - Benedictus 48
11. Perfectus 49
Final Thoughts 53

v
Chapter 3: Requiem Aeternam 54
1. Intro 59
2. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine – Kyrie 61
3. Lux Aeterna 66
4. Lux 70
4.1. Cello Solo 73
5. Lux perpetua luceat eis 74
Alternate Versions 81
Final Thoughts 81

Chapter 4: The Fishermen’s Song 83
Folksong: Geomun-do Boat Song 85
The Fishermen’s Song 91
Coda 103
Final Thoughts 103

Conclusion 104

Bibliography 106

Appendix
Appendix A: List of Choral Works 108
Appendix B: The Fishermen’s Song 112
Text in Korean, English Translation, and IPA
Appendix C: Hyo-Won Woo Interview Transcript: June 29, 2018 114
Appendix D: Hyo-Won Woo Interview Transcript: July 20, 2019 117
Appendix E: Hyo-Won Woo Interview Transcript: August 9, 2019 122
Appendix F: Jerry Blackstone Interview Transcript: August 14, 2019 124

vi
List of Tables
Table 2.1 Contents of Creo 13
Table 2.2 Overall Structure of “1. In principio.” 20
Table 2.3 Overall Structure of “2. Chaos.” 25
Table 2.4 Overall Structure of “3. Dixit Deus.” 26
Table 2.5 Overall Structure of “4. Lux et Tenebrae.” 31
Table 2.6 Overall Structure of “5. Firmamentum.” 37
Table 2.7 Overall Structure of “6. Terra et Botanica.” 41
Table 2.8 Overall Structure of “7. Luminaria.” 43
Table 2.9 Overall Structure of “9. Animal terra et Homo.” 48
Table 2.10 Overall Structure of “10. Requietio – Benedictus.” 49
Table 2.11 Overall Structure of “11. Perfectus.” 51
Table 3.1 Overall structure of Requiem Aeternam 58
Table 3.2 Overall structure of “1. Intro,” Requiem Aeternam 60
Table 3.3 Overall structure of movement 2, Requiem Aeternam 61
Table 3.4 Overall structure of movement 3, Requiem Aeternam 68
Table 3.5 Overall structure of movement 4, Requiem Aeternam 70
Table 3.6 Overall structure of movement 5, Requiem Aeternam 78
Table 4. Overall structure of The Fishermen’s Song 92

vii
List of Examples
Example 2.1 Pyeongjo (sol-mode) 15
Example 2.2 Gyemyeonjo (la-mode) 16
Example 2.3 Woo “Intro,” mm. 6-10 18
Example 2.4 Woo “1. In Principio,” mm. 6-11 20
Example 2.5 Woo “1. In Principio,” mm. 16-19 21
Example 2.6 Woo “2. Chaos,” mm. 6-11 22
Example 2.7 Woo “2. Chaos,” mm. 83-88 23
Example 2.8 Woo “2. Chaos,” mm. 29-34 24
Example 2.9 Woo “3. Dixit Deus,” mm. 1-6 27
Example 2.10 Woo “4. Lux et Tenebrae,” mm. 15-21 29
Example 2.11 Woo “4. Lux et Tenebrae,” mm. 46-49 31
Example 2.12 Woo “4. Lux et Tenebrae,” mm. 88-94 32
Example 2.13 Sujecheon, mm. 1-7 35
Example 2.14 Woo “5. Firmamentum,” mm. 1-5 36
Example 2.15 Woo “5. Firmamentum,” mm. 17-24 38
Example 2.16 Woo “6. Terra et Botanica,” mm. 13-19 40
Example 2.17 Woo “7. Luminaria,” mm. 25-30 44
Example 2.18 Woo “7. Luminaria,” mm. 49-54 45
Example 2.19 Woo “9. Animal terra et Homo,” mm. 67-76 47
Example 2.20 Woo “10. Requietio - Benedictus,” mm. 15-21 49
Example 2.21 Woo “11. Perfectus,” mm. 6-15 50
Example 2.22 Jajinmori Jang-dan 51

viii
Example 2.23 Woo “10. Perfectus,” mm. 64-68 52
Example 3.1 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, “Intro,” mm. 1-4 59
Example 3.2 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, “1. Intro,” mm. 9-18 60
Example 3.3 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 1-5 62
Example 3.4 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 21-24 63
Example 3.5 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 39-45 64
Example 3.6 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 55-59 65
Example 3.7 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 3, mm. 1-8 67
Example 3.8 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 3, mm. 15-20 69
Example 3.9 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 4, mm. 1-3 71
Example 3.10 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 4, mm. 13-25 72
Example 3.11 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 4.1, mm. 1-21 74
Example 3.12 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 5, mm. 16-19 76
Example 3.13 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 5, mm. 1-6 77
Example 3.14 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 5, mm. 60-68 80
Example 4.1 Geomun-do Boat Song, “Not-sori.” 84
Example 4.2 Geomun-do Boat Song, mm. 1-20. 88
Example 4.3 Me-Na-Ri tori. 89
Example 4.4 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 5-13. 93
Example 4.5 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 30-33. 94
Example 4.6 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 45-53. 96
Example 4.7 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, repetitive figures. 97
Example 4.8 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 96-98. 98

ix
Example 4.9 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 104-106. 98
Example 4.10 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 112-116. 99
Example 4.11 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 118-119. 100
Example 4.12 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 140-141. 101
Example 4.13 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 148-149, 152-153. 102

x
List of Figures

Figure 3.1 The University of Michigan Museum of Art 56
Figure 3.2 Chamber Choir, performing at the University of Michigan Museum of Art 56
Figure 4 Geographic map of Geomun-do in South Korea 86

xi
Abstract

Hyo-Won Woo (b.1974) is one of the most significant composers of choral music in
South Korea and is quickly emerging internationally. Her unique compositional style combines
traditional Korean musical elements with contemporary Western compositional techniques to
generate innovative sonorities and effects. Woo’s works show her interest in minimalistic writing
and the use of performance space as a spatial art. The purpose of this study is to depict how Woo
utilizes traditional Korean elements in her choral music and how she draws attention to her
ingenious choral writing using the performance space. Conclusions were arrived through the
analysis of the commissioned choral works she has written since 2012. The author urges choral
directors to explore Woo’s newly written choral works and entire catalogue of music, which is
much broader than the popular repertoire often performed in the United States. This dissertation
helps bring attention to her recently-composed choral works for choral directors all over the
world.

1
Introduction

Hyo-Won Woo (b.1974) is one of the most significant composers of choral music in
South Korea and is quickly emerging internationally. Her unique compositional style combines
traditional Korean musical elements with contemporary Western compositional techniques to
generate innovative sonorities and effects. In addition to this synthesis, she seeks new
compositional ideas by designing the visual and/or sound effect of the entire performance space.
Her works have been frequently performed on renowned international stages.
1

The purpose of this study is to depict how Woo utilizes traditional Korean elements in
her choral music and how she draws attention to her ingenious choral writing using the
performance space. Chapter One presents how Woo’s life leads her to work in the choral arts and
her musical journey. Conclusions were arrived through three chapters of the analysis of the
commissioned choral works she has written since 2012: Creo, Requiem Aeternam, and The
Fishermen’s Song. Creo was written in her final years at the Incheon City Chorale and the other
works to be analyzed were written after 2014. These works show Woo’s versatility as each of
them is commissioned for a different group.
Woo’s unique style of blending Korean elements into a global statement requires
additional explanation for non-Korean conductors and international choirs. To date, there are
only two existing dissertations on Woo’s choral works written in English; each focused on only

1
Woo’s music was performed at the national convention of the American Choral Directors Association
(2009), Polyfollia, Fourth World Showcase and Marketplace for Choral Singing in Saínt-Lô, France
(2010), Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles with the Los Angeles Master Chorale (2008), Kaufmann
Music Center in New York City with the Manhattan Chorale (2016), and many other venues. Her recent
composition, The Fishermen’s Song (2017), was commissioned by the University of Michigan for its Bi-
centennial Celebration.

2
one of her works: Gloria and Me-Na-Ri.
2
In addition to the lack of scholarly writing on Woo’s
music, there are insufficient English resources and publications about Woo’s music for choral
directors. The author urges choral directors to explore Woo’s newly written choral works and
her catalogue of music, which is much broader than the popular repertoire often performed in the
United States.
3
As of August 2019, there are only seven compositions published in the United
States: Arirang, Gloria, Pal-So-Seong, Mo-Li-hua, O Magnum Mysterium, Me-Na-Ri, and The
Fishermen’s Song. Currently, she does not have an official website, and her complete catalogue
of works is not listed on any website or in any publication. This dissertation will help bring the
attention of the choral community to her recently composed choral works.

2
Yoonchung Chang, “Korean Traditional Elements and Contemporary Compositional Techniques in
Hyowon Woo’s Choral Music as Reflected in Gloria” (DMA diss., University of North Texas, 2012).
Seoung Yon Kwak, “Interpreting Elements of Traditional Korean Song in Contemporary Choral Music:
Me-Na-Ri” (DMA diss., University of California, Los Angeles, 2011).

3
It includes Arirang, Gloria, Pal-So-Seong, and Me-Na-Ri.

3
Methodology

This study introduces Woo’s recently commissioned and premiered choral works,
examines and analyzes selected works by the author, and suggests appropriate and accessible
performance considerations that will enable non-Korean conductors and choirs to experience her
idiosyncratic flavor of choral music. The author carefully selected and examined musical works
composed since 2012 that are suitable for the purpose of this study in that they are written in
either in Latin or easy Korean for non-Korean speaking choristers. The author has included the
interviews conducted with Hyo-Won Woo, the composer herself, and the conductor with whom
she worked closely, including Dr. Jerry Blackstone.
4
Various publications about Korean
traditional elements, style, melodic structure, cultural background, and the musical syncretism of
Korean and Western musical elements will be also used to analyze Woo’s music. Many of
Woo’s works are in the process of being published in the United States, however, PDF copies of
manuscripts were generously provided by the composer for the study of each work, with the
exception of The Fishermen’s Song. The Fishermen’s Song was used by permission from Hal
Leonard LLC.

4
Blackstone is Professor Emeritus at the University of Michigan.

4
Chapter 1: About The Composer Hyo-Won Woo

Biography: Hyo-Won Woo

Hyo-Won Woo (b.1974) was born in Seoul, South Korea. Both of her parents were
artistically inclined, her father a painter and mother a pianist. Throughout her youth, Woo was
musically and artistically influenced by her family before she was aware of it. She learned how
to play the piano from her mother, who had a piano studio at her home. Because of her mother’s
piano studio, Woo was naturally exposed to music at all times. Also, the influence of her father
and brother
1
led her to study art and being a fashion designer became her dream. However,
during her high school years, she decided to pursue a career in music. Woo’s father encouraged
her to find a path that involved creating works of art. Through these influences, Woo chose a
path as a composer.
She studied music composition at Sung-Shin Women’s University in Seoul. During her
college years, she was influenced by musical nationalism and the music of Béla Bartók (1881-
1945) and Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971).
2
While focusing on those composers, Woo was
interested in folk music. Additionally, she was eager to study rhythmical elements and
percussion instruments. Woo’s graduation project was a composition called The Two Pianos and
Percussion. Upon graduating from university, her graduation project was selected to be one of
the works performed for the Cho-Sun Newspaper New Artist Concert Series, which was an
established gateway to success for young South Korean musicians in the 1990s.

1
Woo’s brother, Kuk-Won Woo (b.1976) is an accomplished painter in the Korean Contemporary Art
genre. He was selected as one of the twenty artists that contributed to the Joong-Ang Art Exhibition in
2010. That exhibition is well-known and respected.

2
Hyo-Won Woo, Conversation with the author, June 29, 2018.

5
While in college, Woo was also a member of the Young Nak Presbyterian Church Zion
Choir, conducted by Dr. Hak-Won Yoon (b.1938). Woo’s musical journey cannot be described
without mentioning her partnership with Yoon, a world-renowned choir director and former
music director of the Incheon City Chorale.
3
The Young Nak Presbyterian Church Zion Choir
has been one of the most distinguished church choirs in South Korea. When Yoon recognized
Woo’s significant compositional talent, he asked her to write choral compositions for his church
choir. Soon, Woo’s choral compositions began to be performed by the Young Nak Presbyterian
Church choirs. Another important honor took place soon after Woo graduated from Sung-Shin
Women’s University. She was commissioned by Yoon and the Seoul Ladies Singers to write
Missa Brevis for Women’s Voices (1996) for an Asian concert tour. Since then Woo and Yoon
have worked closely together. In 1996, the same year Woo wrote Missa Brevis for the Seoul
Ladies Singers, she became the resident composer of the group, and in 1999, she was hired as the
first resident composer for the Incheon City Chorale under the baton of Yoon. Woo served the
Incheon City Chorale as composer-in-residence for fifteen years until Yoon retired in 2014.
The Incheon City Chorale has performed Woo’s compositions numerous times
internationally. The international performances include the International festival in honor of the
Fifteenth Anniversary of the International Federation of Choral Music (IFCM) in Namur, in
1997; the Europa Cantat in Linz, Austria, in 1997; the Fifth World Symposium on Choral Music
in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 1999; the International Choral Festival in Taiwan, in 2004;
Polyfollia Fourth World Showcase and Marketplace for Choral Singing in Saínt-Lô, France, in
2010; and the National Convention of The American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) in

3
Her relationship with Yoon will be discussed later in this chapter.

6
Oklahoma City, USA, in 2009.
4
Woo’s compositions have been performed by not only the
Incheon City Chorale and choirs in South Korea, but also choral groups from various countries.
Numerous collegiate choirs
5
and several prestigious ensembles such as the Los Angeles Master
Chorale, the Batavia Madrigal Singers in Indonesia,
6
and the Victoria Singers in Singapore have
performed Woo’s works. In addition, her compositions have often been presented at international
festivals, conventions, and symposia sponsored by the International Federations for Choral
Music and the American Choral Directors Association, and at choral festivals including the
World Vision International Children’s Choir Festival and the Niigata Asian Culture Festival.
Woo’s music may have been internationally recognized because her unique
compositional style combines traditional Korean musical elements with contemporary Western
compositional techniques to generate innovative sonorities and effects. In addition to this
synthesis, she seeks new compositional ideas by designing the visual and/or sound effects of the
entire performance space.
7
Her childhood dreams of being a fashion designer have led her to
design every aspect of each theatrical and musical production, accomplishing something akin to
a Gesamptkunstwerk.
8
She begins working on new music with the performance space, the visual

4
Me-Na-Ri and Pal-So-Seong were performed and received high praises from the audience.

5
Concordia College, Indiana University, University of Southern California, and University of North
Texas among many others.

6
The Batavia Madrigal Singers won a top prize with Woo’s Gloria at the Marktoberdorf Choral Festival
in Germany in 2003.

7
She uses the term, “Spatial Music” for her compositions. Several examples include Me-Na-Ri, Ga-Si-Ri,
Adoramuste, The Fishermen’s Song (see Chapter 4), and Requiem Aeternam (see Chapter 5). Although
she does not design the choir uniforms like Wagner’s Gesamtkunstwerk, her love of visual art influenced
her creation of spatial music.

8
Woo, Conversation with the author, June 29, 2018.

7
effect, or art space, and her musical thoughts all in mind. All three aspects are critical parts of her
compositions.
In addition to composing, Woo has taught choral composition at various universities in
South Korea and was a visiting scholar at the University of Michigan from 2015 to 2017.
Currently, Woo serves as a resident composer for the National Chorus of Korea and teaches at
the Chorus Center Academy.
9
Besides her compositions for performance purposes, her Christian
faith also inspired her to compose nearly fifty sacred church anthems including He is, Love, Go
Moses, and Psalm 150.

Hak-Won Yoon

Born in Incheon, South Korea, Hak-Won Yoon studied music composition at Yonsei
University in Seoul. While he was at the university, he conducted the Yonsei Christian Student
Union Chorus and decided to become a career conductor. Yoon began his professional career
with his first choir, the Incheon Cultural Center Youth Chorus, in 1962. After his successful
seasons with the choir, he became a music director for numerous choirs including the Far East
Broadcasting Company (FEBC) Children’s Choir
10
(1965-68), the Korean Madrigal Choir
(1969-83), the World Vision Children’s Choir (1970-2003), the Young Nak Presbyterian Church

9
Hyo-Won Woo and Byung-Hee Oh (b. 1975) are the only resident composers for the National Chorus of
Korea.

10
The FEBC holds nationwide church music choral festivals every year in South Korea. The FEBC
Children’s Choir is highly respected in South Korea.

8
Zion Choir
11
(1971-2008), the Daewoo Choir
12
(1983-88), the Seoul Ladies Singers
13
(1989-
2000), the Incheon City Chorale
14
(1995-2014), and FEBC Yoon Hak-Won Chorale (2000-
present).
In the 1980’s, Yoon performed Mass in B Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
with the Daewoo Choir in Germany. The performance was reviewed by one of the native
German conductors as having an absolutely beautiful sound, yet its interpretation lacked the
German spirit.
15
The review opened Yoon’s eyes to a desire for a unique traditional Korean
choral music. It led him to be aware of the necessity for a native Korean resident composer for
his choir. As soon as Yoon accepted the position at the Incheon City Chorale in 1995, he
requested they hire a resident composer.
One of Yoon’s greatest accomplishments is that he fostered the talent of young choral
professionals. Yoon encouraged these young composers, conductors, and singers and set a higher
standard for Korean choral culture. He wished to have more authentic Korean compositions for
the public, not only for his own choirs. As a result, he started a choral musical training institute
in 1988. It was called the Seoul Chorus Center. The Seoul Chorus Center publishes choral music
and has a Choral Academy with four divisions: choral conducting, choral singing, choral

11
The Zion Choir acted as a repertoire guide for many Korean church choirs because they featured new
music published by the Seoul Chorus Center during their weekly worship service broadcast.

