It’s not hard to see that In Jae-jin is passionate about jazz. You could say he’s married to it: his wife is an accomplished jazz singer. What really sets him apart, however—he once played the saxophone, but professes to not being blessed with talent—is his brainchild, the Jarasum Jazz Festival.


Selected this year as Korea’s best festival by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the gathering aspires to become the biggest annual musical event in Asia. The event typically draws over 250,000 visitors during its three-day run, which happens in early October (Oct. 3–5) in a large park in the town of Gapyeong, about an hour east of Seoul.

In an interview with KOREA, festival founder and director In Jae-jin explained how it all got started. It’s been more than a decade since he first met with a local government official from Gapyeong, who suggested holding a musical event on a small island in the Bukhangang River. The festival was so successful that it became an annual event—the island has even lent its name to the entire affair. In also became so enamored with Gapyeong that he ended up moving there. The town in turn embraced In and his family, but also the festival, which has grown in scope to include four venues downtown. Thanks to the success of Jarasum, In is now a full-time lecturer in performance media at a university in Seoul.

In Jae-jin dreams of opening an international music school in Gapyeong, drawing students and teaching staff from around the world. He wants to truly internationalize the Korean music scene, in the same way that the festival draws both artists and audiences from around the world. Each year the festival focuses on a different country. Last year’s focus country was Sweden, and this year four artists will be coming from Norway to head the line-up of over 30 domestic and overseas acts. In suggested that next year’s spotlight country might be the United Kingdom, or perhaps Italy.


A Team Effort

A couple of this year’s major acts include Arturo Sandoval, a Cuban trumpeter and pianist who has played with and learned from the likes of Dizzie Gillespie, and the US-based jazz fusion quartet Yellowjackets. In addition to the events on the main stage, the director has invited up-and-coming local bands to play in various locations offstage. These performers’ official designation is that of “off bands,” but don’t let the casual title fool you. Competition is stiff. Out of 500 or so acts that apply, only around 20 are chosen, said In.

A festival with a permanent staff of only a dozen or less could not run without volunteers. Each year, Jarasum has a loyal crew of about 700–800 young people (the cut-off age is 35, which excludes this author) who help festival-goers, set up, tear down and clean up. In return they get free food, accommodation, t-shirts, shoes, bags and other gear supplied by festival sponsors. Many of these willing workers return year after year, and In proudly spoke of the two weddings he has officiated as a direct result. It’s not just volunteers who feel something in the air at Jarasum, either. Later this year, a couple who met at the festival as audience members is tying the knot. It’s no wonder, then, that In signs both the festival brochure and his autobiography (a bestseller, published in Korean in May under the title “Youth is a Sizzling Festival”), “Love in Jazz.” How appropriate.

See the festival website at www.jarasumjazz.com for the finalized program and other details.

*Article from Korea Magazine (August 2014)