When reputed Korean jazz vocalist Woong San with her lucid voice began to render the famous Bangla patriotic song “Ami Banglaye Gaan Gai” of Pratul Mukhopadhyay, the audience was taken by surprise. However, after a few seconds, the audience started singing the song in unison, creating an enchanting ambience in the Shah Alam Bir Uttam Auditorium of Chittagong Medical College (CMC) on Saturday evening.

Later, the noted artiste performed multifarious songs ranging from jazz to reggae and blues to contemporary Korean music, enthralling the Chittagong audience.

To mark the 42nd anniversary of diplomatic relations between Republic of Korea and Bangladesh, Embassy of the Republic of Korea organised the programme titled “Charm of Korea VII - Woong San: Jazz Story”.

Earlier, a brief discussion was held where Lee Yun-young, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Bangladesh and Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) chairman Abdus Salam were the main speakers.

Bangladesh and Korea have had an economic relationship for decades but such programmes create a strong cultural bond between the two nations as well, said the ambassador.

Following the discussion, Chittagong -based Sufi Band Aswad took the stage and performed four songs.

The Korean Jazz team then came on the stage and amazed the audience with their electrifying performance.

Acclaimed Korean artiste Woong San first started her performance with a jazz tune followed by a blues piece.

Of the performances, “Mr Blues”, “Forgive Me” and reggae legend Bob Marley's “Get up, Stand up” earned acclaim from the audience. The artiste's easy interaction with the audience was also remarkable.

Jungchic Lee, Cheolwoo Park, Kyungin Min, Kyungho Park and Hogyu Hwang accompanied the artiste on the saxophone, drum, piano and guitars.

Earlier, two shows of “Charm of Korea-VII” were held in the capital, much to the delight of the Dhaka audience -- first at International Convention City Bashundhara (July 30) and National Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (July 31).