[Hallyupedia] Daechwita (대취타)

by Ra Hwak Jin / An Hayeon

[ENG] Korean traditional large-scale military band music
 

▲ This photo shows a performance of Daechwita. (Yonhap)

Daechwita is a Korean traditional large-scale military band music. Daechwita is a combination of Dae, which means large, and Chwita, which refers to the simultaneous playing of wind and percussion instruments.

According to the Cultural Heritage Administration of South Korea, Daechwita refers to a large-scale performance of chwita and seak (traditional ensemble music played with instruments with small sound volume suited to an indoor event) to announce the presence of the King or for a parade of troops.

Chwita appears in murals dating from Goguryeo (circa 37 BC - 668 AD) and in records about Baekje (18 BC - 660 AD), which informs that it was performed during the Three Kingdoms Period. Chigakgun (a military band), which originated in the Goryeo Period (877 - 1394), continued into the Joseon Period (1392 - 1910). Seak came to be included in the military band repertoire in the mid-Joseon Period.

The military band playing chwita and seak wore a yellow uniform with a blue band hung across the chest and a straw hat. They played jing (large gong), janggo (hourglass-shaped drum), buk (drums), nabal (trumpets), sora (conch horns), and taepyeongso (conical wooden oboe). Among them, Taepyeongso is the only instrument that plays the melody.

According to the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, other than a performer, Daechwita consists of a leader who marks the beginning and end.

When the leader holds the baton high above his head and shouts out "Myeonggeumilha Daechwita," jing and buk start, and they are followed by the other players. Their performance gives a feeling of being brave, resonant, and magnificent.

Daechwita was designated as National Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 46 in 1971 and was renamed as 'Piri Jeongak and Daechwita' (Classical Piri Solo and Military Band Music) in 1998.

▲ This image, provided by Big Hit Music, shows BTS Suga's "Daechwita." (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

◇ BTS Suga’s "Daechwita"

BTS Suga released his second mixtape "D-2" under the name "Agust D" on May 22, 2020, making the title song "Daechwita."

The song starts with the phrase "Myeonggeumilha Daechwita" like traditional music Daechwita, and Suga's powerful rapping harmonizes with the music sampled with Daechwita to create a unique atmosphere.

World music columnist Hwang Woo-chang interpreted, "The traditional music 'Daechwita' ends the song by shouting 'Heonhwageum’ (translation: stop music) at the end of the performance, and Suga's song doesn’t seem to include it intentionally.”

Suga's "Daechwita" ranked No. 76 on the Billboard main single chart Hot 100, ten days after its release, and "D-2" ranked No. 11 on the main album chart Billboard 200, making Suga the first Korean solo singer to enter both charts at the same time.

The song is still popular with 170 million streaming on the music platform Spotify on February 19, 2022 (KST).

The music video of Daechwita surpassed 100 million views on YouTube on July 4, 2020, 40 days after its release, and is recording 343.47 million views as of 10:40 a.m. on February 19, 2022. This is the highest number of views among music videos released by Suga under the name Agust D.

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