Discover the Future of Pansori: 5 Young Talents Selected for 2026 Jeonju World Sound Festival

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[Inews24 reporter Park Jong-su] The Jeonju International Sori Festival (organizing chair Choi Cheol), known as the Sori Festival, has selected five next-generation pansori singers for its 2026 program, Young Pansori — The Five Works.

The selected performers are So Jang (Sugungga; born 1998 in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province), Choi Kwang-gyun (Heungboga; born 1991 in Namwon, North Jeolla Province), Lee Su-hyun (Chunhyangga; born 2000 in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province), Go Han-dol (Jeokbyeokga; born 2001 in Gongju, South Chungcheong Province), and Park Si-bon (Simcheongga; born 2001 in Seoul). Each represents one of pansori’s five canonical works.

Notably, artists from North Jeolla Province were chosen for the Sugungga and Heungboga slots, underscoring the region’s ongoing strength in traditional music and its capacity to pass that heritage on.

Young Pansori — The Five Works is the festival’s flagship program, giving young singers a stage to carry on pansori traditions while bringing new perspectives to the form. This year the festival renamed the program from Cheongchun Yechan Young Pansori to a more direct title to clarify its purpose.

Since the initiative began in 2012, it has served as a launching pad for emerging pansori talent over the past 15 years, introducing artists such as Yu Tae-pyeong, Kim Yul-hee, Jung Yoon-hyung, Min Eun-kyung and Kim Ju-ri.

During the festival, each of the five performers will present roughly 60-minute repertoire programs, with commentary to help both newcomers and longtime fans appreciate the works.

The festival will support the selected artists with staging, sound and publicity so they can deliver polished performances.

Kim Jung-soo, executive committee chair of the Sori Festival, said, “The performers chosen for Young Pansori — The Five Works faithfully continue the traditions of each piece while showing the potential to add their own interpretations and individuality. I expect the program will give audiences a fresh sense of pansori’s depth and charm, and provide the singers with a valuable stage for growth.”

Meanwhile, the festival is accepting applications through the 26th for Sori NEXT — Sori Frontier, a program that supports next-generation music creators from discovery and development to distribution.