Han Terra

Han Terra (한테라, born March 30, 1981) is a South Korean inventor, composer and musician. She was a child prodigy and was performing by age 6 as a Korean kayageum player. She is known for a polymath in the areas of music, instruments, arts, dance, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, history, literature, writing, journals, fashion, design, technology, science and aesthetics. Beginning her training at the age of 4, she is the only one figure who mastered the Western classical music and the Eastern traditional arts singing and dancing in Korea, Japan, China, India, France, and has been performing globally since. 
Han is the first and the youngest individual kayageum musician of Blanchette Rockefeller Fund and who had a debut in the Carnegie Hall in New York. She was admitted a voting member of the Grammy Awards of The Recording Academy in USA 2016 as few East Asian traditional musicians.
Han is an inventor of the music instrument TeRra in the United States, a software developer known as a founder of Emotional Intelligence TeRra, eiterra.com.
Name and genealogy.
In South Korea, she was named Laesuk ("Advent of Goodness" or "Goddess"). She got the Buddhist name 'Myeong-wol' (명월, 明月), which means 'bright moon', from a Buddhist priest in her teens, Han also has the pseudonym Dan-young (단영, 澶濴). She adopted the name 'TeRra' based on the earth goddess Tellus in Latin languages and combined it with her other names in the 2000s of herself.
Han is a member of the Cheongju Han clan family. The clan is well known for a long tradition of the women members of produced the largest numbers of 16 queens in Korean history.
Her maternal grandmother's family was in the fashion and textile business and moved from Japan to Korea in the late 1920s.
Early life.
Western classical music studies.
Han was born in Seoul, South Korea. Her initial ambition was to become a pianist, having taken piano lessons at the age of 4. As soon as she started piano, she amazed her neighbors with her mastery of Czerny, Mozart and Bach's pieces. She became a winner of the national competition of Korea at age of 8. She studied the various western musical instruments such as the violin, classical guitar, and the flute.
Korean traditional music.
Spurred by her mother's encouragement, however, she began to study Korean classical music focused on Kayageum and dance at the age of 6. When she was 8, she became a winner of the National Music Competition of Korea in 1989. During her early years, Han had mastery of major all repertoires of her instrument, as well as her mastery of the newly improved modern kayageum during the 1990s.
Dance and choreography.
Han trained Korean heritable dance traditions such as National intangible heritage No. 46. Salpuri, court dance Chunaeng-jeon and Buchae-chum, Ipchum under Eunhee Song age 6. She composed choreography of dance pieces as like 'Buru' which is contemporary music composition of Sukhi Kang including dance costume for the works.
Musical crisis.
After training in Kayageum during her early years, Han briefly considered quitting music, instead, pursuing a career in journalism or as medical doctor.
She was also cast for a main role of an independent film which was featured in a film festival of Seoul National University in 2002.
Interview records book of "The Korea Times".
Byung-wook Jang, South Korean journalist, interviewed Han's music and her life including the crisis period and the records was published as a book of "Gifted, TeRra" by "The Korea Times" in 2015. Han officially resumed her careers in 11 years releasing the book and a live recording album "TeRra (Live)" showcasing her performances.
Education.
Han has Ph.D from Seoul National University, as well as holds a B.A. and M.A. degrees from Seoul National University. In addition, she was a special visiting fellow of the most prestigious arts school of East Asia such as Tokyo University of the arts in Japan, Central Conservatory of Music in China. Han graduated from Gugak National Middle and High School. Han trained kayageum under the Kim IlRyun, Chae-suk Lee, and Jeongja Kim also studied Pansori (UNESCO Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity) under Yoojin Chung, Korean traditional dance under Eunhee Song.
She studied data science at Harvard University's HavardX and currently attending Micromasters of Data, Economics and Development Policy at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Han speaks 6 languages and more: Korean, Japanese, Chinese, English, French, Italian, C++ Computer language.
Asian performing arts (North Korea, Japan, China, India etc.).