12
The Daewoo Choir was the first choir that was fully sponsored by a private company. Unfortunately,
after Yoon’s resignation in 1988, the choir disbanded.

13
The Seoul Ladies Singers performed at the National Convention of the American Choral Directors
Association in 1995.

14
The Incheon City Chorale was founded in 1981 and reorganized in 1995 by Yoon.

15
Hak-Won Yoon, Cheong-Chun Hap-Chang (Choir with Youth Heart): God is the best conductor of my
life (Seoul: Duranno, 2012), 140.

9
accompanying, and choral composition. That was established with the mission of committing to
the development of the choral music of South Korea.
16
Through his company, Yoon invests his
time and energy to train young Korean composers, publish new choral compositions through
those composers, train choral conductors, and build a choral community that continues to push
the boundaries of refined choral music. Through Yoon’s effort, investment, and support, Korean
choirs no longer depend solely on Western choral repertoire and are able to express their
authenticity through original Korean compositions.

Partnership: Hak-Won Yoon and Hyo-Won Woo

As mentioned earlier in Woo’s biography, Woo’s musical journey cannot be described
without mentioning her partnership with Yoon. They created a synergy. Woo’s artistic and
musical inspiration met Yoon’s sensitive conductor’s ears and performer’s instinct. The first
work that Yoon commissioned Woo to write, Missa Brevis for women’s voices (1996), was well-
received during the Seoul Ladies Singers’ Asian tour. This commendation became a turning
point in Woo’s life, and she devoted her career to composing mainly choral works. In 1996, the
same year Woo wrote Missa Brevis, she became the resident composer of the Seoul Ladies
Singers. Since then, Woo and Yoon have worked closely. In 1999, upon Yoon’s request, Woo
became the composer-in-residence of the Incheon City Chorale in 1999. Woo was the first
composer to be hired as a full-time resident composer for a choir in South Korea. She served the
Incheon City Chorale until 2014 when Yoon retired after twenty years of service.
The partnership between Yoon and Woo led to the creation of a new vision for choral
music in South Korea. The new vision has three principles: creating “[1] traditional Korean

16
The Seoul Chorus Center website: http://www.choruscenter.co.kr/.

10
styled and [2] modernized, yet [3] global choral music.”
17
Both agreed to adapt traditional
Korean elements. However, the compositions needed to sound current and contemporary, and the
music also had to be acceptable and accessible for the global market and audience.
When the Incheon City Chorale was invited to perform at the National Convention of the
American Choral Directors Association in 2009, Yoon programmed a twenty-five minute
performance which included Woo’s Me-Na-Ri, Alleluia, Pal-So-Seong, and Eric Whitacre’s
When David Heard. The audience gave a standing ovation for Me-Na-Ri, the composition that
began the concert.
18
Me-Na-Ri is set for three mixed choirs, soprano solo, piano, and traditional
Korean percussion instruments (Jing
19
and Modeum-Buk
20
). Woo’s innovative ideas and Yoon’s
spirit of experimentation blossomed in this composition. Described as “Spatial Music,” the three
mixed choirs are spatially separated in the performance venue: on stage, and on the left and right
sides of the audience. Me-Na-Ri was Woo’s first composition as spatial music, and she intended
the audience to experience the space and sound through the live performance. Originally, its
duration was fourteen minutes, but Woo made a nine-minute version for the ACDA National
Convention performance in 2009.
21
After the successful performance at the ACDA convention,
the Chorale was invited to Polyfollia Fourth World Showcase and Marketplace for Choral
Singing in Saínt-Lô, France, in 2010.
22
Also, Woo’s music began to emerge on the international

17
Woo, Conversation with the author, June 29, 2018.

18
Tae-Jin Shin, “Korean musicians cannot be the best in the world with music by Bach,” Christian Today
Newspaper, June 02, 2014, http://www.christiantoday.co.kr/news/272601.

19
Traditional Korean instrument similar to a gong.

20
Traditional Korean drum.

21
Woo, Conversation with the author, June 29, 2018.

22
At the time, this was one of the largest choral events in France.

11
choral scene as collegiate choirs from different countries visited Seoul, South Korea, to have
clinics with Yoon.
While Woo wrote new compositions and sought pioneering ideas, Woo and Yoon also
worked together on editing existing works and re-creating them into new works. One example of
this is her church anthem Go, Moses (2006). To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the Incheon
City Chorale, Go, Moses was adapted and expanded into an oratorio, Moses (2011). In addition,
Woo’s original anthem He is (2007) was adapted and expanded into a large choral-orchestral
work, the Easter cantata He is (2018).

12
Chapter 2: Creo

Creo was composed and premiered by Dr. Yoon and the Incheon City Chorale in 2012
when Woo was composer-in-residence with the Chorale. Based on the famous story of creation
in the biblical book of Genesis, this composition is representative of Woo’s endeavor to combine
traditional Korean elements and Western compositional components in every aspect of the
composition, from singing styles to the use of accompanying instruments.
1
Before Woo began
the compositional process, she spent numerous months studying Genesis Chapter 1 with the help
of her uncle, who is a pastor and scholar of the Latin bible.
2
It is reminiscent of the oratorio Die
Schöpfung (The Creation) by Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809). However, Woo uses only a few
excerpted words much less than Haydn and keeps repeating them. Woo explained that she put a
lot of thought into selecting the keywords and sentences. Creo is divided into eleven movements:
Intro, 1. In Principio, 2. Chaos, 3. Dixit Deus, 4. Lux et Tenebrae, 5. Firmamentum, 6. Terra et
botanica, 7. Luminaria, 8. Piscis et Volatile, 9. Animal terra et home, 10. Requietio - Benedictus,
11. Perfectus. In each movement, the selected keywords and sentences are repeated.
3
The
following table is organized by themes, basic concepts, texts, and compositional elements in each
movement (see Table 2.1).
4

1
Traditional Korean Court vocal music, Jung-gah, and the Western style of four-part choral writing are
used. Also, Daegeum and several traditional Korean percussion instruments are used along with piano,
orchestral string instruments, horns, and timpani.

2
Hyo-Won Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

3
Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

4
The author translated and edited this table into English based on Woo’s chart in Korean and Latin.

13
Table 2.1. Contents of Creo.
Mvt.

Theme
Basic
Concepts
Text (Bible verse)
Compositional
Elements

Intro
1 I
N
T
R
O
D
U
C
T
I
O
N

The beginning
In Principio
In the
beginning
In principio
creavit Deus
In the beginning,
God created the heavens and the earth
In principio creavit Deus caelum et terra
(Genesis 1:1)
Jung-gah
Choir
Percussions
Strings
2
Chaos
Chaos
The earth
empty and
void
Terra
inanis et
vacua
The earth was
without form and void, and darkness
was over the face of the deep…
terra erat inanis et vacua et Tenebrae…
(Genesis 1:2)
Choir
Daeguem
Horn
Percussions
Strings
3
Words
Dixit
God said
Dixit Deus
God said
Dixit Deus
(Genesis 1:3)
Jung-gah
Daeguem
Percussions
Strings
4

B
O
D
Y

Creation
Creatio

Day
1
Light and
darkness
Lux et
Tenebrae
God created light and darkness and separated
the light from the darkness
creavit Deus lucem et divisit lucem ac tenebrae
(Genesis 1:3)
Choir
Sop. solo
Strings
Percussions
5
Day
2
Firmament
Firmamentum
God made the expanse and called it Heaven.
There was evening and there was morning
fecit Deus firmamentum et vocavit Deus
firmamentum, Caelum: factum est vespere et mane
(Genesis 1:7-8)
Choir
Daeguem
Percussions
Horn
(Sujecheon)
6
Day
3

The earth and
plants
Terra et
botanica
And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation,
plants

yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit
in which is their seed, each according to its kind,
on the earth.” And it was so
et ait geminet “terra herbam virentem et
facientem semen et lignum pomiferum faciens
fructum juxta genus suum cujus semen in
semetipso sit super terram” et factum est ita
(Genesis 1:11-12)
Tenor/Bass
Horn
Strings
Percussions
7

Day
4

Lights
Luminaria
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse
of the heavens to separate the day from the night.
And let them be for

signs and for seasons,

and for days and years” …to rule over the day and
over the night, and to separate the light
from the darkness
dixit autem Deus “fiant luminaria in firmamento
caeli ut dividant diem ac noctem et sint in signa et
tempora et dies anno”… dividerent lucem ac
tenebras (Genesis 1:14, 18)
Choir
Percussions
Strings

14
8

B
O
D
Y

Creation
Creatio
Day
5
Fish and birds
Piscis et
Volatile
God created every sea creature and every winged
bird
creavit Deus omnem animam et omne volatile
secundum genus suum
(Genesis 1:21)
Percussions
(Improvised)
9
Day
6
Animals and
man
Animal terra
et Homo
God created man in his own image…and saw
everything that he had made
creavit Deus hominem ad imaginem suam…vidit
Deus cunta quae fecit
(Genesis 1:27, 31)
Choir
Daeguem
Horn
Strings
Percussions
10
C
O
N
C
L
U
S
I
O
N
Sabbath
Requietio

Rest-Blessing
Requietio
-Benedictus
God finished his work that he had done, and
he rested on the seventh day
ab omni opere suo quod creavit Deus…requievit
die septimo
(Genesis 2:2-3)
Treble choir
Jung-gah
Daegeum
Percussions
Strings
11
Perfect
Perfectus
Good
creation
Bona Creo
Thus, the heavens and the earth were finished
igitur perfecti sunt caeli et terra et omnis ornatus
eorum
(Genesis 2:1)
God saw that it was good
vidit Deus quae errant bona
(Genesis 1:27)
ALL

Woo begins the first movement with a scene that depicts the earth before creation. In the
second and third movements, she introduces God as the primary creator out of chaos and that
God creates by speaking words. She then depicts the earth being filled during the six days of
creation from the fourth to the ninth movement by setting the biblical verses about the earth. In
the tenth movement, Woo focuses on God’s rest after creation and concludes the last movement
with God’s pleasure and satisfaction, which is mentioned in the first chapter of Genesis several
times: “God saw that the light was good…God saw that it was good…And God saw everything
that he had made, and behold, it was very good.”
5

5
The author only listed three examples from Genesis 1:4, 10, and 31. However, this phrase appears six
times in Genesis 1; verse 4, 10, 18, 21, 25, and 31.

15
To depict the entirety of creation in her own language, Woo includes both traditional
Korean and Western instruments and adapts traditional Korean scales and rhythms into her
composition. Traditional Korean folk tunes use mainly two pentatonic scales (see Example 2.1):
Pyeongjo (sol-mode) and Gyemyeonjo (la-mode).
6
Each pentatonic scale has a unique texture
and mood because of its intervals and the function of each note. The meaning of the word
‘Gyemyeon’ is unclear; it represents deep sorrow, the border between a capital city and a
countryside, or an act related to a shamanistic tradition.
7
Pyeongjo (see Example 2.1) often refers
to a major scale and Gyemyeonjo (see Example 2.2) to a minor scale.
8
The first three movements
clearly show that Woo heavily adapts C and E-flat Gyemyeonjo.
9
However, in the fourth
movement, she switches the mode and rhythmic patterns to a Western style, which in this case is
the usage of a C-minor scale instead of a traditional Korean mode and the repetition of dotted
rhythms and syncopation. Woo’s usage of different scales will be discussed in the analysis of
each movement.

Example 2.1 Pyeongjo (sol-mode).

6
Sahun Chang, Gukak-Chongron: Introduction of Traditional Korean music (Seoul: Seakwang Press,
1985), 77.

7
“Gyemyeonjo,” Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, accessed July 1, 2019,
http://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Contents/Item/E0003110.

8
Robert Koehler and Ji-Yeon Byeon, Traditional Music: Sound in Harmony with Nature (Seoul: Seoul
Selection, 2011), 19.

9
C Gyemyeonjo consists of C, E-flat, F, G, and B-flat. E-flat Gyemyeonjo consists of E-flat, G-flat, A-
flat, B-flat, and D-flat.

16
Example 2.2 Gyemyeonjo (la-mode).

The most well-known traditional Korean singing style is called Pansori.
10
However, it is
important to note that Woo uses a traditional Korean genre, Jung-gah, instead of Pansori, for
various reasons. Pansori is traditionally accompanied by unpitched percussion instruments and
rarely has repeated words, as its purpose is to tell a story.
11
Pansori also has a different pitch and
tuning system because narration and spoken dialogues make up the majority of its style. The
resonance and vibrato of Jung-gah allow Woo to experiment with diverse instruments and adjust
the singer’s pitch to harmonize with Western instruments. In addition, Pansori embraces both
elite and folk culture while Jung-gah is based on poetry and intended only for the elite upper
classes.
12

In Creo, Woo uses an orchestra comprised of string instruments (violin I, violin II, viola,
cello, and double bass), horn, traditional Korean instruments (daegeum,
13
buk
14
), timpani,

10
Pansori is sung by a professional traditional Korean singer accompanied by an unpitched drum-like
instrument, Jang-gu (double headed hourglass-shaped drum). The singer tells the story dramatically with
narration, spoken dialogues, songs, and gestures. UNESCO inscribed pansori on the Representative List
of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008.

11
In Creo, Woo repeats key words several times in each movement.

12
Koehler and Byeon, Traditional Music, 34, 48.

13
Traditional Korean traverse flute, which is made of bamboo.

14
Traditional Korean barrel drum, which is made of wood and leather.

17
glockenspiel, and as many percussion instruments as the percussionist chooses to use.
15

Traditional Korean music is typically passed down orally and relies tremendously on impromptu
performance.
16
Therefore, Woo encourages percussionists to improvise their own rhythms and
sounds throughout the entire Creo. Woo explains why she uses some of these techniques by
saying “I find it very important to take traditional Korean melodic lines with Korean instruments
and place them with their authentic performance techniques and authentic melodic lines as they
are meant to be performed by themselves within the music.”
17

Intro

This introduction is for two percussion instruments, a tam-tam and a caxixi shaker.
18

Woo begins the story of time before creation by using these two unpitched percussion
instruments very quietly and briefly (only eighteen measures) to produce a dark and empty
silence. Even though the tam-tam moves with a rather fast rhythmic figure of sixteenth notes (see
Example 2.3.), the tempo marking, Andante signals to the percussionist that the playing should
still evoke emptiness.

15
During the premiere, percussionists used a tam tam, caxixi shaker, musical saw, temple block, finger
cymbal, water jug, whistles, castanets, blowing horn, jing, jung-ju, jwa-jong, jang-gu, pyojubak among
others.

16
Koehler and Byeon, Traditional Music, 41.

17
“Hyowon Woo – The Vision of Korean Choral Music, Nam Center for Korean Studies Colloquium
Series,” filmed April 2, 2014, video, https://youtu.be/TnHLWDEoEHg.

18
Woo recommends performers improvise on a caxixi shaker and a tam-tam with fingers and a rubber
stick.

18
Example 2.3 Woo “Intro,” mm. 6-10.

1. In Principio

Woo begins her musical journey through the creation story with a solo by the Jung-gah
singer in “1. In Principio.” It is not by chance that the Jung-gah singer sings the very first line,
which includes “God”: “In principio creavit Deus” (In the beginning God created) and “Dixit
Deus” (God spoke) later in the third movement.
19
As Jung-gah was sung by aristocrats and was a
highly-regarded traditional Korean musical style, Woo shows reverence for God by using an
aristocratic musical style of Jung-gah.
20

As a tonal foundation, a sustained unison C is introduced by timpani and strings with two
different traditional Korean percussion instruments: jung-ju and jwa-jong.
21
Traditional Korean
music typically moves horizontally without vertical harmony.
22
Therefore, different instruments
often play the same melodic line together according to court music tradition. In that tradition,
also known as Yeon-eum, different instruments alternate in playing the main melodic line. Even

19
The entire text of the Creo is taken from the Vulgate.

20
Koehler and Byeon, Traditional Music, 34.

21
Both jung-ju and jwa-jung are traditional Korean brass bowl-shaped instruments with a wooden mallet.

22
Daechul Shin, Our Music, the Taste and Color (Seoul: Minsokwon, 2003), 175.

19
when several instruments play the same melodic lines, each instrument’s unique color is heard as
the resonance and ornamentation are varied.
While Yeon-eum is a traditional Korean performance practice of ensembles, Sigimsae is a
technique for individual musicians. Sigimsae is traditional Korean embellishment, which is often
improvised by performers and used for variation, ornamentation, or improvisation purposes.
23
It
requires a technique in which pitches rise up or down and toward or away from a note, slide up
or down during the notes, or vibrate on a note for several beats. Sigimsae is similar to the
melisma in Western music as it embellishes notes. However, unlike the Western melisma,
Sigimsae is not only used on certain syllables, but also encouraged for almost every single note
in traditional Korean music. Sigimsae can also make certain notes extremely lengthy. Although
Woo does not always indicate the techniques she is relying on to compose movements in the
score, her style shows her reliance on well-known techniques. For example, when it comes to
Jung-gah, the music resembles Sigimsae (see Example 2.4). Notes used in Sigimsae are not
considered melodic lines and musicians are expected to improvise with those notes. Therefore,
pitches that are not a part of the traditional Korean mode are often included.

