"Samdongdong Shoulder Dance" with Distinctive Dance Rhythm

“Samdongdong Shoulder Dance” is a folk dance created and widely danced in the people’s lives in Songchon area of Phyongan Province. This area is well known for its many famous specialities such as Songchon Tobacco and Songchon Chestnut and many other cheerful dances such as “Samdongdong Shoulder Dance” and “Songchon Weaving Dance”.

“Samdongdong Shoulder Dance” was found out in villages in the Piryu River basin. Dancing was performed at the scenes of merrymaking praying the successful agricultural labour in the folk holiday, or at the religious ceremonies including a ritual praying for rain.

The dance tunes played at the dancing parties of folk plays are more exciting because they reflect not only the agricultural working life but also the emotion of affection and mundane life of young people who are cultivating this land in succession to their parents. What is characteristic of the dancing place is the dance movements performed by moving the wrists, elbows and shoulders in sequence.

Samdongdong is also called from the dance movements that emphasize the rhythm by the triplicate movement of the arms. Movements of an arm are performed by moving both arms simultaneously, or one by one alternately, and by standing face to face, or standing back to back, or making one rotation.