Lack of musicality? Explaining anomalies in some senior Korean Christians’ hymn singing

This article launches an inquiry into the ways in which some senior Korean Christians sing Protestant hymns at a Korean church in Cleveland, OH. The majority of the church members sing hymns as they are written; several older members (aged 65 or over) born in rural Korea, however, systematically transform them. The older singers tend to turn any diatonic hymn into a pentatonic melody, lowering <i>fa</i> down to <i>mi</i> and pulling <i>ti</i> up to <i>do</i>. Drawing on a variety of disciplines such as music theory, psychology, ethnography, and cultural history, I propose categorical perception as a key to understanding melodic transformation. Even though the piano accompanist at the church—who is rigidly Western music oriented—criticizes the older singers for their lack of musicality, numerous psychological studies suggest that the older Korean singers transform the hymns, precisely because they are musically trained, albeit in regional Korean folk singing practices. My fieldwork at the Annual Hymn Competition and my interview with the preacher of the church reinforce the idea that categorical perception is not only existent but also strongly cultural.

本文针对美国俄亥俄州克利夫兰市一座韩裔教堂中，部分年长韩裔基督徒演唱新教圣诗的具体方式展开研究。绝大多数教众均按照圣诗的原作乐谱进行演唱；然而数位出生于韩国农村、年龄在65岁及以上的年长教众，却会系统性地对圣诗旋律进行改编。这些年长演唱者倾向于将所有自然音阶的圣诗改编为五声音阶旋律，将fa音降低至mi音，并将ti音升高至do音。本文借鉴音乐理论、心理学、民族志与文化史等多学科视角，提出类别知觉（categorical perception）是理解这类旋律改编行为的核心关键。尽管该教堂的钢琴伴奏师严格秉持西方音乐审美取向，批评年长演唱者缺乏音乐素养，但大量心理学研究表明，这些韩裔年长演唱者之所以会改编圣诗，恰恰是因为他们曾接受过韩国本土民间歌唱训练，具备相应的音乐功底。我在年度圣诗大赛的田野调查，以及与该教堂牧师的访谈，进一步佐证了类别知觉不仅真实存在，且具有强烈的文化属性。