23
Jung Soo Hong, “Book Review/ Term / Guidance: Concept of Musical Term ‘Sigimsae’” Journal of
Society for Music and Korea 12. (1996), 339-341.

20
Example 2.4 Woo “1. In Principio,” mm. 6-11.
24

Table 2.2 Overall Structure of “1. In Principio.”
Section A B
Measure No. 1 – 2 3 – 11 12 – 15 16 – 25
Text - in principio in principio in principio creavit Deus caelum et terram
Key notes C C – G – C C C – G – (B) – C – E-flat
Dynamics pp pp p mp - sfp - f - p

As soon as the tonal center arrives, the Jung-gah singer begins the first phrase of Genesis
1:1 and repeats “in principio” three times before “Deus” (God) is sung (see Table 2.2).
25
When
the soloist finally sings “Deus” on m.19, an unexpected B and the choir’s perfect-fifth interval
are heard (see Example 2.5). Woo uses a different emphasis whenever the word “Deus” is sung
in each movement. This is the first and only movement in which the Jung-gah singer does not
use Sigimsae on the change of pitches. Two notes, C and G, are mainly used throughout the first

24
1. Scooping to a note, 2. sliding up and down between notes (similar to glissando), 3. embellishing
prior to holding C, 4. pulling down the pitches.

25
The number three symbolizes the Holy Trinity in Christianity.

21
movement by adapting the most common tradition of three-note (first, third, and fourth notes)
Gyemyeonjo.
26

Example 2.5 Woo “1. In Principio,” mm. 16-19.

2. Chaos

“2. Chaos” comes in the second movement as a description of what was before the
creation. Woo begins with the same tonal center of the previous movement as if the starting point
of this chaos is the empty earth. In order to depict instability and chaos, Woo uses various
elements. The first element is to use several instruments including jung-ju, jwa-jong, jing, and
musical saw
27
that provide resonance and sounds that are somewhat unpredictable and

26
Sahun Chang, Gukak-Chongron: Introduction of Traditional Korean music (Seoul: Seakwang Press,
1985), 78.

27
Woo, “The Vision.” During her lecture, Woo mentioned the musical saw as being an ancient tool that is
universal but recently introduced as a musical instrument. By using both a recently introduced instrument
and traditional Western instruments, she hopes people from different places and different age groups will
experience “chaos”.

22
uncommon in the orchestra. For the second element, whispering high pitches by the tenor section
are used (see Example 2.6 mm. 9-10). Thirdly, Woo uses harmonics on the string instruments.
The fourth element is glissandos in the chorus part (see Example 2.7). Lastly, Woo uses dynamic
swelling (using crescendo and decrescendo every two measures on the same pitch) by the cellos
and double basses at the beginning which also creates an atmosphere of uneasiness and helps the
audience anticipate what is about to happen. These elements combine to produce a sensation of
instability and uncertainty throughout the movement.

Example 2.6 Woo “2. Chaos,” mm. 6-11.

23
Example 2.7 Woo “2. Chaos,” mm. 83-88.
28

In the very first phrase of the chorus, Woo writes a C
2
for the low basses to sing (see
Example 2.6). According to common practice, the range of the bass part is written between F
2

and E
3
.
29
Woo explains that she was lucky to have several basses who were able to sing strong
low notes with rich overtones in the Incheon City Chorale, and she wanted to use those voices.
30

Therefore, it is not hard to find these low notes in her catalogue.
31
The sound of such low notes
gives darkness and depth to the sound, but also resonates in the whole performance space with
overtones and the unique color of the human voice.
After repeating the key phrase “terra inanis et vacus” (the empty and void earth) several
times, each voice part joins in more frequently and consonants are layered to produce a fuller

28
In the alto and bass sections, diagonal lines indicate to the singers that they are to slide down between
the notes.

29
Grove Music Online https://www-oxfordmusiconline-
com.libproxy1.usc.edu/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-
e-0000002223 Accessed on July 10, 2019.

30
Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

31
Among those compositions, O Magnum Mysterium has D
2
.

24
sound (see Example 2.8). In this instance, Woo is neither text painting nor trying to send the
message that the void earth is being filled. Instead, by increasing the repetition of the text, she is
creating tension and building to a climax that is about to occur.

Example 2.8 Woo “2. Chaos,” mm. 29-34.

As the tension builds to the end of section A, Woo not only offers a contrasting tempo
and time signature, but she also begins a new dynamic layer (see Table 2.3). The dynamic
marking piano preceded by fortissimo or forte in m. 39 and m. 65 does not mean just a soft
sound. The piano sound needs tension and weight within the unstable atmosphere. Finally, chaos
ends with dense pitch clusters above and below the tonal center, C.

25
Table 2.3 Overall Structure of “2. Chaos.”

Section A B1 B2
Measures 1 – 16 17 – 28 29 – 38 39 – 64 65 – 100
Text
Terra inanis
chaos
(2 times)
Terra inanis
et vacua
(3 times)
Terra inanis
et vacua

Terra inanis et
vacua et tenebrae
Terra inanis et
vacua et tenebrae.
Chaos
Dynamics p pp mp -mf - f - ff p - mp - mf - f p - mp - ff
Tempo
Moderato
= 54
Presto
= 154
Più mosso
Time
Signature

3/4

3. Dixit Deus

After “2. Chaos,” Woo opens the third movement, “3. Dixit Deus,” with a different tonal
center, E-flat Gyemyeonjo. However, the last clustered chord of the previous movement, “2.
Chaos,” has a distinct E-flat in the Horn part, as if the note E-flat is an extension between the
empty earth and what is about to happen.
Similar to previous movements, the tonal center is offered at the very beginning.
However, Woo offers it with a much stronger dynamic this time. As Table 2.1 indicates, only the
Jung-gah singer sings in this movement. As soon as the Jung-gah singer declares “Dixit Deus”
(God speaks) for the first time, the strings play a series of perfect-fifth intervals starting from E-
flat (see Example 2.9, mm. 4-5), signifying God’s perfection. Woo delineates the scene in a
simple, yet confident way by using a solo voice with timpani and alternating between daegeum
and strings. Since each part is played by alternating instruments, the audience can hear each

26
individual voice and instrument as having more vibrancy and perceive that something different is
taking place.
Woo’s elaborate endeavor is especially unique in the balance between the unique
improvisation and vibration of daegeum and the perfect-fifth arpeggio of the string instruments
(see Example 2.9, mm. 4-6). The Jung-gah singer repeats “Deus” three times in this movement
just as she repeats “in principio” three times before saying “Deus” in the first movement. In
Genesis, the word “God” is only used once in each verse. However, it may be that Woo wanted
to relate the word “Deus” to the Holy Trinity of three persons and did this by repeating the word
three times. Through “3. Dixit Deus” movement, Woo shows that God’s word will end the chaos
and initiate the creation.

Table 2.4 Overall Structure of “3. Dixit Deus.”

Measure No. 1 — 7 8 — 14 15 — 19
Text Dixit Deus Dixit Deus Deus
Key notes E-flat, B-flat
Accompaniment
Perfect fifths
E-flat - B-flat - F - C F - C - G - D - A None used

27
Example 2.9 Woo “3. Dixit Deus,” mm. 1-6.

&
&
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c
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Daekeum
Timpani
Percussion
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Violin II
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- -
3. DIXIT DEUS
하나 님이 말씀 하 셨다
Hyowon Woo
(2012)
Jung-gah

28
4. Lux et Tenebrae

In the fourth through ninth movements, God’s daily work in creation is depicted. On the
first day, God creates light and darkness and separates the light from the darkness. Woo depicts
light as an a cappella choral sound in “4. Lux et Tenebrae.” In contrast to the previous
movements, she uses a C-minor scale instead of a traditional Korean mode. The C-minor scale is
presented one note at a time. In other words, the entire scale is sung over the course of six
measures by four voice parts, as if she wants the audience to know which scale is used. In the
first six measures, the alto and bass sections start from the C, and other sections join the scale
until the G is reached. Another six measures of a C-minor scale that are almost identical to the
previous scale is repeated and arrives at the sixth note, A-flat in the C-minor scale. This time the
scale goes up to A-flat in m. 12, followed by a spelled-out scale that goes upward and downward
simultaneously (see Example 2.10). Woo depicts light with different notes to resemble a beam of
light that goes through a prism and breaks up into the colors of the rainbow (see Example
2.10).
32

32
Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

29
Example 2.10 Woo “4. Lux et Tenebrae,” mm. 15-21.

Each phrase includes a whole measure of rest or a quarter rest with a fermata (see
Example 2.10, m. 21). Emptiness (Yeoback in Korean) is an important part of traditional Eastern
ancient art. Therefore, this rather long rest should not be treated as just a simple rest of counting
beats. It symbolizes eternal freedom and also implies the unlimited potential of the creators.
33

The beauty of Yeoback is one of the characteristics of Eastern art that has influenced traditional
Korean culture. The aspiration of expressing Yeoback led traditional Korean music to develop a
simple, linear structure rather than a complex, vertical harmony.

33
Seung Sook Lee, "A study of time and space in esthetical view-concentrated in the relationship with the
emptiness." Journal Korea Society of Visual Design Forum 16 (2007), 298-299.

30
It is obvious that “4. Lux et Tenebrae” consists of three different sections: A, B and C
(see Table 2.5). However, the way Woo connects one section to another shows that she wants to
make delicate transitions from one section to the next by using various musical elements. From
the A to B section, she builds tension by increasing dynamics and repeating one syllable over
and over, yet uses the same time signature for musical consistency.

Table 2.5 Overall Structure of “4. Lux et Tenebrae.”
Section A B C Bridge (A’) B’
Measure No. 1 — 45 46 — 87 88 — 131 132 — 142 143 — 184
Text Lux lux
Creavit Deus
Lucem et divisit
lucem ac tenebrae
Lux et
tenebrae
lux
Structure A cappella + Timpani, strings + Soprano solo Choir + timp., strings
Dynamics p - mp mf - f - mp – f - mf p – mp - f f - p mf - f - mf - f
Tempo
Andante
= 50 → 60
Allegretto
= 80
Andante
= 78
=
Allegretto
( = 80)
Time
signatures

3/4

After section A, the choir sings dotted rhythms, which are vigorously accompanied by the
strings’ strong declaration of a series of half notes (see Example 2.11). As Woo begins this
movement with the Western four-part a cappella chorale style on a C-minor scale, she continues
to include more Western elements: repetitive syncopation, a pattern of dotted rhythm, dramatic
dynamic changes, and a soprano solo instead of the Jung-gah singer.

31
Example 2.11 Woo “4. Lux et Tenebrae,” mm. 46-49.

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b
b
b
b
b
b
b
b
b
Timp.
Perc.
Vln. I
Vln. II
Vla.
Vc.
Cb.
46
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-
4
4. Lux et tenebrae

32
Before the next transition, Woo briefly revisits the very first a cappella choral section,
and section C begins with a tempo (Andante) that is similar to the A section tempo. Even though
the time signature in section C differs from the previous one, the spelling out of G - A-flat - B-
flat - C by the strings is reminiscent of the beginning of “4. Lux et Tenebrae” movement (see
Example 2.12). The bridge, mm. 132-142, uses four measures that are identical to mm. 37-40 in
the A section and releases the tension before the last encore of the B section.

Example 2.12 Woo “4. Lux et Tenebrae,” mm. 88-94.

33
5. Firmamentum

Woo adapts the melody from Sujecheon, one of the most recognized works of Korean
Court Music,
34
for the fifth movement, “5. Firmamentum” (see Example 2.13). The literal
translation of Sujecheon is “Long life, everlasting as the Heaven (su: life, je: orderliness, cheon:
heaven).”
35
The melody of Sujecheon has slow, erratic rhythms that progress by combining
elements of rhythmic patterns of jang-gu and prolonged melodic lines of piri,
36
daegeum, and
sogeum,
37

The composer and composition date of Sujecheon are unknown. The earliest document
that mentions Sujecheon states that it was used to accompany music for the dance,
Cheoyongmu,
38
in the ninth century.
39
Then, in the fourteenth century, Sujecheon was performed
as processional music for the king or the crown prince. Today, it is only a performance piece
played by an instrumental ensemble and is no longer used for processions.
It is notable that Woo uses the processional music for the creation of the Firmament of
Heaven because the king was considered to be a religious figure and a part of heaven in ancient
Korean culture.
40
Woo takes Sujecheon as a symbol of heaven opening up and combines it with

34
Koehler and Byeon, Traditional Music, 28.

35
Ibid.

36
A double-reed wind instrument made of bamboo.

37
Traditional Korean traverse flute, smaller than a daegeum.

38
Cheoyongmu is a masked dance, one of the traditional Korean court dances. UNESCO inscribed
Cheoyongmu on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2000.

39
Cheong Mook Kim, “The Melodic Structure of Sujecheon,” Yonsei Music Research 2, (1992): 47.

40
In ancient Korean culture, heaven refers to a transcendent figure who controls the weather and every
natural event.

34
Western string instruments. The daegeum plays an important role as it sings the melodic line of
Sujecheon and also represents the heavenly activity: creation (see Example 2.14). Improvised
Sigimsae for daegeum is encouraged.
41

41
Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

35
Example 2.13 Sujecheon, mm. 1-7.
42

42
“Sujecheon,” Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, accessed July 20, 2019,
http://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Contents/SearchNavi?keyword=%EC%88%98%EC%A0%9C%EC%B2%9C&
ridx=0&tot=3 Re-transcribed in a staff notation by the author.

36
Example 2.14 Woo “5. Firmamentum,” mm. 1-5.

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Daekum
Horn in F
Timpani
Percussion
Violin I
Violin II
Viola
Violoncello
Contrabass
Piano
Chorus
∑
∑
∑
Ó
.
5
x x x x x
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(모듬북)
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Maestoso q = 70
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5. Firmamentum
궁창
Hyowon Woo
(2012)
-Dies 2
Daegeum
The melodic line of Sujecheon
The rhythmic pattern of Sujecheon
Harmony with the Western instruments

37
The Firmamentum movement consists of three sections (see Table 2.6). A buk
43
leads this
movement as jang-gu leads Sujecheon.
44
Section A begins with an instrumental prelude and
choral parts continue to add layers. After sixteen measures of instrumental Sujecheon in F mode
Gyemyeonjo, the tenor and bass parts sing “Deus” three times, followed by the entire choir.
When the choir repeats “Deus,” Woo develops the linear structure using rhythmic
embellishment, like Sigimsae, within the same interval, C to F (see Example 2.15).

Table 2.6 Overall Structure of “5. Firmamentum.”
Section A B C
Measure 1 —16 17 — 34 35 — 50 51 — 60 61 — 87 88 — 110
Text - Deus
Dixitque
Deus
Fecit Deus
firmamentum
Firmamentum
caelum
vocavit Deus
Fecit Deus
firmamentum
vocavit Deus
firmamentum:
Caelum
Factum est
vespere et mane
Dynamics f f mf mp -p mf - ff p - pp
Tempo
Maestoso
= 70
= 76
Allegro
= 120
Slowly
Allegro
= 120
Moderato

43
Traditional Korean barrel drum, which is made of wood and leather.

44
There is no conductor when Sujecheon is performed. Therefore, the pick-up notes of jang-gu are
important (see Example 2.13 m. 1).

38
Example 2.15 Woo “5. Firmamentum,” mm. 17-24.

Abruptly, a new tempo, Allegro, opens section B and changes the atmosphere drastically.
Choral parts drive this section and move with much more rhythmic, energetic, and vertical
harmony than the previous section. Furthermore, this section uses modal mixture: alternating
minor and major chords in the harmonic structure and a traditional Korean pentatonic scale in the
melody. While fourth intervals are used mostly in the melodic structure of section A, Woo uses
the same intervals of a fourth in the harmony in the rhythmic section B. The motivic material of
“fecit Deus firmamentum” repeats three times as Woo previously repeats “In principio” three
times to signify Holy Trinity in the first movement. A chant-like ten-measure bridge of call and
response connects the repetition quietly and seamlessly.
Section C is a tremendous contrast to section B. In section C, Woo adds the new sound of
piano and glockenspiel as the choir sings “factum est vespere et mane” (there was evening and

39
there was morning).
45
While the piano keeps moving and chimes like bells, the strings stay on
the written pitch in each part and the choir swells effortlessly though each measure in section C.
The same melody of daegeum corresponds to the beginning of the movement, “5. Firmamentum”
and finishes the movement with a soft dynamic that contrasts with the stronger beginning
section.

6. Terra et Botanica

“6. Terra et Botanica” is a fine example of Woo’s interest and effort in writing program
music. As shown in Table 2.1, it is obvious that each movement has its own titles because she
follows the story of creation. On the third day, God created the earth, seas, and plants. Therefore,
Woo uses only tenor and bass parts to portray an earthy sound.
After an energetic (it is also marked as energico) two-measure introduction by the strings
and timpani, tenor and bass voices proclaim “Terra, Maria” (Earth, Seas). As soon as the
audience hears a masculine
46
declaration, a completely different sound of sprouting follows in
m.11. As the time signature and tempo marking change in section B, the strings play pizzicato to
resemble the sound of seeding and sprouting plants. Throughout section B, the texture becomes
rich and colorful through the use of different instruments. A piano doubles the string part when
the strings play pizzicato. Soon, jang-gu, temple block, and horn join the sound of one plant after
another, quickly springing out of the fertile soil (see Example 2.16).

