Not long ago, I was invited to visit the Ureuk World Music House in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, on a sunny autumn afternoon in rural Korea where local mountains, rice paddy fields and scattered houses have coexisted for centuries. The Music House is dedicated to Master Ureuk, a renowned musician from the sixth century said to be the founder of Korean music, who was exiled to Chungju where he created the gayageum, a Korean 12-string instrument.