Cultural Origins of Drumming: Part 5 - Korean Salmunori

The word samul means "four objects" and nori means "play." Samulnori is based on the principle of "excitement and relaxation" and "harmony of music notes."

Introduction

What are the origins of drum circles? Drumming has deep cultural roots in many parts of the world. In our previous article, we discussed the African, Indigenous American, Chinese, and Japanese origins of drumming. This article will cover the Korean drumming tradition of Salmunori.

What is Salmunori?

When someone brings up drum circles or participates in one, a main question that comes up among many first-time participants is: “What are the origins of drum circles?” The fifth part in this series of cultural origins articles will discuss the Korean origins of drumming.

Samulnori (also spelled samul nori) is a genre of traditional percussion music originating in Korea. The word samul means “four objects” and nori means “play.”

Samulnori is based on the principle of "excitement and relaxation" and "harmony of music notes." When the rhythm gets slow, it becomes extremely slow. When the music reaches the end, it is much faster. Musicians perform samulnori with four traditional Korean musical instruments:

Kkwaenggwari – a small gong
Jing – a larger gong
Janggu – an hourglass-shaped drum
Buk – a barrel drum similar to a bass drum

The four instruments symbolize the thunder, wind, rain, and clouds.

Unlike Western percussion techniques, samulnori assigns different roles to the left and right hands. Musicians must strike the drum sideways rather than up and down, and they are trained to breathe in rhythm without stopping.

Samulnori performers are typically dressed in traditional colorful Korean clothing, hats, and shoes for their performances. This attire might also include blue, red, and yellow ribbons which represent the sky, earth, and people, respectively. However, modern salmunori groups often choose their own colors and styles to wear.

Image source

Historical Roots and Modern Evolution

Samulnori has its roots in Pungmulnori (literally “Korean traditional percussion instruments playing”), a Korean folk genre that involved music, acrobatics, folk dance, and rituals. Pungmulnori was traditionally performed in rice farming villages to ensure and to celebrate good harvests.

Samulnori music draws from several regional traditions, including:

Utdari Pungmul – a rhythm used in shaman ceremonies from the Gyeonggi-do and Chungcheong provinces
Yeongnam folk music
Honam Udo Gut traditions

These elements are blended with modern improvisations and compositions.

Samulnori performances used to be held only outdoors. However, indoor performances began in 1978. The dancing that is part of salmunori was also simplified for indoor performances. In the present day, some musicians even added electronic music to the intense beats and melodies of Samulnori.

Salmunori’s changes from its past outdoor, folk genre roots to its more modern contemporary improvisations also includes implementing ways to keep the tradition alive through people hosting their own Salmunori music groups. A well-known group is NORI, which was founded in 2007 and has performed at several events, including:

The reopening of the Korean Exhibit Hall at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (2009)
A cultural event in Costa Rica (March 2016)
A performance at the Korean Cultural Center in Los Angeles (December 2016)

Watch a Samulnori Performance

Published April 17, 2025

Sources

About the Author

Claris Lam

Claris is passionate about making grand ideas accessible to a wider audience. She has written articles about emerging environmental technology and research, lifestyle, studying, and career advice, and anime and manga for several organizations including Sustainable Waterloo Region (SWR), TalentEgg, and Comic Book Resources (CBR). When she’s not writing informative articles, you can find her playing the piano, pipe organ or violin, writing new fiction and poetry books as an indie author and poet, or reading.

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April 17, 2025

Written by: Claris Lam