45
Even though factum et vespere et mane is used after every day of creation in the biblical text, Woo only
uses it once in this movement. This is also the only time it is used in the entire Creo.

46
See the author’s discussion of traditional Korean masculinity in the following section.

40
Example 2.16 Woo “6. Terra et Botanica,” mm. 13-19.

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3
6. Terra et botanica
Piano
continued
Strings (Violins and violas)
continued
Strings (cellos and double basses)
Jang-gu
Temple block and horns

41
The layering of contrasting rhythms and sounds is noticeable and these layers can evoke a
picture that the earth is covered with seeds, plants, flowers, and trees. While most instruments
play detached notes, the horns hold their notes. Also, thanks to Woo’s effective instrumentation
ideas, the audience can imagine the sound of blowing wind, sprouting, and the light laboring of
the people. Woo wanted to depict a time-lapse photography technique in the music.
47
It is
difficult to use text painting to show the growth of plants because the music would have to move
very slowly to reflect the slow growth. However, Woo wants the audience to imagine the growth
happening quickly, as if the audience was watching time-lapse photography.
48
In this way, Woo
can keep the pace fast, while still text painting. As shown in Table 2.7, even though section B
(68 measures) is much longer than section A (10 measures), this movement does not seem
uneven. It may be because Woo uses minimalistic writing and various layers to depict the scene
with strict four-measure phrases in section B.

Table 2.7 Overall Structure of “6. Terra et Botanica.”
Section
A B
Measures
1 – 10 11 – 26 27 – 42 43 – 50 47 - 78
Text Terra
Maria

Herbam virentem
facientem semen
lignum pomiferrum
ait geminet
terra
Herbam virentem facientem
semen lignum pomiferrum
super terram
Dynamics
f - ff mp mp -mf p - mp mf - f
Tempo
Energico
= 110
Animato
. = 73
Time
Signature

6/8

47
Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

48
Ibid.

42
7. Luminaria

To depict God’s creation of the sun, moon, and stars on the fourth day, “7. Luminaria”
begins with the treble voices while the previous movement uses only tenor and bass voices. Not
only does Woo use treble voices only, for the first time, this movement also displays several new
compositional elements that Woo has not used for previous movements. For its tonal center,
Woo uses D major, the first time she uses a key signature with sharps. It is appropriate to have a
more brilliant sound as this movement describes the lights. The strings can also produce more
colors in D major as the open string D resonates naturally.
49
Woo, then combines polyphonic and
homophonic textures throughout the movement. Sections A and A’ use points of imitation
writing and contrapuntal passages while section B relies heavily on harmonic progressions in a
homophonic texture and harmony in both the choral and string parts. Woo explains that she
wants to depict how the light acts as both particles and waves.
50
She also shows how particles
and waves reflect from different surfaces and interact with each other by using simple melodic
lines and harmonies.
51
In addition, triads, the major second interval, and polytonality are often
used. With these, the audience can hear a more contemporary sound with different colors.
With these new compositional elements, the “7. Luminaria” movement is in standard
ABA’ form, as illustrated in Table 2.8. In the eight-measure introduction of section A, the
tessitura of first violin rises and descends as the sun or the moon would rise up and go down.
Then, a four-part treble choir of heavenly voices serenely sings the contrapuntal “luminaria”

49
Violins are tuned to G D A E. Violas and cellos are tuned to C G D A.

50
“Hyowon Woo – The Vision of Korean Choral Music, Nam Center for Korean Studies Colloquium
Series,” filmed April 2, 2014, video, https://youtu.be/TnHLWDEoEHg.

51
Ibid.

43
motives with the accompaniment of only strings. Even though Woo often marks piano or
pianissimo in this composition, directors considering this work should keep in mind that it was
written for the Incheon City Chorale, which has more than forty voice major singers with strong
voices and operatic training in their background. In other words, the dynamic can be sung a little
louder than standard piano or pianissimo, depending on the choir.
Woo creates a sense of forward momentum in each measure through the rhythm; there
are smaller beats happening in either the voice or accompaniment while longer beats are being
held. This creates a motion that does not stop. For example, as shown in mm. 25-27 (see
Example 2.17), when the choir sings a longer note (a dotted quarter note), cellos play an
arpeggio of eighth notes to fill and support the musical line. By simply repeating the word
“luminaria” and one syllable “lu” (see Example 2.17), Woo creates two motives and depicts the
sky, full of different lights.

Table 2.8 Overall Structure of “7. Luminaria.”
Section
A B A’
Measures
1 – 47 48 – 70 71 – 110
Texture
SSAA SATB
Key
Signature
D major C-mode, 12 tone
Text luminaria Diem ac noctem et sint in signa tempora
dies annos. Dixit autem Deus fiant
luminaria
luminaria
Tempo Andante Moderato
= 60
Freely Tempo I
= 60

44
Example 2.17 Woo “7. Luminaria,” mm. 25-30.

Using D as a pedal tone from section A, section B opens with a new key signature. In
fact, Woo depicts section B as a ticking clock. Signs, seasons, days, and years exist as a result of
the creation of lights: the sun, moon, and stars. It is rare for a word with more than one syllable
to be sung on a single whole note unless it is written for psalm singing or chanting. Starting with
m. 48, each Latin word with multiple syllables is distributed to one note, which is held for eight
beats. As seen in Example 2.18, singers are to hold the last letter of the word, whether it be a

45
voiced consonant or a vowel. While singers chant the word with a sforzando as if they are
striking the clock on each word, the glockenspiel plays a series of notes, refreshing the audience
with atonality. Section A’ is almost identical to section A.

Example 2.18 Woo “7. Luminaria,” mm. 49-54.

46
8. Piscis et Volatile

“8. Piscis et Volatile” is an instrumental movement, easily classified as program music.
Woo describes the sound of fish by using a clay pot filled with water and a pyojubak
52
as a
scoop.
53
The sound of birds created by Western instruments
54
then join the sound of fish. As this
movement is marked Andante ad lib. the percussionists are encouraged to improvise and use as
many percussion instruments as their creativity suggests.

9. Animal terra et Homo

A brisk, rhythmic procession of animals starts the ninth movement, “9. Animal terra et
Hommo” depicting the sixth day of creation. This movement is written in E minor and Woo does
not use any melodic phrases. The E is the highest note of the last chord in the seventh movement
and functions as a pivot note to the new key of E minor. After eight measures of one repeated
pitch, B in three octaves, the tonal center E minor is finally introduced in the lower strings with
the rhythmic figure depicting the big animal footsteps. Once the footsteps start, Woo uses a
blowing horn and conch shell as if the vast field is full of various animals of the jungle. After the
procession, the strings play an arpeggio with a sixteenth-note ornament starting from E (see
Example 2.19). This arpeggiated phrase is similar to the one in the third movement, “Dixit Deus”
(see Example 2.9). As it is written in the bible, “So God created man in his own image, in the
image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27), Woo comes

52
A small wooden dipper made by splitting a bottle gourd, or round gourd, in half.

53
A clay pot is used to accompany certain folk tunes in Korea. Pyojubak is also used as a traditional
Korean instrument.

54
Woo suggests the bird warbler whistle, cuckoo whistle, sky lark whistle, and handle castanets.

47
close to the motivic material of God’s perfection, a series of perfect-fifth intervals. However,
Woo does not use the perfect-fifth interval here, possibly as a way of differentiating between
man’s imperfection and God’s perfection which was previously illustrated with use of the perfect
fifths. Instead, she combines a perfect fifth, perfect fourth, and one major third.

Example 2.19 Woo “9. Animal terra et homo,” mm. 67-76.

In section B (see Table 2.9), Woo uses text painting on the words, “Feminam” and
“Masculum.” As with the rest of this composition, Woo uses both traditional and contemporary
elements. The words "male and female" are depicted using ancient traditional Korean ideas of
masculinity and femininity,
55
while a treble choir sings “Feminam,” which moves horizontally
and softly, while tenors and basses sound vertical and robust on “Masculum.” A tenor solo and
soprano solo together declare that God created man.

55
Eun-Jin Lee, “The Standardized Femininity reflected in the Yuhaenga of 1930’s: A Musical
Interpretation on the Modern Gender Norms,” Historical Research in Music 2, (2013): 125.

48
Table 2.9 Overall Structure of “9. Animal terra et Homo.”
Section A B A’
Measures 1 – 64 65 – 89 90 – 95 96 – 125 126 – 139
Text Masculum Feminam
Masculum
Creavit Deus hominem ad
imaginam suam Dei
Creavit Deus
Dynamics mf sfp - ff mp - ff -mp mp - mf - p - mp - mf f - ff
Tempo Allegro
= 144
Andante
rubato
= 70
Andantino
= 70
Tempo I
= 144
Time
Signature
3/4

3/4

10. Requietio - Benedictus

The previous movement ends in E minor. By using a dominant key relationship between
these two movements, Woo uses A minor for the tenth movement, “10. Requietio - Benedictus.”
As indicated in Table 2.10, it starts with a long, quiet instrumental introduction. In m. 17, the
cellos play a descending melodic figure to depict God’s exhaustion after six days of work and the
figure is repeated three times as if to represent the Holy Trinity (see Example 2.20).
56
The cellos
repeat the motivic figure three times again an octave higher before the treble choir sings in
unison. Woo does not use Jung-gah singing during the six days of creation.

56
The symbolization of the number three was mentioned previously in the first, third, and fifth
movements.

49
Table 2.10 Overall Structure of “10. Requietio - Benedictus.”

Measures
1 – 32 33 – 56 57 – 64 65 – 80 81 – 97 98 - 109
Text - Benedictus requietio - Benedictus
Requievit die
septimo
Elements
Percussion
Strings
Strings
Sop. Alto choir
Jung-gah
Percussion
Strings
Daegeum
Strings
Sop. Alto choir
Jung-gah
Percussion
Strings
Sop. Alto choir

Example 2.20 Woo, “10. Requietio-Benedictus,” mm. 15-21.

Then, on the seventh day when the biblical text focuses on God, not his work, the Jung-
gah singer appears again and sings with a treble choir. As mentioned earlier, Woo, again, shows
reverence for God by using an aristocratic musical style of Jung-gah. The exact melody of the
cellos from the prelude (mm. 17-32) is played by daegeum in the instrumental interlude (mm.
65-80). As the entire movement of “10. Requietio - Benedictus” stays on the softer side of the
dynamic, it portrays God’s exhaustion and peaceful relaxation.

11. Perfectus

After each day of creation in the biblical text, the sentence, “God saw it was good” is
repeated in Genesis 1. Woo does not use that sentence in the previous movements, but concludes
her musical journey with a celebratory finale. Throughout the final movement, she depicts God’s
contentment with creation. Several elements that Woo employed in the previous movements are

50
applied here. As she utilizes perfect-fifth intervals to describe God’s perfection in the previous
movement,
57
the eleventh movement “11. Perfectus” opens with an ascending series of perfect-
fifth intervals that start with the cellos and double basses playing a C. Secondly, a foundation of
C is introduced only at the beginning in a manner similar to the first movement, “1. In
Principio.” As discussed preciously, the dynamic mark of p for the timpani and strings should be
treated as an atmosphere of emptiness or solemnity instead of requiring the softest sound. A tam-
tam, which only appeared in the “Intro” movement at the very beginning, is used again as well as
Jung-gah and daegeum.
A lucid strike of the timpani and the arpeggio of perfect-fifth intervals lead the choir to
the first declaration of “11. Perfectus.” The choir sings C-major triads which then parallel the B-
flat major and other triads (see Example 2.21). The use of parallel triads, which is never written
in previous movements, gives unexpected sounds to the audience after mostly traditional Korean
scales are used.

Example 2.21 Woo “11. Perfectus,” mm. 6-15.

57
The third movement, “3. Dixit Deus.”

51
Table 2.11 Overall Structure of “11. Perfectus.”
A B (Bridge) B’ Coda
Measures 1 – 6
7- 16
17 - (41 - 48) - 65 66 – 73 74 – 93 94 – 109
Text
Perfectus

Vidit Deus erant val de
bona. Caeli et terra omnis
ornatus corum perfecti
Vidit Deus
quae
errant
bona
Vidit Deus
erant val de
bona
Perfectus
bona creo
Dynamics p ff mp - f - (p - mp - mf) - f mp f ff
Tempo
Andante
Rubato
Grave Allegro
= 130
Andante
Rubato
Allegro
= 130
Grave

As shown in Table. 2.11, section B is distinguished clearly by a rapid new tempo. The
new section begins with rhythmical vibrancy in triplets played on the tam-tam and appearing in
the cello part. Woo adapts a simple and fast traditional Korean rhythmic pattern, Jajinmori Jang-
dan (see Example 2.22). The tempo of Jajinmori Jang-dan is rather fast but varied as it is
indicated as . = 96-144.
58

Example 2.22 Jajinmori Jang-dan.
59

A choir, violins, and violas deliver exciting rhythmic patterns (dotted eighth note and
sixteenth note with a quarter rest) on the first and third beats of each measure while lower strings
and percussion give syncopated accents on the off beats (the second and fourth beat). By making
different parts exchange a strong sound, the excitement and tension build up until m. 40.

58
Byung Dong Baek, Dae-hak Music Theory (Seoul: Hyundai Press, 1989), 309.

59
Ibid, 307.

52
However, Woo suddenly changes the color and intensity by using softer dynamics and lower
register in mm. 41-48. This change happens when the choir sings “caeli et terra omnis ornatus
eorum” (the heavens and earth were finished) as if she wants to remind the audience of what has
just happened. Soon, the contentment returns in a palpable way when the word “bona” (good) is
repeated.
Starting in m. 66 of the bridge section, a short silence follows the active B section making
it seem as if everything is going back to where it started in the beginning (see Example 2.23).
The jung-gah singer and daegeum alternately play the melody that is reminiscent of the previous
movements.

Example 2.23 Woo “11. Perfectus,” mm. 64-68.

In m. 74, the same chorus part that was sung in section B returns cheerfully, this time,
with full orchestra including the horn and daegeum. At the end of this work starting at m. 94,
three series of perfect-fifth intervals return when the entire choir sings a C, providing the
foundation on “perfectus, bona creo.”

53
Final thoughts

For the second performance with the Incheon City Chorale in 2013, Woo collaborated
with a video artist and incorporated moving images and a lighting effect into the work. Those
additions complemented the acoustic performance, creating a multi-sensory experience that is
rare in the traditional choral genre.
60
Woo’s experimental work, Creo, was completed as a result
of her endless study of the well-known biblical text of Genesis 1, her innovative ideas, and
communication with the instrumentalists.
61
By combining traditional Korean and Western
elements, she depicts the scene in many different ways: directly, indirectly, and sometimes
abstractly. Each movement is unique in its compositional texture and elements used. In the
opinion of the author, the uniqueness and ingenuity of each movement are what make Creo a
masterwork.

60
A cursory search on visual and acoustic choral compositions yields very few results.

61
Woo, Conversation with the author, July 20, 2019.

54
Chapter 3: Requiem Aeternam

After fifteen years of collaboration with Yoon, Woo has had more opportunities and time
to work with different choral groups and conductors. Soon after she completed her residency
with the Incheon City Chorale in 2014, Woo was invited to be a visiting scholar at the Nam
Center for Korean Studies at the University of Michigan. While she was at the University of
Michigan from 2015 to 2017, Woo did not work closely with the School of Music.
1
However,
she worked occasionally with the choral department.
2
Soon after that, Woo was commissioned to
write music for the Chamber Choir and the Men’s Glee Club
3
as the faculty members of the
choral department were aware of her residency.
4
Therefore, Woo’s first setting of the Latin
requiem mass, Requiem Aeternam, was commissioned and premiered by Dr. Jerry Blackstone
and the University of Michigan Chamber Choir in 2017.
Woo closely observed the group for whom she was writing music, just as she did when
she worked with the Incheon City Chorale. The Chamber Choir consists of 36-40 music major
students at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater, and Dance. It is a vocally
talented group as most of them are majoring in Voice Performance and two thirds of the
members are graduate students. The size and talent of the group helped give Woo ideas
concerning the number of soloists, the color of high/low notes, and SATB-divisi ability.

1
Jerry Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

2
Ibid.

3
The Fishermen’s Song (see Chapter 5) was commissioned by Dr. Eugene Rogers and the Men’s Glee
Club.

4
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

55
However, because of the comfortable range
5
and repetition of passages and texts, this work is
accessible and should not be difficult for any experienced choral group.
Even before Woo conceived the idea of Requiem Aeternam, the performance venue, the
University of Michigan Museum of Art, was announced.
6
She wrote Requiem Aeternam as
spatial music (see Chapter 1, Biography: Hyo-Won Woo)
7
to maximize the advantages of the
performance space, which allows performers to resonate their sound fully because of the
museum’s high ceiling and balcony structure (see Figure 3.1 and 3.2). The aspects of this
performance space are clearly introduced in the concert program note by Youngmin Kim: “The
musical and spatial relationships between the various groups creates a unique effect intended to
highlight the gorgeous apse of the U-M Museum of Art.”
8
Also, the audience can feel that they
are a part of the performance because the soloists are walking and singing around them.

