Pansori is a traditional Korean performance art in which a single singer narrates a long story in song, accompanied by a drummer keeping rhythm. In the early 19th century, one of the eight most celebrated pansori masters of the era was Song Hung-rok, who came from Unbong — now part of Namwon. He's regarded as significant enough in pansori history to be called a "middle founder" of the art form, largely credited with perfecting the jinyangjo rhythm — a slow, weighty tempo — and introducing a distinctive vocal style called sanyuhwajo into pansori performance.
Song Hung-rok's singing didn't disappear after his death. His vocal style spread outward from Namwon into neighboring regions — Gurye, Sunchang, Gochang — forming one large current that came to be known as Dongpyeonje, one of the two major schools of pansori practiced today. Dongpyeonje is known for its powerful, resonant vocalization and restrained emotional expression, standing in contrast to the other major school, Seopyeonje; together, the two schools form the twin pillars of Korean pansori tradition. The way one man's singing crossed generations to become an entire school of music is also why the Unbong area of Namwon is still called the "sacred ground of Korean traditional music" today.