It is the early 1960s. A man in his 30s arrives at a tavern in the countryside. He thinks about his past as he listens to a rendition of pansori, a traditional form of lyrical storytelling, being played by the owner of the tavern.
That man is DongHo, played by Kim Gyu-cheol. When he was young, DongHo was given a strict musical upbringing by YuBong, played by Kim Myeong-gon, who is himself an outstanding pansori singer.
DongHo's mother, a widow, has an affair with YuBong and together they leave town. There are four of them now living together - DongHo, his mother, YuBong, and his daughter SongHwa, who was originally an orphan. Her character is played by Oh Jeong-hae. DongHo's mother, however, dies during childbirth, leaving just the three of them.
YuBong teaches pansori to the two children, singing for SongHwa and drumming for DongHo. However, DongHo can't understand why they need to learn pansori while the nation goes through a serious economic struggle caused by war. DongHo has several arguments with YuBong and finally leaves home. After DongHo goes, SongHwa neither sings nor eats. After a long passage of time, DongHo starts asking around in search of his sister and they are finally reunited at a liquor store. The brother and sister do not say anything, they just sing and drum. The next morning, DongHo and SongHwa go separate ways without saying a word.