Han was trained other Asian zither traditions including the Japanese Koto, Shamisen, the Chinese Guzheng, and the Indian Sitar. Through her research stints in Japan and China, Han acquired deeper understanding of the pan-Asian musical heritage. She took lessons of Japanese Koto of Ikuta school under the professor Ando Masateru at Tokyo University of the Arts and Chinese Guzheng, North Korea and Yanbian province Kayageum under Xingsan Jin, China National Intangible Cultural Heritage No.1083 at the Yanbian University and studied their traditional other performing arts forms such as Japanese traditional dance and singing. In addition, she studied Indian Sitar with Daisy Paradis in New York.
Presently, she is a member of Asian Musicology.
Korean royalty's music recording.
Han recorded Korean all royalty's music repertoires of kayageum solo version as the first kayageum soloist following her Cheongju Han family tradition. 
The recording collection is composed of 5 series of full version, published by separately Korean Broad Casting FM, Poly Music and distributed by Recording Industry Association of Korea. The music collection includes Yeo Min Lak (People of the joy composed by King Sejonog), Chuita, Ut-dodeuri, Mit-dodeuri, Bo Heo Sa, Young San Hue Sang, Kagok, etc.. TeRra Han trained Korean royalty's music, all pieces under Jeongja Kim at Seoul National University and National Gugak middle and high school in Korea. 
Career.
Collaborations.
Active as a concert soloist since age 12, Han collaborated with music orchestras such as Seoul Metropolitan Korean Music Orchestra, National Orchestra of Korea, Jeonju Korean Music Orchestra, Daejeon Korean Music Orchestra with conductors such as Jaewon Lim, Pyeonryong Lim, and Sangil Han.
Recitals.
Han has been performing solo recitals in venues such as Sejong Center, National Korean Music Center, Suginami Public Hall and Carnegie Hall in New York.
Chamber music and orchestra.
Han was a charter Kayageum player of the National Traditional Music Youth Orchestra of Korea in 2003, became the youngest Kayageum player of the Seongnam Municipal Korean Classical Music Orchestra. Presently, she is a member of the Asian Zither's Association.
Compositions.
Han's beginning composition was happened at age of 8, it was published on her elementary school's annual journal. She was already arranging piano pieces to kayageum when she was early child ages such as by Mozart, Bach. TeRra Han started release of her own compositions since 2016, the composition is 'Viola Code No. 1', it was inspired by the French poet Charles Baudelaire & Korean Sanghwa Lee, it was world premiered by French violist Erwan Richard on her recital celebrating 130th anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Korea. The second composition is 'Piano Code No. 1' inspired by arts work 'Wind of the Ancient Times' (2010, terra cotta) by Insu Choi, the piece was worked premiered by herself with kayageum arranged gallery art link 2016.
She learned composing by herself, however influenced by Sukhi Kang, Pierre Boulez, she mentioned composing was devotion, not intended.
International debut.
United States.
Han debuted internationally through series of recitals in the United States at venues such as Sam Sung Hall of the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco as part of the San Francisco International Arts Festival, and the Doris Duke Hall at the Honolulu Academy of Arts, Seattle and invited recital at Brown University in 2008. She was billed as the 'latest music young prodigy of Korea'.
Carnegie Hall debut.
On September 29, 2015, Han had debut stage at the Carnegie Hall, in New York. It was actually internationally tour concert starting from at the Suginami Public Hall in Tokyo, Japan and National Gugak Center in Seoul, South Korea. She played Kayageum Sanjo full version of Choi Ok Sam which is a National intangible heritage No.23 of South Korea, it was world premier that Choi Ok Sam sanjo full version performed and she was the youngest Korean traditional musicians of a few who ever had a recital at the Carnegie hall, even at the Suginami Public Hall, either.
Rockefeller fellow (USA).
As the first individual kayageum musician of Blanchette Rockefeller Fund since 2010, she widened her musical presence in New York City where she began collaborations with various experimental, improvisational and other avant-garde groups, exchanging musical heritage with a variety of artists, especially in minimalism and improvisational style of music as represented by eminent composers Philip Glass, Steve Reich and John Zorn.
Moving work of art.
During her stay in New York City in 2012, she performed the "Sonnet of an Innocent Flower" at the Korea Society. During the performance, musicologist Robert. C Provine accompanied her performance with segments of lectures on each piece. The event encompassed kayageum music, song and dance which replicated the Chosun Kisaeng tradition.
China relations.
