On March 29th, Gyeongsangbuk-do province was finally selected for the 2020 music creation center, the Music Station project by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST). Accordingly, Gyeongsangbuk-do will invest 2.5 billion won to open the lab at the Seorabal Cultural Center in Gyeongju.

           The MCST chose Gyeongsangbuk-do because it is the birthplace of Gukak, Korean classical music, and it also had the first government office in charge of music in the Silla period. In addition, the abundance of music performances and infrastructure contributed to this selection. The center will support local musicians by offering proper infrastructure and programs. Not only that, it will discover new talented musicians. Specifically, the Music Station plans to create a recording room and recording space, and an environment where live recording, editing and transmission can be made in conjunction with the concert hall.

           Gyeongsangbuk-do plans to work with Gyeongju and other cities to run programs such as local band auditions and creative music festivals to discover and nurture musicians. In addition, Gyeongsangbuk-do will create the music industry environment where music contents can reach performance. In particular, the Music Station will provide maximum support from the perspective of the musicians by flexibly adjusting the operating hours so that musicians who use the Music Station can work regardless of time. The Music Station will also prop up the musicians by signing an agreement with nearby hotels to provide residency programs at a low cost. Moreover, Gyeongsangbuk-do will work with the K-Pop Museum and Gyeongju Smart Media Center to maximize synergy.

           An anonymous government official in Gyeonsangbuk-do said, "When the Music Station opens this year, we believe it will play a major role in discovering talented new musicians through the connection with musicians in Gyeonsangbuk-do such as Hwang Chi-Yeol, Kim Tae-Woo and Young-Tak. We also expect that various support related to recording, performing and releasing will help local musicians create their own creative activities. In addition, various performances and educational programs are planned, which are expected to play a big role in the cultural enjoyment of the residents."

By Jeong Moon-Ju, Desk Editor

jjmoonju@pusan.ac.kr