Overview
The National Gugak Center is South Korea's leading national arts institution that inherits traditional Korean performing arts. Through various performances, academic research, traditional Korean traditional music education, and overseas exchanges, it pursues Korean traditional music that connects with the people and presents Korean traditional Korean music on the global stage. The National Gugak Center traces its origins to the royal court music institutions that have been passed down since the Silla period. After the liberation on August 15, the court music institutions were disbanded, and after the dissolution of the Royal Music Department, they continued as the Old Wanggung Aakbu before becoming the National Gugak Center after 1951. The organization of the National Gugak Center was announced in 1950, but due to wartime, it opened in Busan in 1951. After restoration, it moved through the Unni-dong and Jangchung-dong government offices, and in 1987 moved to its current Seocho-dong building. As of 2010, it is an affiliated institution under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, consisting of the Korean Traditional Music Research Office, Planning and Management Division, Musical Music Division, Korean Traditional Music Promotion Division, and Stage Division, and operates four performance groups: the Jeongak Orchestra, Folk Orchestra, Dance Division, and Creative Orchestra.
