Arirang for solo guitar

a folk song from far away, but close to the heart

Arirang is a Korean traditional song. It is widely considered to be the unofficial Korean national anthem. It holds deep cultural and historical significance that cannot be overstated.

The song is hundreds of years old. The first known recording was made in 1896. During the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945, it was a criminal offense to sing patriotic songs, and Arirang thus became an unofficial resistance anthem. Today, it is a symbol of unity, expressing hope for a reunited Korean nation fractured by the Korean War. The song is included twice on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list, having been registered by both North and South Korea.

There are thousands of versions of Arirang with different lyrics, verses, and melodies. In most any version, the lyrics deal with themes of sorrow, separation, reunion, and love. Most versions open with the refrain “Arirang, arirang, arariyo”, which is a nonsensical phrase that does not have a precise meaning, let alone translation.

My version of Arirang is a theme and variations. It opens with a simple arrangement of the song with no alterations, and is followed by several variations in which different aspects of the music are changed and developed, gradually shifting further away from the original theme. It ends with the melody played unaccompanied as natural harmonics.

While visiting Seoul in the summer of 2023, I visited an acoustic guitar shop hoping to find myself a souvenir to take home. I tried a few handmade classical guitars from Korean luthiers, and when I played my version of Arirang, I was amazed at the way the shop workers lit up when they heard it. Perhaps they were somewhat surprised that a visiting American would be playing their folk music, but I could see it was more than that in the way they were talking to me afterward. The song clearly meant a lot to them.

I composed this variation set in 2016 as a gift for my girlfriend (and now wife), Teresa.

Two versions of the score are included: one in standard notation only, and one in standard notation with tablature.

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