Origins
According to "Akji" (악지, 樂志), two books from "Goryeosa" (고려사 高麗史) which describe the music of Goryeo dynasty, mugo originated from a government officer, Lee Hon (hangul:이혼, Hanja:李混) during the reign of King Chungnyeol (reign. 1274 – 1308). While being exiled to Yonghae (영해, 寧海), a coastal region in North Gyeongsang Province, Lee Hon one day made a large drum of a log raft and played it while dancing. Later this dance was transmitted to the Joseon dynasty and was performed at various events of the Korean palaces and local government offices.
There has always been changes in the performance of "Mugo" per each time period since the Goryeo dynasty. The performance was played by Gisaeng who was hitting the drum and singing the song of Jeongeupsa (정읍사 井邑詞). As the number of drums changes, the number of Gisaeng also changes. Depending on the number of drums, the name also changed to two-drum dance, four-drum dance and eight-drum dance.
Read more about this topic: Mugo
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