“Fusion” and Questions of Korean Cultural Identity in Music

The notion of cultural purity is demonstrably a myth, as historical analysis of any cultural expression can reveal multiple origins and hybridities that inevitably result from human contact. Yet in Korea, as elsewhere, some cultural forms are recognized as “pure” and “authentic,” celebrated as invaluable assets, to be preserved from foreign mixture. Korean fusion music, a broad category of musical practices, mixing unambiguously Korean elements with foreign elements, is an important response to the unsettled cultural terrain of contemporary Korea. This article explores aspects of contemporary Korean cultural identity and its discourses in music, arguing that fusion music is an important site in the creative struggle for the future of “Korean music.”