5
The range is between D
2
and A
5
.

6
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

7
Woo uses the term “Spatial Music” to describe a composition that includes the design of the visual
and/or sound effects of the entire performance space. The soloists are encouraged to walk around in the
audience. Also, the choir uses the entire space including a balcony, front stage, and the area behind the
audience.

8
Youngmin Kim, Concert Program Note “Mystery to Illumination” October 8, 2017, University of
Michigan.

56

Figure 3.1 The University of Michigan Museum of Art.
9

Figure 3.2 Chamber Choir, performing at the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
10

9
Image credit: Michael Barera.

10
U-M Chamber Choir Premieres “Requiem Aeternam” by Hyo-Won Woo, October 19, 2017, video,
19:13, https://youtu.be/hrUUMD9thdE.

57
Written for SATB double choirs, four soloists (SSTT),
11
and solo cello, Requiem
Aeternam originally consisted of five movements (see Table 3.1). Recently, Woo modified the
original to make a shorter version with three movements in order to make the work more
accessible.
12
The original five-movement version will be discussed in this chapter.
13

Requiem Aeternam is approximately twenty-five minutes in length. The text is in Latin,
selected from the Roman Catholic Mass for the dead, Missa pro defunctis. However, this work is
distinct from the standard requiem mass because it is composed for performance rather than
liturgical purposes. Even though Woo’s Requiem Aeternam is not a complete prayer as she does
not set the entire requiem mass nor written for a liturgical mass, her pious faith comes through in
the music.
As shown in Table 3.1, it appears that the entire work relies heavily on the “lux aeterna”
(eternal light) from the requiem mass prayer as three movements
14
depict “lux” (light). Woo
focuses on comfort and the eternal light of blessing rather than just rest for the dead.
15
To depict
comfort, Woo chose the cello. The cello solo is used in various forms: as a melodic foundation, a
pedal tone, a bridge between the choir and the soloists, and as an obbligato. The entire work is in

11
Except for the first movement, which is intended for a soprano solo, Woo marks ‘solo’ without any
specific voice types. Each choir director can decide whether the soloist will be a soprano or a tenor. Woo
recommends using both female and male voices to provide different colors and variety. Two sopranos and
two tenors sang soloist parts for the premiere performance.

12
The shorter version will be briefly discussed towards the end of this chapter.

13
Requiem Aeternam refers to Woo’s original work with five movements in this chapter.

14
Movements 3, 4, and 5.

15
Woo, Conversation with the author, August 9, 2019.

58
D-mode scale,
16
and in the following section, individual movements with a table of their
structures will be briefly discussed.

Table 3.1 Overall structure of Requiem Aeternam.
Movements Text
Compositional
elements
1. Intro
Dona eis, Domine
(Grant them, O Lord)
Cello, Sop. solo
2. Requiem aeternam
dona eis, Domine-Kyrie
Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine
Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison
(Grant them eternal rest, O Lord.
Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy)
Cello, SATB
3. Lux Aeterna
Lux aeterna luceat eis, Domine
(Let eternal light shine upon them, O Lord)
4 solos, SATB
4. Lux Lux (light) SATB
4.1. Cello solo Cello
5. Lux perpetua luceat eis
Lux perpetua luceat eis
Lux perpetua Domine
(Let perpetual light shine upon them,
Perpetual light, O Lord)
Double choirs,
4 solos, cello

16
Woo uses mixed scales of the D-mode traditional Korean pentatonic scale and Western D minor.

59
1. Intro

The Intro is a duet for cello and soprano solo in the melodic minor scale of D. As shown
in Example 3.1, the cello begins the movement quietly, but boldly, on a simple passacaglia to
produce the sound of sobbing. Woo uses sixteenth notes in the melody as Sigimsae, a traditional
Korean melodic embellishment (see Example 3.1 mm. 1-2).
17
By using this horizontal
embellishment, Woo enhances the melodic line and adds nuance and color. The first “sob”
occurs on an octave leap at the very beginning, and the second cry jumps up a seventh interval in
mm. 4-5. Then the cello furtively hands over the melody to the soprano solo, who serenely sings
“dona eis, Domine” (grant them, O Lord). As the phrase settles down and dies away in m. 13, an
arpeggio of a seventh chord by the cello reminds the audience of the “sobbing” from the very
first melody. Then, a bigger leap in mm. 16-17 delivers the more desperate plea by the soprano
solo (see Example 3.2).

Example 3.1 Woo “1. Intro,” mm. 1-4.
18

17
See Chapter 2, 1. Principio.

18
This motivic figure reappears later in the movement of the cello interlude and the fifth movement.
Requiem Aeternam begins and ends with the same motivic figure.

60
Example 3.2 Woo “1. Intro,” mm. 9-18.

The first movement closes with calls for “Domine” five times followed by an open-fifth
interval in the dominant chord as if it is an open question without an answer.

Table 3.2 Overall structure of “Intro,” Requiem Aeternam.
Measures 1 - 8 9 - 21 (22) 22 - 28
Text - Dona eis, Domine Dommine
Texture Cello Cello, soprano solo Cello, soprano solo
Tempo Andante rubato Andantino

61
2. Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine – Kyrie

The second movement has two sections: section A. “Requiem aeternam” and section B.
“Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison” (see Table 3.3). As an answer to the last chord from the previous
movement, the tonality of D minor is reiterated by the alto and bass sections. Both sections
repeat the word “requiem” on the same pitch D as a pedal tone for twenty measures. They do this
one after another, as if the alto is echoing the mourning of the bass (see Example 3.3). When
Jerry Blackstone, conductor of the Chamber Choir prepared this work, Woo’s use of pedal tones
reminded him of the beginning F pedal tone in Ein deutsches Requiem by Johannes Brahms
(1833-97).
19

Table 3.3 Overall structure of movement 2, Requiem Aeternam.
A
Measures 1-12 13-20 21-24 25-32 33-42
Text Requiem Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine Domine, requiem Domine
Texture SATB a cappella
Tempo Moderato (4/4)

B
Measures 43-56 57-68 69-84
Text Kyrie eleison Kyrie eleison Christe eleison
Texture SATB, cello
Tempo . =32 (6/4)

19
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

62
Throughout the entire work, Woo often recapitulates the same motives canonically
between two sections as she does in this movement. In m. 3, the soprano joins with a linear slide
(see Example 3.3). Even though the notation has rhythmic values, such as dotted half notes and
quarter notes, the point of the pitch changes is subtle and less noticeable due to the slides and the
overtones in the performance space. Just as the soprano sound should not be heard as rhythmic
changes of direction, the conductor’s continuous moving gesture can help the flow and produce
subtlety. Conductors may want to use a more fluid gesture rather than emphasizing the strong
beats to avoid unwanted accents until the first homophonic texture in m. 21.

Example 3.3 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 1-5.

When the tenor joins and finally sings the plea, “Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,”
in m. 13, the soprano repeats the same melody of the tenors in m. 17. Then, in mm. 21-24, a
definite change of texture appears through the use of a homophonic section (see Example 3.3).

63
This surprising new texture grasps the attention of the audience. The upper voices move up and
down within close intervals. At the same time, the lower voices repeat their pitches, lending a
texture that appears hesitant and confused. Then, the choir is expected to move to a climax as the
dense harmony is expanded by basses joining the rest. However, after only four measures of new
colors, before the soprano reaches the highest note F
5
in m. 33, canonic duets return on the
repetitive “Domine” (between the tenor and the soprano) and “requiem” (between the bass and
the alto).

Example 3.4 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 21-24.

Although the same word is often repeated throughout the work, it can imply and express
different characters. For example, the beginning pedal tone of “requiem” by the alto and the bass
can be mourning by the living (see Music Example 3.3). Then, the same word in the melodic line
by the tenor in m. 13 can express the voice of comforting angels followed by the confusion of

64
people in mm. 21-24 (see Example 3.4). Another repetitive word that Woo uses is “Domine.”
“Domine” is repeated for eighteen measures from m. 25 through the outcry starting in m. 33 and
until the new section begins with “Kyrie eleison” in m. 43.
After many repetitions of “Domine,” section B begins with a pedal tone by the cello (see
Example 3.5). The D, played by the cello in m. 43, is the same note (one octave higher) as the
last note sung by the bass. This should help reset the pitch of the choir that has been singing a
cappella for forty-two measures. However, as Blackstone experienced with his choir, it can be a
challenge to match the pitch between the two.
20
Woo offers one solution by putting in a dramatic,
but gradual diminuendo for a soft landing.

Example 3.5 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 39-45.

20
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

65
The beginning of section B is similar to the choral entrance at the beginning (see
Example 3.3). The cello plays a pedal tone (see Example 3.5. mm. 43-45) in a much slower
tempo. Even though conductors may want to move a little faster than the tempo marking (dotted
half note = 32), one should note that this is the only place in the entire composition where Woo
indicates the metronomic tempo marking. After two measures of the funereal pedal tone, the
tenor should sing “Kyrie” as if it is a lament. Using imitative writing, Woo alternates the wailing
lamentation between the tenor line and the bass line with a bell-like singing harmonic figure by
the soprano and the alto. When another wailing alternation between the soprano and the alto
occurs in m. 57, the text and rhythms move much faster (see Example 3.6), and Woo prepares
the audience for the upcoming light with major triads (see Example 3.6 m. 58).

Example 3.6 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 2, mm. 55-59.

66
In addition to adding the new color of major triads, Woo draws different motivic figures
with each voice and builds the dynamics in m. 65 through the “Christe eleison” section toward
the end. The cello finally joins the lament by playing the “Kyrie eleison” motif until the choir
echoes “Christe.”

3. Lux Aeterna

The third movement, “3. Lux Aeterna” is for four soloists and a cappella SATB choir. As
mentioned earlier in this chapter, Woo does not mark any specific voice types for the soloists.
Each choir director can decide whether the soloist will be a soprano or a tenor.
21
Woo
recommends two female and two male voices with a light, floating sound to provide balanced
colors and variety.
22
In the premiere performance with the University of Michigan Chamber
Choir in 2017, Blackstone decided on two tenors and two sopranos while the National Chorus of
Korea used three sopranos and one tenor later in May, 2018. Conductors may want to alternate
male and female voices for the first few solo entrances.
23

Throughout this movement, the choir repeats the same eight-measure passage six times.
This repetitive passage, especially the D pedal tone in the bass section, can cause vocal fatigue in
singers (see Example 3.7). However, conductors should explain to the singers that the repetition
is important as a framework for creating a sense of constant shining light in the entire Requiem
Aeternam and that this is the movement that depicts the light for the first time. Woo depicts the

21
Woo, Conversation with the author, August 9, 2019.

22
Ibid.

23
It was the Korean premiere of Requiem Aeternam during Woo’s residency with the group.

67
light as one of God’s creations in Creo, and in “3. Lux Aeterna,” the light serves as God’s
blessing and comfort. Therefore, Woo uses conventional tonal harmonies in the “3. Lux Aeterna”
movement while a tone cluster is used to depict a beam of light that goes through a prism for the
“4. Lux et Tenebrae” movement in Creo.

Example 3.7 Woo, movement 3, mm. 1-8.
24

As shown above in Example 3.7, the chorus part relies heavily on the tonal D-minor and
the subdominant G-major chords. There are only three chords used for the choral passage
throughout the movement: A-minor, G-major, and D-minor triads with a D pedal tone. By using
the harmonies on a traditional three-note Gyemyeonjo scale only (D, G, A in D-mode), Woo
closes each “lux” on a G-major triad that gives the audience a Westernized and hopeful sound.
Because Woo begins with the lift of a quarter rest before each “lux” on the three upper voices
(see Example 3.7. mm. 1, 3, and 5) and uses crescendo and decrescendo each time, the choral
framework can express a livelier and heavenly sensation. On the other hand, the syncopated
rhythms on the “lu” (marked with circles in Example 3.7) may not create rhythmic excitement
due to their color and function.

24
Inverted chords are not indicated.

68
With the support of the choral repetition, four soloists have an important role in the “3.
Lux Aeterna” movement. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, Woo chose not to indicate the
voice type of each solo part. Ideally, the first three soloists (solos 3, 2, and 4. See Table 3.4) will
include male and female voices alternating (for example, tenor-soprano-tenor or soprano-tenor-
soprano) to maximize the effect of various colors.

Table 3.4 Overall structure of movement 3, Requiem Aeternam.
25

Measure
number
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
Solo 1

Solo 2

Solo 3

Solo 4

Choir Lux Lux

Measure
number
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32
Solo 1

Solo 2

Solo 3

Solo 4

Choir Lux Lux

Measure
number
33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48
Solo 1

Solo 2

Solo 3

Solo 4

Choir Lux Lux

Measure
number
49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58
Solo 1

Solo 2

Solo 3

Solo 4

Choir
Mm (humming)

25
The shaded areas in the table represent vocal lines. The different color selections are provided to help
the conductor visualize the overlap between the solos.

69
Example 3.8 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 3, mm. 15-20.

Each soloist sings “Lux aeterna luceat eis Domine” (Let light perpetual shine on them, O
Lord)
26
five times independently throughout the movement. The melody was adapted from the
first movement (compare Examples 3.1 and 3.8). As shown in Table 3.4, there is overlap
between the solos. The solo parts are portrayed as the sound of angels that comforts the people.
The soloists are encouraged to walk around continuously and spontaneously. Interestingly, for
the premiere by the Chamber Choir, the singers did not wear shoes to minimize any unexpected
noise caused by walking.
27
Because the soloists are walking spontaneously, conductors may not
be able to maintain constant visual connection with them. While the soloists are expected to be
independent on the entrances and pitches, they should keep checking in with the conductor. One

26
When the phrase is for four measures, the soloists sing “Lux aeterna Domine” (Eternal light, O Lord).

27
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

70
of the audience members recalled this angelic moment as if he was a part of the performance as a
character.
28
This is the exact intention for Woo’s use of the entire performance space.
After all of the four soloists sing the passage once in mm. 9-25, the solos trail each other
by returning sooner than the first time (see Table 3.4). Conductors should be aware that, like
most a cappella music, this movement can have intonation challenges. Woo originally had a cello
join them toward the end, but she removed it not long before the performance.
29
Woo finishes
this movement with the choir humming a D and the solos calando in a lower register and softer
dynamics.

4. Lux

The fourth movement, “4. Lux” also depicts light. By the minimal use of only one word,
“lux,” Woo solely focuses on the light. This rather short movement has five small phrases and
each phrase repeats the word “lux” twice. As shown below in Table 3.5, Woo increases the
dynamics along with the intensification of the rhythm through shorter note values.

Table 3.5 Overall structure of movement 4, Requiem Aeternam.
Measures 1 - 6 7 - 11 12 - 17 18 - 23 24 - 30
Entrance Half rest, Half rest, Half rest, Quarter rest, . No rest,
Dynamics p mp mf f ff - p

28
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

29
Ibid.

71
With the marking Andante freely, Woo, again, gives conductors the flexibility within the
tempo, Andante. The rhythmic pattern of “lux” at the beginning is reminiscent of the same word
used for choral passages in the third movement, as the bass starts on the D on the downbeat and
three upper voices fill in the harmony (see Example 3.9). However, the texture of this movement
is much more placidly homophonic than the previous movement in which four soloists sing
linear figures simultaneously with the choir (see Example 3.8).

Example 3.9 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 4, mm. 1-3.

While each phrase repeats “lux” twice in five or six measures, the first phrase begins
harmonically similar to the third movement. Woo uses A-minor triads and G-major triads (see
Example 3.7) but added the major second interval to create colors in m. 3. Then, she adds the
seventh note (G
7
chord) in m. 5. Her expansion of different ideas on the same motivic figure
includes the change of rhythm in m. 18 and m. 24 (see Example 3.10). It sounds like the light
becomes clearer, closer, and more vivid, when Woo shortens the length of the rest on the
downbeat, and eventually all four parts sing “lux” at the same time in m. 24. In addition to the

72
rhythmic change, Woo also removes the strong tonality and foundation of the pedal tone D from
the bass. The “4. Lux” movement finishes with the open-fifth interval on the A, like “1. Intro,”
which is a dominant and leads to another D mode in the following movement.

Example 3.10 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 4, mm. 13-25.

73
4.1 Cello solo

After “4. Lux” movement, Woo uses the cello obbligato for various purposes. First, the
cello solo gives a unique and different color without the choir. It is marked Allegretto rubato at
the beginning and there are several tempo indications including ritardando, accelerando, and a
tempo change of moderato espressivo in m. 20. As a result of her tempo indications of rubato,
one can see the flexibility and freedom that the cellist can have. However, it is important to note
that minimal writing is characteristic of Woo’s recent works and when she indicates tempo
changes, the changes should be acknowledged. A subtle and modest musical tempo of rubato
will be essential to deliver Woo’s musical language throughout this movement.
According to Blackstone, this obbligato was added at the last minute, only a few days
before the performance.
30
Perhaps, Woo wanted to have a smoother transition from the fourth
movement to the fifth movement because the choir was planning to change its format to different
groupings at various positions on the stage.
Woo uses several melodies from previous movements. The first “sob” in the first
movement (m. 1), the first plea “Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine” by tenors in the second
movement (m. 13), and the last wailing of “Kyrie eleison” in the second movement (m. 57)
reappear in this movement (see Example 3.11).

