Documentary

Brilliant A

The country’s traditional music did not consider pitch to be important, but the introduction of the piano made a huge impact on the local music scene and Koreans’ auditory perceptions.

The piano is an instrument without which it is impossible to imagine the musical world. But how did it first make its way from Western civilization to areas where it was traditionally unavailable, and what were the consequences? In her short film poem, the author becomes an archaeologist of sorts through evocative images of the piano amidst natural scenery and questions about the Korean adoption of the chamber note A, which is a tuning standard in music, as she uncovers historical, social, and cultural layers in relation to sound.