“Corona Blue” – The More Tragic, The More Beautiful
Written by Jeong Jiyeon.
The coronavirus outbreak that once seemed like it might end soon has continued for four months. It has gotten to the point where it feels weird to not be wearing a mask – something that used to feel uncomfortable. In spring, I want to enjoy the warm weather and the flowers in full bloom while going to festivals and watching performances as was usual, but in this situation that is getting worse all around the world, just about everyone feels that this would not be proper, including myself.
In this situation, which has affected nearly every field of endeavor, the striking response by the art world is noteworthy. In March, pianist Valentina Lisitsa held a recital as scheduled, and the audience enjoyed the show in accordance with the rules of social distancing. In addition, not only the entire audience but the pianist herself performed wearing a mask.
To take another example, in MBC’s entertainment program “Hangout with Yoo” (놀면 뭐하니?), a music concert that was previously intended to be performed in front of a live audience was recorded as an unattended performance and later broadcasted on TV. Creators of the show received great praise from the public, calling it a change in broadcasting trends appropriate for the current situation.
In addition, the performing arts group Seoul Performing Arts Company provided a live broadcast of popular works, while the classical music label Deutsch Grammophon broadcast a live performance of world-famous pianists such as Seong-jin Cho, Evgeny Kissin, and Danil Triponov in celebration of World Piano Day on March 28. I am grateful for these efforts made by musicians and the art world to raise people’s spirits with music in today’s unfavorable circumstances. Also, it seems to suit the humor of our nation (haehak, 해학), where the more difficult a situation is, the more we smile.
The current pandemic, which no one had expected, makes us depart from ordinary life. One might think that everything is running smoothly and maintaining a calm appearance thanks to the government and the medical field’s efforts. But sometimes this appearance of smooth sailing obscures the people who have experienced the stress caused by the coronavirus, including those who have lost family members and friends, students studying abroad who have had to return to Korea due to scheduling chaos, young people who have had to wait endlessly for employment notices, and the people who have lost their jobs due to the cancellation of events. The neologism “corona blue” represents these psycho-emotional situations. That is why the art industry has endeavored, even in these adverse circumstances, to reach audiences who may not even be aware of the emotions caused by “corona blue.”
Some may say that art and music are meaningless in disaster situations like this.But there is pain in art, and there is art in pain. When people look back on their lives, some realize that there were more painful and difficult things than joyful and happy ones, and artistic pieces remain like wounds of glory, containing all the difficulties of life. Through the general feelings of every human being, we are comforted by pain, and gain the strength to live each day. In short, art and pain are coexistent. I hope that one day soon we will overcome this darkness and regain our precious, ordinary lives.
THE AUTHOR
Jeong Jiyeon studied piano in university and now is working as a coordinator at the GIC. She spends her free time in bed with her best friends Netflix and Youtube.