Garam Library opens on March 12 with over 4,600 musical items and 16,900 books 

◇ Garam Library, the first public music library in Korea, opened on March 12 in Paju City. ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News

Garam Library, the first public music library in Korea, opened on March 12 in Paju City.

Located in Unjeong-dong of Paju City, Garam Library is not merely a music library; it is a specialized library constructed under the unified theme of music in all aspects from the initial design to books and music materials as well as the operation of reference rooms.

With KRW 11.3 billion invested in its construction, Garam Library has a total floor area of 3862 ㎥ (1 story below ground and 2 above). It features a performance hall, a comprehensive reference room, a children’s reference room and a cultural lecture hall, along with over 4,600 musical items and 16,900 books. The library is expected to serve as a new cultural complex for the northern area of Gyeonggi Province, which has been culturally disadvantaged.

Of particular note, the Solgaram Art Hall, which includes a performance hall inside the library, is an exclusive hall for classical music. The 300-seat hall was designed to offer a wide range of spectacles for audiences as well as to serve as a superlative venue for performers, enabling them to perform in ideal conditions with  architectural acoustics optimized for chamber music, solos and choruses.

In honor of the opening of the library, a series of classical concerts were held under the theme of ”Master Series in Paju” in the Solgaram Art Hall from March 15 to April 5. The series began with violinist Baek Ju-young, followed by top classical musicians such as pianist Jo Jae-hyeok and cellist Song Young-hoon. The performances represent a shift to a new complex culture: “from a library for seeing to a library for hearing and feeling.”

“The opening of Garam Library is significant in that it is a response to the diverse cultural needs of provincial residents, enabling the enhancement of cultural welfare in the northern areas of Gyeonggi Province,” said Lee Yeon-jae, Director General of the Gyeonggi Library Bureau, who attended the opening ceremony on March 12. “We will continue to propel specialized library policies in order to foster a happy life and future for the residents of Gyeonggi Province.”

Equipped with the largest infrastructure for library services in Korea with its 202 public libraries, Gyeonggi Province has consistently promoted library specialization policies to secure diversity and expertise in each library location.

Over 100 libraries specializing in various fields such as ecology, the environment and the arts are currently operating in Gyeonggi Province, including science libraries with planetariums (Uijeongbu Science Library and Seongnam Jungwon Children’s Library), a Korean-style house library incorporating traditional elements (Ansan Gwansan Library), the Gunpo Central Library specializing in humanities, and the Pak Du-jin Literary Exhibition Hall (Anseong Bogae Library).

For more details about the specialized libraries of Gyeonggi Province, please refer to the Gyeonggi Province Library website (ww.library.kr).

ⓒGyeonggi G-News | Roh Kyoung-hee khrohh@kg21.net 

http://gnews.gg.go.kr/news/news_detail.asp?number=201403131030497055C049&s_code=C049