30
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

74
Example 3.11 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 4.1, mm. 1-21.

5. Lux perpetua luceat eis

If it is assumed that Woo writes a separate movement for a cello to set up the fifth
movement, then this movement, “5. Lux perpetua luceat eis,” must have significant features.
First, this movement is written for double choir, four soloists, and a cello. The four soloists walk
around just like they do for the third movement. Choir I has four parts and each part is
encouraged to have both male and female voices that stand at the four corners of the venue.
31

This movement maximizes the effect of spatial music by using the entire performance space.

31
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019. His Chamber Choir had two male singers
and one female singer for each group.

75
Then, each part sings the same motivic figures that were used in the first, second, and
third movements. Woo integrates the previous four movements into this movement. Choir II
begins this movement with the same repetitive passage that was used in the second movement
(see Example 3.12). In this movement, Choir II becomes the framework for the group and sings
similar material to the choral part in the third movement.

76
Example 3.12 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 5, mm. 16-19.

77
After Choir II repeats the same harmonic figures twice, the soloists mimic the first “sob”
played by the cello in the first movement (see Example 3.13). Once Choir II and the soloists are
introduced in the first twelve measures, Choir I joins them with the same melodies that were
used in the third movement by the soloists (see Example 3.12). Even though Woo reuses musical
material from previous movements, the combination of each melodic line and the small
adjustments on each melody make this last movement a distinct part of the Requiem.

Example 3.13 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 5, mm. 1-6.

To help understand the structure, Table 3.6 is included as a roadmap of “5. Lux perpetua
luceat eis.” Choir II and the cello stay regular while the soloists begin losing regularity around
m.30. Woo naturally uses a condensed overlap and fast, unexpected trailing solo parts because
the highest range (climax) in Requiem Aeternam is approaching and the level of intensity is
being elevated. Then after m. 40, less overlap occurs between solos as Woo indicates poco a
poco diminuendo to prepare the soloists for the quiet ending.

78
Table 3.6 Overall structure of movement 5, Requiem Aeternam.
Bar # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Solo1

Solo2

Solo3

Solo4

Ch.I-1
Ch.I-2
Ch. I-3
Ch. I-4
Ch. II
Cello

Bar # 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
Solo1

Solo2

Solo3

Solo4

Ch.I-1
Ch.I-2
Ch. I-3
Ch. I-4
Ch. II
Cello

Bar # 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74
Solo1

Solo2

Solo3

Solo4

Ch.I-1
Ch.I-2
Ch. I-3
Ch. I-4
Ch. II
Cello

After the climax, the intensity drops along with the highest pitch point in each phrase.
The conclusion begins with the ending of the solos, then the Choir I ending, and finally Choir II
is left alone on the D (see Example 3.14). The final cello line plays the same melody of the

79
beginning of the first movement (see Example 3.1), as if the beginning and the end reflect the
biblical figure who is often referred to as the beginning and the end.
32

32
The author referred to the verse in the biblical book of Revelation: “I am the Alpha and the Omega,”
says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty” in Revelation 1:8 (English
Standard Version).

80
Example 3.14 Woo, Requiem Aeternam, movement 5, mm. 60-68.

81
Alternate Versions

Woo shortened Requiem Aeternam to three movements.
33
In the short version
(approximately eighteen minutes in length), three details are modified: [1] the cello solo
interlude of Cello Solo is played after the second movement, [2] the fourth and fifth movements
are omitted, and [3] the last eight-measure solo cello postlude of the fifth movement is moved to
the end of the third movement.
34
Woo’s short version is gaining more popularity than the original
one due to its condensed, accessible length and flexibility. This makes it easily programmable
with various repertoire to create a full concert program. In addition to the shorter version, Woo
was commissioned to write a version for treble choir.
35

Final Thoughts

Requiem Aeternam not only shows Woo’s interest in minimalism but also her use of the
same elements in different musical contexts. These aspects give the audience a feeling of
continuity, unity, and diversity throughout the work. Woo also proposed a unique vision for the
theatrical aspect of choral performances. It is clear that she is the kind of composer who writes
music for the specific group’s need and potential. Blackstone explained the pleasant experience
of working with Woo and her willingness to make countless revisions and modifications.
36

33
Woo revised Requiem Aeternam in May, 2018.

34
Woo, Conversation with the author, August 9, 2019.

35
Ibid. The Gwacheon City Women’s Chorale performed in June, 2019.

36
Blackstone, Conversation with the author, August 14, 2019.

82
In addition to Woo’s endeavor to maximize the potential of the group, she is not a typical
contemporary composer who writes every detail in her score. As stated earlier in this chapter,
Woo does not often indicate metronomic tempo markings, with only one exception in the middle
of the second movement.
37
Throughout Requiem Aeternam, Woo marks double bar-lines at the
end of each movement.
38
However, conductors may lead one movement into another movement
with a continuous attacca as the entire composition should feel like one unified work. This
composition works well in a space with resonance, but conductors can design their space and
theatrical movement based on their unique needs and availability of the venue.

37
Andante rubato for movement 1, Moderato for movements 2 and 3, Andante freely for movement 4,
and no indication for movement 5 are used.

38
Movements 1, 3, and 4 (chorus part only) close with double bar lines. Movements 2, 4.1 (cello solo),
and the last movement closes with end bar lines.

83
Chapter 4: The Fishermen’s Song

Another collaboration between Woo and the School of Music at the University of
Michigan was The Fishermen’s Song, commissioned by Dr. Eugene Rogers and the University
of Michigan Men’s Glee Club. The passion and the color of the Men’s Glee club inspired Woo,
and her inspiration was also connected to a traditional Korean folksong, Geomun-do Boat Song.
1

Both Geomun-do Boat Song and The Fishermen’s Song vividly depict the brotherhood of
fishermen working together on a boat. The boat song was not used only to cheer and encourage
the fishermen to work, but it was also necessary for teamwork purposes. Because the boat song
was the only communication tool during fishing on the boat, the cohesive power of singing
together helped the fishermen control the rhythm of rowing and casting/hauling the nets, which
were very important for successful and safe fishing in the past.
2
To foster unity, there was always
one leader who led the work by singing a melodic line with directions that the rest of the
fishermen followed. As the leader and the rest of the fishermen sang one after another, Geomun-
do Boat Song uses a call-and-response singing form that is called Meygigo Batgi. This is one of
the standard traditional Korean music forms, mostly used in folksongs.
3
It is similar to antiphonal
singing in Western music.
4
When one singer or leader calls, the rest of the group responds
together with a refrain (see Example 4.1). The refrain is relatively short and is mostly repeated

1
Hyo-Won Woo, “Hyo-Won Woo Intro Video,” Michigan Media, accessed July 30, 2019,
https://vimeo.com/242131265.

2
The sailboat would capsize without the proper rhythms of unified actions.

3
Sung Chun Lee, Dukwon Kwon, Ilhyung Baek, and Hyunjung Hwang, Gukak-Gaeron (Studies of
Korean Traditional Music) (Seoul: Pungnam Press, 1994), 92.

4
Ibid.

84
with the same melody, rhythm, and text.
5
Woo also uses soloists and the choir to adapt Meygigo
Batgi form starting on m. 96.

Example 4.1 Geomun-do Boat Song, “Not-sori.”
6

5
Lee et al., Gukak-Gaeron, 92.

6
Na, “The Folklore-Graphic,” 20.

85
For The Fishermen’s Song, Woo adapts the partial text of the arrangement by Kim.
Therefore, in this chapter, the transcribed arrangement Geomun-do Boat Song and Woo’s newly
published The Fishermen’s Song will be discussed and analyzed.
7

Folksong: Geomun-do Boat Song

The sea village labor song, Geomun-do Boat Song has been passed down orally on a
small island, Geomun-do, in the Jeonnam Province of South Korea (see Figure 4).
8
This song
was used when the fishermen in Geomun-do went out to fish for anchovies on sailboats.
9

Jeonnam province inscribed Geomun-do Boat Song as the first Intangible Property of Jeonnam
province on the List of the Local Intangible Cultural Property in 1972.
10

7
Words and Music by Hyo-Won Woo, Copyright (c) 2018 by HAL LEONARD LLC.
Reprinted by permission of Hal Leonard LLC.

8
Seung Min Na, “The Folklore-Graphic Study of Geomun Island Fishing Anchovy Song,” Namdo
Folklore Research 21, (November, 2010): 10-11.

9
Ibid.

10
Bohyeong Lee, “Geomun-do Boat Song,” Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, The Academy of Korean
Studies, accessed August 13, 2019, http://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Contents/Item/E0001824.

86

Figure 4. Geographic map of Geomun-do in South Korea.
11

In oral tradition culture, singing was the essential tool for communication and also an
indispensable signal for different parts of the labor process.
12
Therefore, the capability of singing
Geomun-do Boat Song was considered fundamental knowledge for the fishermen in Geomun-do.
According to Seung Min Na,
13
there are seven movements of Geomun-do Boat Song inscribed as
the Local Intangible Cultural Property: Sulbi-sori (a sound of twisting ropes), Gosa-sori (a sound
of prayers for abundance), Not-sori (a sound of rowing), Wollae-sori (a sound of casting and
hauling nets), Garae-sori (a sound of transferring fish from the nets), Sul-sori (a sound of

11
“South Korea,” Google Map, Google, accessed August 15, 2019,
https://www.google.com/maps/place/South+Korea/@35.7981081,125.6246753,7z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3
m4!1s0x356455ebcb11ba9b:0x91249b00ba88db4b!8m2!3d35.907757!4d127.766922.

12
Na, “The Folklore-Graphic,” 11.

13
Seung Min Na is a professor of Korean Language and Literature at Mokpo University in Jeonnam
province. His research about folklore is also cited on the website of the National Folk Museum of Korea.

87
returning with the full boat of fish), and Mansun-sori (a sound of celebrating a bountiful harvest
with the people in the town).
14
In the process of fishing, the first two movements were sung on
the ground before the fishermen went to the sea, the next four songs were sung on the boat, and
the last song was sung with everyone in town after the fishermen arrived.
In addition to this original version of seven movements, there is a widely-known
transcribed music of Geomun-do Boat Song by Chang-Ok Kim (1928 - ca.1990), who was a
fisherman who sang Geomun-do Boat Song while fishing with other fishermen.
15
Because the
boat song was handed down by rote, the notated arrangement
16
(see Example 4.2) was rendered
through collaboration of Kim and the Korean Music Research Institute in 1981.
17
Woo has
adapted the scene of Geomun-do Boat Song into The Fishermen’s Song by using the one-
movement arrangement.

14
Na, “The Folklore-Graphic,” 17.

15
Seung Min Na, “The Folklore-Graphic Study of Gageo Island Fishing Anchovy Song,” The Association
of Korean Folksong, No. 22, (2008): 62.

16
In the rest of this chapter, Geomun-do Boat Song will refer to the one-movement arrangement.

17
Ki-Soo Kim, Anthology of Koran Traditional Music. (Seoul: Se-Shin Munhwasa, 1981), 143.

88
Example 4.2 Geomun-do Boat Song, mm. 1-20.
18

This one movement arrangement adapts the words from Not-sori, Wollae-sori, and
Mansun-sori. All three movements use the same mode, Me-Na-Ri tori (tori means mode) and the
same beat pattern of four.
19
Me-Na-Ri mode was popularly used for folksongs in the eastern part
of Korea.
20
It is a pentatonic scale using mi – sol – la – do – re. However, mi, la, and do are used

18
Ki-Soo Kim, Anthology of Koran Traditional Music. (Seoul: Se-Shin Munhwasa, 1981), 247. Re-
transcribed by the author. The blue squared texts are used for The Fishermen’s Song by Woo.

19
Some movements use a three beat pattern, including Garae-sori and Sul-sori.

20
“Me-Na-Ri tori,” Encyclopedia of Korean Folk Culture, accessed August 14, 2019,
http://folkency.nfm.go.kr/kr/topic/detail/6221.

89
most of the time. This mode has slightly different notes depending on whether it is ascending or
descending.
21
As shown in Example 4.3, the ascending scale mainly uses four notes without a G,
and the D is often used as an appoggiatura of the C. The descending scale includes a G, which is
often used as a passing note between A and E in the descending line.

Example 4.3 Me-Na-Ri tori.
22

As shown above in Examples 4.1 and 4.2, Kim’s Geomun-do Boat Song begins with Not-
sori. Not-sori is important because it is the first communication when the fishermen get on the
boat. When the leader calls to row, the shipmen row rhythmically along with the response. As
shown above in Example 4.2, the shipmen sing the same refrains throughout. Geomun-do Boat
Song was mainly based on Not-sori.
The use of Meygigo Batgi (see Example 4.1 and 4.2) has several important functions in
this song. The refrains make the fishermen excited with a faster and rhythmic tempo control,
which also unifies the speed and pattern of rowing. Also, the leading part allows the
leader/captain to have the opportunity to give any needed directions to the fishermen. Once the
fishermen get to row together and the boat is stabilized, they move on to casting and hauling the
nets. When the fishermen carefully haul the nets, they sing the original sound of hauling the nets,

21
Ibid.

22
Ibid.

90
Wollae-sori with a much slower tempo.
23
Therefore, Geomun-do Boat Song uses the flexible
tempo of the four-beat pattern, Jajinmori Jang-dan (see Chapter 2.11 Example 2.22). The
metronomic tempo for Jajinmori Jang-dan ranges from as slow as . = 90 to as fast as . = 144.
24

Geomun-do Boat Song traditionally begins slower and progresses faster towards the end as the
fishermen get excited with the bountiful harvest.

23
Na, “The Folklore-Graphic,” 24-25.

24
Lee et al., Gukak-Gaeron, 97.

91
The Fishermen’s Song

The Fishermen’s Song is written for TTBB soloists and three choirs of tenors and basses.
Woo maximizes the color and the strength of the University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club by
using props and theatrical choreography.
25
Each of the three choral groups has its own role.
Group I represents the seated fishermen and imitates rowing, and Group II is the fishermen who
work on the ship. Lastly, Group III depicts the waves.
To create the vivid images of the ocean full of motion with the three groups, Woo uses
the same traditional Korean folk scale, Me-Na-Ri tori, that was used by the original boat song
(see Example 4.3). For The Fishermen’s Song, G-mode Me-Na-Ri tori is used. Therefore, the
most used four notes in the ascending line are G – C – E-flat – (F) – G, and the descending notes
are G – (F) – E-flat – C – B-flat – G. Throughout the song, Woo heavily relies on harmonies of
G minor, C minor, and E-flat major. By using the same mode and rhythmic patterns of the
Korean folksong, Woo effectively maintains the traditional Korean folk elements. Additionally,
she enhances the composition with Western elements such as triads, poly-chordal harmony, and
point of imitation. The usage of both Korean and Western elements will be identified in this
chapter. Table 4 illustrates the overall structure of The Fishermen’s Song.

25
Hyo-Won Woo, “Hyo-Won Woo Intro Video,” Michigan Media, accessed July 30, 2019,
https://vimeo.com/242131265.

92
Table 4. Overall structure of The Fishermen’s Song.
Sections Measures Scenes
Time
Signatures
Tempo
Indications
Forces
A 1-29 Waves

Andantino con
rubato, = 54
Group III
B 30-95
Waves, rowing,
casting and hauling the
nets
= 75-80
Groups I, II,
and III
C
96-103
Ship captains leading
the fishing
12/8
. = 100
Tutti Choir,
TB solos
104-115 Piu mosso
116-139 . = 120
C’ 140-160
Hauling nets with
abundant fish
Allegro, . = 126 Groups I, II
Coda 161-174 Returning 4/4 Andante, = 55
Groups I+II,
III

Section A

Woo establishes the scene with the waves through Group III.
26
As Eugene Rogers,
conductor of the U-M Glee Club suggests in the editorial note, Group III consists of more
advanced singers because they consistently sing different triads, sometimes creating dissonances
with poly-chordal structures.
27
As if there are no two identical waves or one cannot notice
exactly where the waves start or end, Woo depicts the waves with the different triads, one after
another with slight overlaps (see Example 4.4). Conductors may want to bring out the cluster
clearly when the poly-chordal harmony “crashes” into the previous chord carrying a crescendo.

26
Group I represents the seated fishermen and imitates rowing, and Group II is the fishermen who work
on the ship. Group III depicts the waves.

27
Rogers, “Program Notes.” The Fishermen’s Song by Hyo-Won Woo, Eugene Rogers Choral Series,
Mark Foster Music, 2018.

93
The waves appear not only one after another (see Example 4.4 mm. 5-8), but also together with a
bigger wave (m. 9). Woo also imitates the sound of broken waves in m. 10. She uses bigger
dynamics to make the audience feel as if the wave is coming towards them, but the louder sound
quickly disappears as the waves go away quickly.

Example 4.4 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 5-13.

94
Section B

Once Woo sets the scene of the waves using Group III, Group I, which is the fishermen
on the ship, begins rowing (see Example 4.5). They imitate rowing with props, something similar
to oars.
28
As the motion and the sound from the fishermen support the foundation of The
Fishermen’s Song, the largest number of singers are encouraged for Group I.
29

Example 4.5 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 30-33.

