Global Economic Times

A Cultural Feast Connecting Samcheok and Seoul: Selected for the '2025 Inter-Regional Excellent Culture and Arts Exchange Cooperation Project': HONG MOON HWA Senior Reporter / Updated : 2025-06-02 10:49:05

The Samcheok Tourism and Culture Foundation (Chairman Park Sang-soo) has been ultimately selected for the '2025 Inter-Regional Excellent Culture and Arts Exchange Cooperation Project,' hosted by the Korea Federation of Regional Cultural Foundations and supported by national subsidies. This marks a significant step towards the balanced development of local culture and arts. The purpose of this project is to build a win-win cooperation model by connecting and exchanging cultural and artistic resources from different regions, ultimately promoting the balanced development of regional culture.

The core of this project is a classical music-based cultural and artistic exchange project planned by the Samcheok Tourism and Culture Foundation in cooperation with the Eunpyeong Cultural Foundation in Seoul. At its center is the convergence performance titled "Baroque Music, A Journey to the City." This performance features a unique concept of "time travel," journeying through major European cities where Baroque masters such as Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, Antonio Vivaldi, and Jean-Philippe Rameau were active, all through music.

"Baroque Music, A Journey to the City" is more than just a concert; it is structured to allow the audience to experience music and the era in a multi-dimensional way by organically combining music history, cultural experiences, and performing arts. The music drama format, based on storytelling with actors providing explanations about each city, composer, and work, is expected to significantly enhance audience understanding and immersion. Furthermore, representative works by Handel, Bach, Vivaldi, and Rameau will be reproduced with period instruments and performance styles (original instrument performance) to vividly convey the atmosphere of the Baroque era. Video backgrounds reflecting the atmosphere of each city, such as the London court, Paris salons, Venetian canals, and Leipzig churches, along with performers and dancers in Baroque costumes, will add visual richness and a sense of the era, offering a special experience to the audience.

The Samcheok Tourism and Culture Foundation has been efficiently promoting Samcheok's beautiful tourism resources and brilliant cultural assets, and has been pushing various projects to revitalize the local culture. Through programs such as "Everywhere Popular Music Concert" and "Culture Delivery to Every Corner," it has expanded cultural enjoyment opportunities for local residents and has focused on marketing Samcheok's tourism brand. The collaborating institution, the Eunpyeong Cultural Foundation, has carried out various projects to revitalize daily life culture, including ensuring residents' right to enjoy culture and fostering a self-sustaining cultural ecosystem based on local artists and spaces.

The Korea Federation of Regional Cultural Foundations, the host organization of the '2025 Inter-Regional Excellent Culture and Arts Exchange Cooperation Project,' is an association of regional wide-area and basic cultural foundations. It promotes solidarity and cooperative projects for regional cultural promotion, resolves cultural disparities between regions, and acts as a communication channel with the central government, playing an important role in balanced cultural development.

In particular, this performance is attracting more attention as it is scheduled to be held at the Isabu Dokdo Memorial Hall in Samcheok this coming July. The Isabu Dokdo Memorial Hall is a space dedicated to commemorating the pioneering spirit of General Isabu of the Silla Dynasty on Ulleungdo and Dokdo, and it is a symbolic place that embodies Samcheok's historical significance. This memorial hall has established itself as a special place where visitors can experience the harmony of history and nature through exhibitions and experiential programs related to Isabu and Dokdo. The fact that excellent cultural and artistic content from the Seoul metropolitan area will be presented in the Gangwon region holds great significance, going beyond mere cultural exchange to present a new model for resolving cultural disparities and promoting win-win cooperation between regions.

An official from the foundation stated, "This exchange project will be an important opportunity to both resolve cultural disparities between regions and expand cultural enjoyment opportunities through classical music." They added, "Through cooperation with the Eunpyeong Cultural Foundation, we also plan to further strengthen the inter-regional art network." The collaboration between the Samcheok Tourism and Culture Foundation and the Eunpyeong Cultural Foundation is expected to contribute to the revitalization of local culture and arts, provide citizens with opportunities to enjoy high-quality culture, and serve as an exemplary case of nationwide cultural and artistic win-win exchange.

Further details can be found by contacting the Samcheok Tourism and Culture Foundation Content Operation Team at 033-575-8206 or by checking the announcements on the foundation's website (www.stcf.or.kr).