Dire Straits’ “Sultans Of Swing” Performed on the Gayageum, a Korean Instrument Dating Back to the 6th Century

Every now and then, we check in on the fas­ci­nat­ing musi­cal world of Luna Lee–a musi­cian who per­forms West­ern music on the Gayageum, a tra­di­tion­al Kore­an stringed instru­ment which dates back to the 6th cen­tu­ry. Over the years, we’ve shown you her adap­ta­tions of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Voodoo Chile;’ David Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold The World;” Leonard Cohen’s “Hal­lelu­jah;” blues clas­sics by John Lee Hook­er, B.B. King & Mud­dy Waters; and Pink Floy­d’s “Com­fort­ably Numb,” “Anoth­er Brick in the Wall” & “Great Gig in the Sky.” To keep the tra­di­tion going, today we bring you Luna’s vir­tu­oso take on Dire Straits’ “Sul­tans Of Swing.”

Accord­ing to Gui­tar Play­er, Mark Knopfler orig­i­nal­ly wrote the song on a Nation­al Steel gui­tar in an open tun­ing. “I thought it was dull, but as soon as I bought my first Strat[ocaster] in 1977, the whole thing changed.” “It just came alive as soon as I played it on that ’61 Strat.” Above, you can hear Luna play the song on a very vin­tage Gayageum. Be sure to catch that solo at the 1:28 mark. Enjoy…

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Relat­ed Con­tent:

Mark Knopfler Gives a Short Mas­ter­class on His Favorite Gui­tars & Gui­tar Sounds

Gui­tar Sto­ries: Mark Knopfler on the Six Gui­tars That Shaped His Career

Musi­cian Plays the Last Stradi­var­ius Gui­tar in the World, the “Sabionari” Made in 1679