Han stayed Yanbian in Northeast China in 2011 to research performing arts forms of North Korea, Yanbian province and China with the Xingsan Jin who is a Chinese National Heritage of Kayageum of China. Their collaboration included exchange of musical concepts and playing techniques of 21,22 and 23 stringed kayageums. Han studied guzheng in the Central conservatory of music, Beijing under professor Zhou Wang.
Japan relations.
Since 2010, Han resided for some time in Tokyo, Japan during which she tried to adapt Japanese traditional music for Kayageum and collaborated with Japanese artists Korean Cultural Council in Japan sponsored. Her fan club, the TeRras, was established in Tokyo during the concert.
In 2015, her Japanese Koto album 'Sakura' was officially appointed as the special edition celebrating 50 years of the diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan by the Japan-Korea foreign ministry's. As well as, It was actually internationally tour concert starting from at the Suginami Public Hall in Tokyo, Japan and National Gugak Center in Seoul, South Korea. She played Sanjo which is National intangible heritage No.23 of South Korea.
French relations.
TeRra Han stayed in Paris 2012, since then she has been collaborating with French artists such as visual artist Benjamin Efrati, electronic musician Richard Pinhas. In 2016, celebrating 130 years of diplomatic relations of France and Korea, she had a recital, REVELATION series formula_1 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul supported by the Institut Français. For this recital, Terra Han revisits the music at Kagayeum and has a France-Korean version of this traditional instrument, with the participation of Erwan Richard, French violist. Through the solos and duets of the artist and one can see the genius of Baudelaire, the Korean court music of the 11th century, but also the French and modern classical music.
Scientific research & MIT acoustics.
She tried a scientific approach to the acoustics of Asian string instrument. Since 2011, she has been visiting the acoustics department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and North Bennet School in a scientific approach to relationship between arts and science. She presented 'Introduction to the Asian Zither through the 12 stringed Korean kayageum' at the room 3-207 MIT 2012.
Software developer.
Han has developed music software and building online websites of arts and cultures. On 2017, she founded TeRra VR museum of arts and science and she built TeRra (terraiviii.com) in November of the same year. TeRra is a search engine platform optimized to art and cultural contents and products enabling users to search and book the tickets of the events, as well as, guide how to experience arts and cultural world heritages.
TeRra Magazine.
Han launched the art and cultural magazine, TeRra in New York City 2017 November. It was founded in 2016 in Seoul, and online service launched first in Tokyo 2017 February. TeRra magazine is an English magazine dealing with Asian art and culture geographically covering from based on South Asian to Northeast Asia to all over the world. As being a writer of Journal of Seoul National University, Business Journal of South Korea, as well as a member of Asian American Journalist Association in USA, she is a currently editor in chief of the magazine.
Han acquired NYPD media credential as a journalist by the City of New York Police Department, Deputy Commissioner, Public Information.
Fashion collection.
Han has been designing her dress for performance at the stage, she had a first fashion collection and exhibition in Tokyo, gallery Pam-a 2013. She designed the show with her own kayageum music, about 10 models had a show at the stage. The title was 'from chima-chogori to court dress of Choseon', as reported by "Tokyo Times" ("Tokyo Shimbun").
Media appearance.
Han has appeared in major media and broadcasting both of Korean domestic and overseas.s In 1999–2000, Han has appeared in Korean Broadcasting System for giving new message celebrating new millennium years 2000. In addition, she appeared in some entertainment programs of the KBS (Korean Broadcasting System), SBS (Seoul Broadcasting System) and traditional music programs. Also she had interviews music radio, Gugak FM.
TeRra Han made headlines and full cover of major newspapers such as the Korea Daily, "The Korea Times", "Le Monde Diplomatique", "Tokyo Shinbun" (Tokyo Times) and "The Korea Times" published a book of her, "TeRra" written by Byungwook Jang, Korean columnist 2015.
"The Korea Times" reported her as 'Best Korean kayageum musician have a Carnegie Hall debut as the youngest kayageum musician'.
Discography.
Han's albums include recordings of traditional kayageum solo music, concertos and variety of chamber music including court music, sanjo music and contemporary music. She has also recorded in non-Korean kayageum music styles, in Japanese and Chinese traditional music with Koto or Guzheng. Her Japanese Koto album 'Sakura' was appointed officially as the special edition celebrating 50 years of the diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the both governments.