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Music Brings Us Back to Busan Port… Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum to Host 2026 Gwangbok Record Fair

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The Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum will host the 2026 Gwangbok Record Fair on the first floor of its annex from October 9 to 10.

Now in its third year, the Gwangbok Record Fair is a signature program of the museum’s annex that draws on the cultural identity of Gwangbok-dong and the surrounding old downtown area of Busan, once a center of Korean popular culture.

This year, marking the 150th anniversary of the opening of Busan Port, the event will focus on exploring Busan’s local identity and modern and contemporary history through popular music that has evolved against the backdrop of the city’s sea and port.

A variety of programs centered on Busan’s maritime music will be presented, including lectures, performances, DJ sessions, and music listening events.

On the first day, October 9, the Mua Music Listening Room and the Cho Yong-pil Collection will be presented.

The Mua Music Listening Room, beginning at 1 p.m., will revisit the heyday of Mua, a music listening room in Busan’s old downtown area that gained nationwide fame in the 1970s and 1980s. Choi In-rak, a former DJ at Mua, will host the program under the theme “Music from Across the Sea,” introducing a variety of music that entered Korea through Busan Port.

At 7 p.m., the Cho Yong-pil Collection will feature some of the singer’s best-known songs, including “Come Back to Busan Port,” a song set against the backdrop of Busan Port and regarded as an early example of Korean trot rock in the late 1970s. Bassist Noh Sun-taek will provide commentary on the many stories behind the music.

On the second day, October 10, the event will feature DJ sessions, a guided music listening program, a listening lecture, and performances.

The Vinyl DJ Sessions, in which professional DJs discover and introduce lesser-known popular music, will be led by Midas Beats at 1 p.m. and Tiger Disco at 3 p.m.

At 2 p.m., “Busan Port Remix” will introduce rare records and other music related to Busan Port. Editor and writer Jung Woo-young will lead the program as a guided listening session with commentary.

At 4 p.m., a listening lecture will be held to provide deeper insight into this year’s theme. Popular music critic Lee Dong-soon will present “Busan Is the Home of Trot,” highlighting the history and cultural vitality of the port city of Busan as both a cradle of Korean popular music and the birthplace of Korean trot.

The festival will conclude with the 7 p.m. performance “City of the Port.” The lineup will include Kim Il-doo and the Moon Stars, led by Busan singer-songwriter Kim Il-doo, as well as lyricist and singer-songwriter Jo Dong-hee, accompanied by Park Hye-ri. Jo Dong-hee was affiliated with Dong-A Planning, a label that occupied a distinctive place in the history of Korean popular music in the mid- to late 1980s.

In particular, Kim Il-doo and the Moon Stars will perform original songs including “The Sailor’s Woman” and “Hot Fire,” which capture the vitality of Busan’s port and the melancholy of the sea. The performance will offer audiences an opportunity to experience through music the distinctive sensibility of Busan as a maritime city.

The record booth area will operate from noon to 6 p.m. throughout the event. Around 20 record collectors and retailers will participate, selling records, music-related books, and other items. A listening area will also be available.

Advance registration is required for selected programs, including the listening lecture, performances, and music listening sessions. Registration will open on September 28 through the museum website at busan.go.kr/mmch. Each program will accept 4 to 50 participants on a first-come, first-served basis, and admission is free.

Kim Gi-yong, Director of the Busan Modern and Contemporary History Museum, said, “This event offers an opportunity to discover the rich stories embedded in Busan’s sea and port through popular music. I hope citizens will enjoy experiencing Busan’s music and history together.”