Woo often uses quartal harmonies which derive from the traditional Korean pentatonic
scale.
30
In m. 31, the lower three parts have a perfect fourth and augmented-fourth intervals,
which refresh the audience’s ears after listening to triadic harmonies. Woo depicts the scene of
fishermen casting the nets as the second bass part in Group II gradually sings a descending line

28
Rogers recommends the use of wooden dowels.

29
Eugene Rogers, “Program Notes,” The Fishermen’s Song by Hyo-Won Woo, Eugene Rogers Choral
Series, Mark Foster Music, 2018.

30
The author has noticed the use of quartal harmonies in Woo’s other works including in Gloria, Me-Na-
Ri, and Creo.

95
in the scale (see Example 4.6, G – F – E-flat – D, marked in a blue circle). Singers in Group II
are encouraged to move freely on the stage. Singers even walk backstage or to the audience from
the stage as they are playing the role of working fishermen.
Each part in section B is set in four-bar phrases, which helps the singers identify the
structure and repetitions. For example, the second bass part for Group II repeats two different
musical figures as shown below in Example 4.7. In section B, they strictly alternate as follows:
figure one – figure two – figure one – figure two – figure two – figure one – figure one – figure
two. Even though there are similar repetitive four-bar phrases and only subtle changes,
identifying the patterns and the figures can ease the process of learning and choreography.
Similarly, Groups I and III have the same four-bar phrases with two different figures (marked as
Figure A and B, see Example 4.6).
Throughout section B, the sound of rowing (Group I) and the waves (Group III) stay
relaxed and help the audience feel the scene. However, each voice part in Group II has
independent linear lines with forward motion and rhythmic movements (see Example 4.6). Not
only does Group II bring out the unexpected curves of the ocean with their musical lines, they
also physically move around on the stage and through the audience.

96
Example 4.6 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 45-53.
31

31
The red dotted line shows a four-bar structure.
45
T. I
T. II
B. I, II
T. I
T. II
B. I, II
T.
B.
49
T. I
T. II
B. I, II
T. I
T. II
B. I, II
T.
B.
p
- -
p
- -
h - gi - ja -
3
u gi - j - h i ja - h i ja - h i ja - h i,
cresc.
t a!
t u
- -
- -
t a! h - gi - ja - t a!
di j - ra - h i
mp
ja - h i ja - h i ja - h ,
cresc.
di j - ra -
t u
t wa
t a!
t wa t wa
THE FISHERMEN’S SONG — TTBB
8

97
Example 4.7 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, repetitive figures in section B.

Section C

A hum on the open-fifth interval of G and D ends section B. Then, the tenor and bass
soloists exclaim excitedly with a faster tempo and a new rhythmic pattern in the percussion
instrument. Select parts of the text from Geomun-do Boat Song are adapted to the ship-captain’s
solo lines. However, Woo makes the refrain more exciting by using different rhythms and chords
(compare choral parts in Examples 4.8 and 4.9). After eight measures of call-and-response
(Meygigo Batgi, see Example 4.1), the chorus part becomes a rhythmic excitement rather than
repeating the same refrain and does so without waiting to hear the captain’s directions (see
Example 4.9). Woo adds more colors to the simple harmony by including second intervals on
some triads (see tenor section in m. 106). Then, through the use of hemiola, homophonic texture
without the soloists, and a faster tempo (see Example 4.10, mm. 112-115), Woo prepares for the
climax. The drum-like passage of mm. 112-115 starts with subito piano. With this dynamic
marking, the choir should have greater condensed energy and rhythmic precision to maximize
Woo’s intention of using hemiola.

98
Example 4.8 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 96-98.

Example 4.9 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 104-106.

99
Example 4.10 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 112-116.

After the purely homophonic section of imitating drums for four measures, the chorus
parts exchange each other’s rhythmic patterns and dynamic without the ship-captains. Therefore,
it sounds like call-and-response again. As mentioned earlier, Woo continues using four measure
phrases and they are repeated.

100
Example 4.11 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 118-119.

After the call and response by captains and fishermen, now without soloists, double
choirs
32
declare their excitement and cooperation in stronger dynamics. As shown in Example
4.12, both choirs sing similar elements alternately. Because of the consistent strong dynamic and
similar harmonic languages, this section (starting at m.140) almost sounds like a canon. The
alternation between the choirs becomes denser (see Example 4.13, m. 148 and m. 152). Finally,
the texts of both parts meet on the second beat in m. 155 and reaches the climax in m. 156.

32
Groups I, II, or III are not used in this section.

101
Example 4.12 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 140-141.

102
Example 4.13 Woo, The Fishermen’s Song, mm. 148-149, 152-153.

103
Coda

A loud declaration and improvised percussion interlude lead the fishermen to the wave
scene again. Returning to Groups I, II, and III, the last fourteen measures express to the audience
the exhaustion of the fishermen after a dynamic, long journey of fishing. Groups I and II have
only humming as they are the fishermen, while Group III depicts the waves. When Group III
depicts the waves, conductors may want to remind the group of the kind of sound (waves) they
started with at the beginning. Woo uses the same waves as bookends for her composition.

Final thoughts

Since ancient times, the love for singing has been second nature to Koreans and has been
their tradition. Especially when they were forced to work, they sang. That is why a majority of
Korean folksongs are labor songs. As a theatrical work, The Fishermen’s Song added another
successful result to Woo’s contemporary experimental soundscape, which uses the traditional
Korean elements combined with Western compositional ideas. This composition takes
approximately eight minutes. Despite the repetitive passages and simple rhythmic and melodic
patterns, the choir and the audience can easily identify and enjoy the new images of the ancient
ocean in Korea as a result of Woo’s detailed use of various tempos, dynamics, and visual effects.

104
Conclusion

The previous four chapters have described how Hyo-Won Woo’s life led her to work in
the choral arts; how her partnership with a prominent conductor, Hak-Won Yoon, helped shape
her innovative direction in writing choral music; and how conductors might perform three of her
compositions based on the musical analysis provided. She wrote the three pieces discussed above
for three different groups and conductors. Creo was one of the last major works that Woo wrote
for the Incheon City Chorale in 2012, Requiem Aeternam was written for the University of
Michigan Chamber Choir and Dr. Jerry Blackstone in 2017, and The Fishermen’s Song was
written for the Men’s Glee Club at the University of Michigan and Dr. Eugene Rogers in 2017.
A detailed analysis of these works has illustrated Woo’s innovative and authentic
compositional ideas. Specifically, her creative ideas of using the performance space as visual and
spatial art include the following: a collaboration with a video artist for moving images and a
lighting effect in Creo, the highlighting of the relationship between music and space through the
placement of various groups in different spaces for maximum resonance in Requiem Aeternam,
and a theatrical approach with three different groups representing the seated rowing fishermen,
the working fishermen on the ship, and the waves in The Fishermen’s Song. A minimalistic
writing style was also identified as characteristic of Woo’s recent works. She often used
repetitive passages and/or texts, simple rhythmic patterns, and incorporated “emptiness,” a
simple linear structure of traditional Korean culture into her music. However, an in-depth study
of her three recent works not only shows Woo’s interest in minimalism but also her consistent
use of diverse tempos, dynamics, and visual effects in various settings. These aspects can give

105
the audience a feeling of continuity, unity, and diversity throughout the work and make her
compositions unique and accessible.
In addition to her endeavor to include innovative ideas, Woo’s unique style of blending
traditional Korean elements into a global statement was clearly shown in her works. Woo’s
experimental work on the well-known biblical text of Genesis 1, Creo, included both traditional
Korean Court vocal music, Jung-gah, and the Western style of four-part choral singing. Also,
several traditional Korean instruments were simultaneously used with Western orchestral
instruments in both traditional Korean modes and Western scales. Woo’s use of traditional
Korean embellishment “Sigimsae” in Creo (and also in Requiem Aeternam) was subtle but added
sufficient nuance and unique color to the linear melodies. While she used the Latin text from the
Roman Catholic Mass for the Dead, Missa pro defunctis, and the mourning pedal tone with a
cello in Requiem Aeternam, the traditional Korean mode with its unique linear structures was
also used.
Through a study of her three recent works and her life, it becomes clear that Woo has
constantly sought and tried new ideas not only for the performer’s perspectives but also for the
audience’s. Her endeavors have been accomplished, and she has made a great contribution to
Korean choral music. It is the author’s hope that Woo’s catalogue will be explored and
performed by choral directors in the United States and all over the world.

106
Bibliography

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Chang, Sahun. Gukak-Chongron: Introduction of Korean traditional music. Seoul: Seakwang
Press, 1985.

Chang, Yoonchung. “Korean Traditional Elements and Contemporary Compositional
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Hong, Jung Soo. “Book Review/ Term / Guidance: Concept of Musical Term ‘Sigimsae.’”
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Kim, Cheong Mook. “The Melodic Structure of Sujecheon.” Yonsei Music Research 2, 1992.

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Kim, Youngmin. Concert Program Note. “Mystery to Illumination.” University of Michigan.
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Lee, Eun-Jin. “The Standardized Femininity reflected in the Yuhaenga of 1930’s: A Musical
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the emptiness.” Journal Korea Society of Visual Design Forum 16, 2007.

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Rogers, Eugene. “Program Notes,” The Fishermen’s Song by Hyo-Won Woo,
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conductor of my life. Seoul: Duranno, 2012.

_____. U-M Chamber Choir Premieres “Requiem Aeternam” by Hyo-Won Woo, October 19,
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Appendix A
List of Choral Works
* Korean titles have been translated, compiled, and listed alphabetically.
An italicized title indicated that the work is written in either Latin, English, or foreign languages
other than Korean.

Church Anthems
A Blessing
A Risen Savior
Amazing Grace
Come Back, come back
Come, Holy Spirit
Dear Friends
Emmanuel, Praise the Lord
Give Thanks to God
Glorious is the name of the Lord
Glory, Honor, and Praise
Glory to the Lord
Go Down Moses
God is..
God is Great
Hallelujah, Give Thanks to God
Hallelujah, My Jesus
Hallelujah, Raise your Voice
Have Thine Own Way, Lord
He is…
His Love has come to Me
Hosanna, King of Kings
Hover over Me, Holy Spirit
I will send Israel
I will Walk to the Lord
In the Garden of Gethsemane
Jesus, My Joy
Jesus, the Amazing Name
Jesus Loves Me More Than Anything Else
Lord is my Friend
Love
O, Lord is my Refuge
Psalm 96
Psalm 150
Perfect Love
Praise the Lord, all the earth

109
Praise the Lord, my Hope
Sing Joyfully Hallelujah
Sing to the Lord a New Song
The Battle of Jericho and Joshua
The Glorious Day
The House of God
The Light
The Lord Bless You and Keep You
To the Hills I lift Mine Eyes
Until We Meet Again
When He comes to my Heart
When His Love Shines
You, of the Lord

Songs for SATB Choir

Ah! Dae-Han-Min-Kuk (South Korea): Gun, Gon, Gam, Ri
Dae-Han-Min-Kuk Fantasy
Adoramuste
Alleluia
Cheo Yong
Choral Pansori, Su-Gung-Ga
Creo
Di Profundis
Ga-Si-Ri
Gloria
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Qui tollis peccata mundi
Cum Sancto Spiritu
Haec Dies
He is (Easter Cantata)
Hodie Christus Natus est
Jung Gwa Jung
Me-Na-Ri
Magnificat
Mo-Li-Hua
Moses (Oratorio)
Oh Incheon
O Magnum Mysterium
Pal-So-Seong
Requiem Aeternam
Te Deum
The Fishermen’s Song
Vocussion

110

Songs for Treble Choir/Children’s Choir

African Songs
African Dance
Cum-ba-ya
African Song
Aladdin Songs
Arabian Nights
I am Aladdin
The Genie in the Lamp
Magic Carpet Ride
Animal Farm
Arirang
Baby Tree
Beautiful Harmony
Besame Mucho
Bukcheong Lion Dance
Computer
Fart
Gang-Gang-Sullae (Korean traditional group dance)
Good Harvest Song
Go-San-Chung
Hae-Geum Arirang (Korean traditional instrument-fiddle like)
Hide-and-Seek
Into the Fairytale
Kwaejina Chingching Nane (Korean farmer’s cheering song)
Let’s move in Rhythm
Let’s Play
Lullaby
Missa Brevis
Mo-Li-Hua
Monkeys have red hips
Music School 4 Songs
Music School
Melody and Harmony
Tempo Rubato
Dynamic: forte and piano
New Moon
Play with Rhythm: My Favorite Thing
Requiem Aeternam
Song of Trees
The Way Together
Think about it
Underwater Story 1, 2, 3
Su-Gung-Ga

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Byeol Juboo and Rabbit
Rabbit’s Liver
We Are the World

Choral Arrangements for SATB Choir

Arirang
Donkey (SATB)
For the Name of Love
Four Arrangements of Songs by Chang-Sik Song
A Day of Sparrow
A Lady at the Smoke Shop
We are
Why did you call me?
Four Arrangements of Korean Lied
As Spring Comes Across the River
Pollack
Snow
Shyness
Hey Mom and Sister!
Never Ending Story
Maru ro Sankaku no Uta (Japanese)
Third Daughter of the Noble Choi’s

112
Appendix B
The Fishermen’s Song
Text in Korean, English Translation, and IPA

Text in Korean (written in English pronunciation), IPA
Translation

Sound of waves
츄, 촤, 차 (choo, chwa, cha) [tʃu tʃwa tʃa]

Sound of fishermen casting and hauling nets
어, 허, 야 (uh huh yah) [ɔ hɔ jɔ]

어허, 어햐, 허 디여라 (uh-huh, uh-yah, huh, di-yuh-ra!) [ɔ hɔ ɔ ja hɔ di jɔ ra]

허어, 어기영 차! (huh-uh, uh-ghi-yah cha!) [hɔ ɔ ɔ gi jɔŋ tʃa]

어기영차, 어기야 (uh-ghi-young-cha, uh-ghi-yah) [ɔ gi jɔŋ tʃa ɔ gi ja]

Ship captains solo text

해가 뜨고 달이 뜨고 (hae-gah du-go da-ri du-go) [hɛ ga də go da ri də go]
The Sun rises here, the Moon rises there

수로 천리 멀다 해도 (sooro chulli meol-da hae-do) [su ro tʃɔl ri mɔl da hɛ do]
‘tis a long journey over the water

이 바다를 건너며는 (i-bah-dah-rul gunnuh-myeo-nun) [i ba da rəl gɔn nɔ mjɔ nən]
Once we’ve crossed over this ocean

고기 바탕이 나온다네 (gogi bah-tahng-I nah-ohn-dah-neh) [go gi ba taŋ i na on da ne]
Fish will swim and swarm all together

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어기영차, 배저어라 (uh-ghi-young-cha, bae-juh-uh-rah) [ɔ gi jɔŋ tʃa bɛ dʒɔ ɔ ra]
Row! Men, row your oars!

저 바다를 건너며는 (juh-bah-dah-rul gunnuh0myeo-nun) [dʒɔ ba da rəl gɔn nɔ mjɔ nən]
Once we’ve crossed over that ocean

어, 야, 하, 어야 (uh, yah, hah, ugh-yah) [ɔ ja ha ɔ ja]

둠 두 두 둠 (doom doo doo doom) [dum du du dum]

어야 디야 (uh-yah di-yah) [ɔ ja di ja]

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Appendix C
Hyo-Won Woo Interview Transcript

June 29, 2018

This interview was conducted in Korean and translated into English.

LEE: How did you start studying music?

WOO: Oh, did I not tell you about this? As you may have already heard my parents were
very artistically talented. My mother was a pianist and my father was a painter. And my mother
taught piano at home. I can say literally I grew up in music and never thought my career would
be in music. The funny thing is that when I was little, I took painting classes. Probably until
freshman year in high school. I was professionally trained in fine arts. My dream was to be a
fashion designer. However, in my freshman year, I was in a difficult situation to pursue my
dream in fine arts. So when I was looking for different ideas, music was the first thing that came
to mind. And my father was a big influence as he strongly recommended that I should do
something creative. I was able to play the piano that time, and for me, the most creative path in
music was to compose. That’s how I got into college with a composition major.

LEE: Wow, I also heard this but I did not know you wanted to be become a fashion
designer! That is why you are so fashionable.

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WOO: Thank you, and yes. I believe there must be a connection between my dreams of
being a fashion designer and the way I see my composition as a whole art. I am very visual. I
always want to engage my works visually with a sense of space.

LEE: That totally makes sense! I read that your music was performed for the Cho-Sun
Newspaper New Artist Concert Series upon your graduation. Do you recall which piece it was?

WOO: I think it was called Two Pianos and Percussion. That was my graduating project.
I loved and still love percussion instruments! You have often seen my compositions with
percussions. While I was in college, I liked the music of Bartok and Stravinsky. I was interested
in their nationalistic style. I was also influenced by their interest on folk music and the use of
percussions as well.

LEE: Around that time, you met conductor Hak-Won Yoon.

WOO: Yes, during my college years, I was a member of his church choir. The Young
Nak Presbyterian Church Zion Choir. He knew I studied composition. One day he wanted to see
my music and wanted to perform with his church choir as he was very open to new works. In
fact, he was looking for new compositions. That was how our collaboration started.

LEE: Then you became the first residence composer with the Incheon City Chorale. I
know it was a full-time position. What was it like working with one designated choir?

