“The question which remains to us is this: what is humanity? What do we have to do to keep humanity as one thing and not another?” -Han Kang (Human Acts)
In light of recent violent government crackdowns against protest movements in Iran and the US, our season theme - RESIST! The Sound of Defiance - has taken on a heightened urgency and relevance. On Friday 20. February at 19:00, our Interlude: Human Acts will be dedicated to the music of celebrated Korean composer Isang Yun and the literature of Nobel Prize-winning author Han Kang. We will be joined by philosopher and interdisciplinary artist Florian Goldberg, who will speak about the text of Kang’s novel Human Acts and its resonances with both Yun’s music and current events.
In Human Acts, Han Kang reflects on the Gwangju Uprising and Massacre of 1980 in South Korea, in which the military dictatorship at the time, with the approval of the US government, murdered thousands of protesters. Isang Yun also suffered under South Korean government repression. Suspected of communist associations, he was kidnapped from Berlin and detained and tortured as a political prisoner for two years.
This interdisciplinary event will blend Florian Goldberg’s spoken reflection on the text with performances of Yun’s music. Tonhain Kollektiv’s cellist Yehjin Chun will be joined by returning guest artists Tomoki Park, piano and Dayoon You, violin to perform Isang Yun’s Kontraste, Glissées, Piano Trio, and Interludium A.
There are only a few tickets remaining - we hope to see you at Tonhain next Friday for this thought-provoking exploration of literary and musical reflections on protest.