From August 11 to 21 Paolo Adamo and I travelled to South Korea, invited by the Chuncheon Arts Festival and by our friends Yunmi Kang and Sangyeon Park. It was a long-awaited reunion, sparked by Yunmi and Sangyeon coming to the UK a year before. Landing in the hot humid summer, full of the sound of cicadas, a gastronomic road-trip with futuristic tower blocks and towering forested mountains flashing by and bowls of delicious things dripping from chop sticks in every pit stop, we spent a happy 10 days preparing for and performing three gigs.

We were delighted to meet Sungsu the bassist who instantly got to grips with my spidery charts and fitted in so well. The first gig was in Seoul, the Cotton Club, where cool couples sipped cocktails and a giant screen played silent jazz clips in the interval. We were well received, short of table-dancing. The second gig was in Chuncheon in a large church-cum-arts centre where we were treated like royalty and went down very well to a packed house. I’ve never experienced such an in depth interest, from a festival director, local press and national TV in what I’m trying to do in and through music. A day later we were in the city of Kunsan, guests of Songjin, the coolest jazz-loving dude ever, who’d converted a Japanese-era elegant house, once the home of seven shamans (and who’d predicted he’d appear to buy the old place) to the Muddy Jazz Club. That’s where we recorded my new song ‘Soul Set Free’ featured in the video linked here. https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FRHnrVUFPlFE%3Fsi%3DlGoWYWjzeB2dTjs6%26fbclid%3DIwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExTWdFeDhTWElHajNEbmJJcwEehLEeVFtFRBwXANH7ZOnVnNX0pP78V5glMNzdltZMVM1fd7IGQj57ij74DYg_aem_oPCXrIKeRWOdxfFOQQA2mA&h=AT0uEZUAuI4CkMqxy7mEv8i2cBciFijhyrVZbXgxGEQE4AcKMCgpGHuEWWGOjr1QGnRc_SjAXa7TFPeccLKZXEvINNrVtDEsqEwe4E2LcPABeOEXa8k14oEEAFB9_YDB_YgXhVBhEfd9sELM790

We can’t thank enough Yunmi and Sangyeon for their dedicated hospitality in their mountain home, for organising the gigs, and above all for being our soul sister and brother in this amazing collaboration. We have great plans for the future: a UK tour in February 2026, an album and gigs back in South Korea in August and a return in 2027. Below is a transcript of the news article about our Chuncheon Festival appearance.

Yunmi Sang and BEJE trio at Chuncheon Arts Festival 15 8 25 Review and interview by Jin-Hyung Kim https://www.kado.net/news/articleView.html?idxno=1328730

What can music do when society is shrouded in darkness? There are times when music approaches us like a prayer. When the music of artists, created for those weary of life, resonates with the audience, it gives them the strength to carry on.

On Liberation Day, August 15, at Seongam Church in Chuncheon, the Chuncheon Performing Arts Festival presented a performance by “Yunmi Kang & David Mowat BEJE Reunion.” Trumpeter David Mowat, vocalist/pianist Yunmi Kang, guitarist Sangyeon Park, and drummer Paolo Adamo formed the group in 2018.

David Mowat is an artist who has practised social solidarity, refugee support, and anti-war activism through music for more than 30 years. He once made a year-long pilgrimage from Bristol, England to Jerusalem, playing the trumpet along the way to deliver a message of peace. Their performance unfolded as a serious form of jazz that transcended nationality and culture. Though ways of life differ, the philosophy that we are all alike and essentially one was deeply embedded in their music.

In an interview with this paper, David Mowat spoke of Korea’s painful history and the ongoing massacres in Gaza, explaining the value of connection. Jazz vocalist Yunmi Kang, who joined the interview, also said: “I hope our music can move people’s hearts and minds to become a tool for creating a better world.”

Q. “What is this BEJE ‘Reunion’, and how did it feel to perform with Korean artists?

DM “In Europe, musicians often try to assert themselves through their playing. My personality doesn’t fit well with that. Korean musicians are very delicate, calm, and composed. Instead of rushing to convey their stories, I appreciated how they could step back and reflect through the music.”

Q. You have continued to raise your voice for Gaza. What can music do?

DM “Music has the power to move people and awaken humanity. I am not only a performer but also a political activist. Music crosses borders. While I speak out for the oppressed in Gaza, I am also a scholar of Jewish music, which is beautiful in its own right. Music transcends boundaries and plays a role in opening hearts and transforming relationships of division and hostility.”

Q. How do you see the current situation in Palestine?

“First, I must speak about the role of journalism in telling the truth. Those in power do not want the truth revealed. If journalists disappear, they can do as they wish. Today’s media and social media create distortion, undermining the value of journalism. The Israeli government is targeting Palestinian journalists for elimination. A journalist friend of mine was recently murdered in what was clearly an assassination. The role of reporting what is really happening is vital. If journalists vanish, the powerful will dictate the narrative, and most people will believe and follow it. Journalists who tell the truth of what happens in a single day hold an invaluable and dangerous role.”

Q. Today is Korea’s Liberation Day. Are you aware of Korea’s history?

DM “It is inspiring. The Korean people are well organized, modern, and proud. Commemorating independence and freedom is not only about the past but also meaningful for the present and future. I’ve studied Korea’s political situation: the people have repeatedly fought corruption and power, raising their voices in the streets. Koreans cherish freedom and know how easily it can be lost—that it is never simply given. I didn’t fully grasp this in Europe, but being in Korea I felt the nation’s independent identity. This is an important message to send to the world. For the oppressed people of Palestine, Korea’s example can deliver the message that ‘if we unite, we can win freedom.’”

Q. The concert’s theme was loss and recovery, coexistence and solidarity. You performed ‘With No Petals’, dedicated to Comfort Women. [Tell us about it]

DM “That piece was composed by our guitarist, Sangyeon Park. It was meaningful to perform it on such an important day. The very process of performing it together strengthens the connection within our project. We wanted to express the hidden pain and dignity beyond it in a solemn yet restrained tone. I believe music is not a tool for self-display but a way to address the realities and social issues we live with.”

Q. The final piece, Gig for Gil, seemed to encapsulate the group’s message….

DM “Yes. We are not so different, but if we don’t yield and only collide, coexistence is impossible. The piece starts with simple motifs, but each voice enters differently, clashing in dissonance until the drum solo leads into harmony. Building a team is about faith and conviction beyond music.”

Q. What is in your mind when you play the trumpet?

DM “On stage, sincerity is everything. The instrument is the amplifier of my soul. I must express the reality I see and feel through music.”

Q. What gives you the strength to continue such passionate work?

DM “Music itself. What drives us is the hunger to express truth and the desire to comfort others. And the fact that we can share those stories together, that alone is reason enough for music.” —Reporter Jin-Hyung Kim

For excerpt from our first album ‘Modernised Sacrifice’ see below