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WOO: I was very fortunate to have met Hak Won Yoon. He was constantly seeking new
ideas. He truly believed the most important part of a performance was to choose the right
repertoire. As soon as he accepted the position of music director at the Incheon City Chorale, he
requested to have a full time residence-composer for the chorale. So I became their first
composer-in-residence. Since then, we worked closely together from the sketch of each project.
His vision for the choir was very clear. He wanted to perform music that was very Korean-styled
but modernized, yet globally recognizable. I believed the most important task of being
composer-in-residence was that you should be able to find the best color and sound for the choir
and write music to maximize their strengths. That ultimately led the Incheon City Chorale to the
ACDA National Convention. We tried to appeal Korean music of choral arts to the world.
Originally I wrote Me-Na-Ri as a fourteen minutes long piece, however the extreme restriction of
the performance duration of the convention, I edited to a shorter version to nine minutes. That
was my first composition in spatial music. I always wanted to use the whole space and the
audience not only to hear but to feel the performance throughout.

LEE: Ms. Woo, thank you for your time to talk to me about your life and journey! I am
looking forward to studying your composition in depth.

WOO: It was nice to chat with you. Talk to you soon.

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Appendix D

Hyo-Won Woo Interview Transcript

July 20, 2019

This interview was conducted in Korean and translated into English.

LEE: Let’s start discussing Creo. It was written in 2012 for the Incheon City Chorale.

WOO: It took a while to find the right text for each movement. Genesis 1 is just a very
famous biblical chapter that most people know. I was fortunate to have an uncle who is a pastor
and also a scholar of the Latin bible. He helped me understand the Latin language in Genesis 1
and we spent so many months to choose the right words and concepts for each movement. The
text for each movement was carefully chosen. I tried to incorporate traditional Korean elements
in Creo. For example, traditional Korean pentatonic scales, Pyeongjo and Gyemyeonjo, and the
rhythmic patterns, jang-dan, were used but not exactly the original forms. The Korean elements I
used in Creo were derived from those elements not quoted strictly. The basic foundation was
from traditional Korean elements, however I delivered them in Western styled musical language.
I would like to talk about the singing of Jung-gah. Jung-gah is an aristocratic musical style not
like Pansori. The vocalization of Jung-gah’s singing is similar to Bel Canto singing style using
the resonance. Also, all of the ornamentation is transcribed in Western notation however, as you
may know traditional Korean ornamentation uses somewhat different vocalization and styles.

LEE: Ah, is that why Jung-gah sings the ornaments differently on the performance video
footage than what is written on the music?

118
WOO: Absolutely. The ornamentation should not be too rhythmic but treated more like a
melodic gesture and style. I notated them for the guideline. Even for the choir, I put eight quarter
notes as a frame in two measures for a glissando. Those quarter notes guide to be together as a
group, not to be heard as a melodic function. Also, Sigimsae and different methods should be
introduced before performing this composition. For example, the Korean instrument daegeum
was encouraged to do their own ornamentation. And one of the most unique compositional
techniques I used with Jung-gah’s singing was the extensive melisma on one syllable. The Jung-
gah singer held one syllable for a long time (a couple of measures), which is not typically used in
Western music. That longer syllable is not necessarily an important or accented one. Therefore,
they are allowed to take a breath in the middle of the words.

LEE: In Creo, I found when you use the word “Deus” (God) differently. Some I felt
almighty, the other was a surprise, and also perfect.

WOO: I did not intend to plan each one individually, however, you will see I used the
word, Deus, in the context of that movement. It must have been dignifying and powerful as a
creator. It would be interesting to see how I used Deus in each movement.

LEE: There are several non-typical traditional Korean percussions along with a musical
saw. I found it very interesting.

WOO: They are all not standardized instruments. Their sounds are unexpected. You
wouldn’t know how long and how much the vibration will last. I wanted to use those sounds to

119
depict Chaos. Even the choir sounded somewhat undefined. The low C in basses were also added
to express the depth and the darkness.

LEE: That sound is rather low even for basses, I assume?

WOO: Well, we (the Incheon City chorale) had a few basses who were able to sing low
notes easily with rich overtones. I loved to use those sounds when I wrote music for them.
Throughout the music, I had so many new inspirations by talking to the instrumentalists and
singers. They suggested traditional performance practices with traditional Korean instruments,
showed different instruments for certain movements, and even confirmed a pyojubak that I used
for the sound of fish in the fifth movement was once, indeed, a musical instrument. I enjoy
communication with the musicians. That often gives me new ideas.

LEE: In the fourth movement, the use of a spelled-out C minor scale was very interesting.
Did you have any particular picture in your mind?

WOO: I depicted a prism using a cappella. I tried to illustrate the scene when a beam of
light comes in and spreads out as the creation began from nothing. That was the reason why I use
a cappella without any accompaniment. Now, it finally began God’s creation here in this
movement. So I wanted to start something different than the previous three movements which
used lots of traditional Korean elements.

LEE: I found that a few tempo markings did not have metronomic indications?

120

WOO: I tend to let the conductor express their own musical ideas and I worked with the
performers during rehearsals. You can listen to the premiere as a guide.

LEE: Is there anything you would like to talk about?

WOO: I tried to emphasize and express program music. For example, in Luminaria
movement, each word on the whole notes symbolizes a scene of a time-lapse photography to
depict the time, day, and year being created by the sun, moon and stars. And Piscis et Volatile
(Fish and Birds) movement was the last one I wrote. I have used various elements to depict each
scene and that movement was just so difficult to develop an idea. Therefore, I ended up using a
very obvious sound that represents fish and birds without any words. There was no other way to
describe this scene. Also, I would like to share that when I prepare for a premiere, I often find
new ideas after meeting and talking with the performers during the rehearsals. Once, the horn
player told me he owned a huge conch shell, so I was able to use it in Animal terra et home
movement. Something like these ideas through communication kept being added.

LEE: That sounds like this work includes many experimental attempts. What are you
working on these days?

WOO: I am working on the commissioned work for the National Chorus of Korea on the
Independence Day concert.

121
LEE: It is coming up very soon! Thank you so much for taking your time to talk with me
about Creo!

WOO: No problem! It was pleasure to speak with you too.

122
Appendix E
Hyo-Won Woo Interview Transcript
August 9, 2019
This interview was conducted in Korean and translated into English.

LEE: Can we talk about Requiem Aeternam? How did you come up with the text choice
of Requiem?

WOO: Well, I wrote it as a performance purpose as you can probably see. It is not the
whole prayer. I focused on the text of Lux Aeterna from Requiem. Therefore, Requiem Aeternam
constructs different movements than standard Requiem. I am planning to make it a larger work
including Agnus Dei and other movements.

LEE: So, this work has five movements and three of them are about light.

WOO: Yes. As I already mentioned, I focused on the text of Lux. Light. I wanted to pay
attention to light as a comfort and blessing. The literal meaning of requiem mass is known as
Mass for the dead. I wanted to focus an eternal light for everyone not just rest for the dead.

LEE: I recently watched that the National Chorus of Korea performed Requiem
Aeternam. However, it was much shorter than your original version.

123
WOO: Oh, that was because I modified it to eighteen minutes due to the length of the
concert. Sometimes, a twenty-five minute Requiem is a bit too long to program with other
repertoires for a concert. In addition to that, a double choir is required for the fifth movement,
which repeats previous movements. Without the fifth movement, this composition becomes more
accessible and easily programmable with other repertoires. Ultimately, I would love to see my
work performed more often. So this shorter version would serve that purposes well.

LEE: I see. How did you like the venue? The entire space of the museum was used very
well. It worked amazingly well for your work. However, when they perform in a concert hall, it
would have to be different. Correct?

WOO: It did! However, I would encourage directors to be creative with their
performance venue. It would be ideal to have a space in which voices resonate well but I believe
this composition will work in any venue. I wanted the soloists to walk around like the angels
from heaven. A scene of angels comforting the audience. A space design is a must for this
composition.

LEE: Ah, I cannot wait to perform this work in the future! Thank you again for your
time.

WOO: You are very welcome. Oh and I am currently finalizing a version of Requiem
Aeternam for a treble choir. The Gwacheon City Women’s Chorale performed this summer.

124
Appendix F
Jerry Blackstone Interview Transcript
August 14, 2019

LEE: So I understand that the Fishermen’s Song was for the bicentennial event. Was this
Requiem Aeternam a part of that or completely separate?

BLACKSTONE: The only piece I worked with her on was Requiem Aeternam. I believe
she wrote a piece for the Men’s Glee Club, and I think that’s The Fishermen's Song. And that
was part of the bicentennial. But Requiem was a different commission. And she was in residence
for about 2 years. We discussed her writing something and it just kind of prolonged. It turned out
to be a 25-minute music and it took some time, and by that time, she was headed back to
Korea. In the end, we did it in the fall of 2017.

LEE: Ah, how did you get to work with her? I know she was a visiting professor at the
University of Michigan but not with the school of music.

BLACKSTONE: In Ann Arbor, at the University of Michigan, there is a Korean Institute
called the Nam. So she was a guest of the Nam Institute and in residence with them. So she
really didn’t do much with the School of Music. Although, we became good friends and I asked
her to write something for us.

LEE: Did you choose the text of Requiem? Or was it solely Woo’s decision?

125

BLACKSTONE: It was Woo’s idea. And she only had a few texts from it. It was very
minimal and the music is also very minimal too. But the audience loved it. We performed it
twice. Actually we did in part of celebration for the university. The Sistine Chapel Choir from
Vatican was in Detroit and we performed a concert in Detroit. The sponsor of that concert said
we are going to hold this concert in St. Anne’s church, which is the oldest Catholic Church in
the city, dates back to the 1700’s. The sponsoring group said they wanted the University of
Michigan’s Chamber Choir to sing the same concert with the Sistine Chapel Choir. Father
Gabriel Richard of St. Anne Church was one of the founders of the University of Michigan and
Woo was writing Requiem for us at the same time. So it worked well together. We only did a
couple of movements of Requiem in that concert, which was very early in the year. Then, she
expanded it.

LEE: Oh, now it is more clear that how she has a shorter version without the fourth and
fifth movements. The National Chorus of Korea, which she currently is in residence, performed
the shorter version. It is more accessible and shorter. It probably helped her that she already had
experienced the shorter version with the Chamber Choir.

BLACKSTONE: Ah, yes! Then she added the cello solo. It was within a day or two
before the premiere. There were still things she wanted to change. She is a composer who
changes things often. She speaks to me frequently as well. It almost took a year to work together.
As we got closer to the year, we became more focused.

126
LEE: Can you tell me a little bit about the Chamber Choir?

BLACKSTONE: They are all music majors. About two thirds are graduate students and
the rest is undergraduates. They are all singers but there are a few organists, conductors, pianists
but mostly quite advanced singers. 90 percent of them are voice major students. The numbers
will usually be between thirty-six to forty members.

LEE: The performance venue, the Museum of Art was a beautiful place. Did Chamber
Choir often perform there and Woo knew this would be the performance venue before she wrote
the music?

BLACKSTONE: Yes, I think so. She was at one of our concerts in that venue as we
performed a concert there at least once a year. When we perform there, I choose a repertoire that
made use of very live acoustics. Her piece works perfectly there. And there are balconies
upstairs, down stairs, and they can go back and forth. It works great for Renaissance music.

LEE: Have you done a piece that required movements during performance, for example
separating the choirs?

BLACKSTONE: I have. However, I have not done a lot of walking amongst the
audience. She wanted to do that. That was her idea. It was fantastic! I heard so many responses
to the singers that were amongst the audience so that the audience felt they were part of it.

127
LEE: The audience loved it! Okay, when I looked at the score, there was no metronomic
tempo markings. She only marked something like Andante, Andantino, and Moderato. With
subtle differences, however, it seems all of the movements is connected.

BLACKSTONE: Yes, very much so. And I would ask her “is this what you imagined?”
The she might say maybe little faster or a little slower. She is fantastic to work with. She does
not impose her concepts on the conductors. She is fantastic to work with in that way. It was a
special concert because it was the very first concert of the year that was my last year at the
University of Michigan. I retired after the spring of 2018.

LEE: What was most challenging part of this composition? This composition has a lot of
repetitions.

BLACKSTONE: This music was not that difficult. But one of the things we found
challenging was the second movement, the Kyrie was the hardest to keep in tune. It had to do
with so many repetitions of that D in basses and cello doesn’t come in until m. 43. I was nervous
about that. But you can also cheat a little bit with that diminuendo Woo gave. By the way, the
cellist played so beautifully.

LEE: In Requiem Aeternam, there are some movements that is obvious Woo wants to
move to the next one without stopping while some movements have finished bar lines. However,
I realized the Chamber Choir almost did every movement without stopping the performance. Did
you feel the separation was not necessary? What do you think about those double bar lines?

128

BLACKSTONE: Yes, I felt in that way. In many ways, I felt like it is almost like one
long movement.

LEE: There are so many repetitions. Especially the word, Requiem and Domine were
repeated so many times. Do you feel each Domine somewhat differently from time to time?

BLACKSTONE: Absolutely, absolutely. I have written a couple of notes in my score, for
example, in m.33, I am pretty sure this came from Woo, I wrote a word “crying.” And in m. 45,
for the basses, Woo wanted to sound like a lament. She wanted to give more emotion here. The
pedal tone in the cello, like a heartbeat. Above that, there was wailing and sadness. In fact, the
entire music was in the pedal tone which often represent mourning.

LEE: Yes, and the cello. I felt like this is as if this was a cello concerto piece. So
beautifully written.

BLACKSTONE: It is also a soloist. It is a singing line without the words. It can be
“showy.” I talked to the cellist that we did a beautiful job of being very expressive but not overly
drawing attention to herself. It could be too much. That’s something to think about. Also, if you
are looking at the third movement, she has written a cello part which comes in colla parte in m.
47, but it was scratched out right before the performance. She is very fluid, which is wonderful.
Woo is very in the moment.

129

LEE: How did you feel about your performance?

BLACKSTONE: I thought the soloist felt too Western? A little too safe. I have heard
traditional Korean singing. Youngmin had played very famous traditional Korean singer’s
performance. I wanted to be little more that way. Especially grace notes. Also, I wanted to be
flexible with the dynamics and Woo was fine with that. For example, the pedal tone in the cello
part in the second movement (it marked in a soft dynamic throughout), I actually asked her to
play out more because the choir needed to be able to hear her more. It was low and pretty high,
not really high but pretty strong. She needed to play out more so we could continue to tune into
her.

LEE: How did you feel when the soloists walk around in different directions and you
were not able to have visual connections with them?

BLACKSTONE: It was tricky. But I said you all have to find a way to check in. And you
all have to find ways to make sure that you all stay in same tempo that we are in. That room was
very live. So they got too far away and it took a while for them to hear. So there were lots of
times, they didn’t sing with their back to the front too much I really encourage them to turn, see,
and listen, all of that when they are wandering around. Also, they pretty much memorize their
parts, so they could listen without looking down to music.

130
LEE: For the soloists, on the music it does not have any specific voice type indicated. So
was it your decision who sings which part?

BLACKSTONE: No, actually she wanted to have two men and two women. And I chose
two sopranos because I wanted to have lyric sounds and I knew I have two sopranos with that
voice. And I chose two tenors because I knew they would sound good together and once in a
while it was low for them, but the higher pitches (it goes up to F) would be easy for them. She
wanted to alternate man, woman, man, and woman. So I did the order of soprano, tenor, soprano,
and tenor. And for the last movement, there were four soloists, four small groups, a choir, and a
cellist. We needed to be in different positions. Oh, in fact, you may have realized on our
performance video, I think we did our performance without shoes so it can be quieter. The floor
was a tile floor.

LEE: In the fifth movement, there are four parts in choir 1 without any further indication.

BLACKSTONE: For choir 1, she wanted to have groups of soloists with men and women
on each of the line. I think it was always two men and one woman at each corner. Like in a box,
the four corners of the room. It was very beautiful, a beautiful effect. And everyone has to move
to their positions while the cello solo was played. That might have been the reason Woo put cello
solo in the last minute.

LEE: Did you have any surprises during the performance?

131
BLACKSTONE: No, I would say we did not have any surprises. Even though it doesn’t
look that hard on the pages, it was a long concentration. Twenty-five minutes. You really are
engaging the whole time. If we had more time and all of the singers had it memorized, it could
be even more theatrical, I think. There can be use of candles, more traditional dresses for
illusion, more stylized? It would be fantastic if they can memorize. Are you planning to perform
this composition?

LEE: I would love to do it in the future. Thank you so much for taking your time about
Woo’s music. I really appreciate it!

BLACKSTONE: You are welcome. Have a wonderful day.

Abstract (if available)

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Asset Metadata

Creator Lee, Yewon (author)

Core Title A conductor’s guide to select choral works composed by Hyo-Won Woo between 2012 and 2018

School Thornton School of Music

Degree Doctor of Musical Arts

Degree Program Choral Music

Publication Date 02/05/2020

Defense Date 02/05/2020

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Arirang,Hyo-Won Woo,Korean choral music,Korean music,OAI-PMH Harvest,South Korea,spacial music

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Grases, Cristian (committee chair), Scheibe, Jo-Michael (committee member), Sparks, Tram (committee member)

Creator Email emmadanlee@gmail.com,yewonlee98@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-265924

Unique identifier UC11673234

Identifier etd-LeeYewon-8149.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-265924 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-LeeYewon-8149.pdf

Dmrecord 265924

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Lee, Yewon

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA