Who were the sons of Korah?

It began with the general question "Who were the writers of the Book of Psalms?". I was reading Psalms 77 & 78 this morning and the author of both of these psalms was Asaph. I then remembered some were written by the Sons of Korah and the name Korah reminded me of someone in a famous story in the Old Testament. So I decided to look things up. From wiki.answers.com the best concise answer to the author question was:

Many psalms are signed by their author but others are not. Seventy-three bear David's name . Asaph is listed on twelve. Some are attributed to Solomon. Moses Ethan and Heman are thought to have written one each. The remainder are unknown in authorship. The Davidic psalms bear other hallmarks of David. He was known as a master musician throughout the Old Testament period and these psalms bear testimony to this. Many are reflections of events in his life. The New Testament writers also referred to David as being the author of specific psalms. The Sons of Korah wrote 11.  

Who was Korah and who were his sons? There were 44 references in the Bible on Korah or Korahites (i.e. descendants of Korah) of which 11 were on the Sons on Korah who wrote the 11 psalms in the Bible. They are some of the most beautiful psalms and they can be easily mistaken to be psalms of David. Here are some of my favourites:

As the deer pants for streams of water,
    so my soul pants for you, my God. (Psalm 42:1, listen to the hymn)

Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,
    my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42: 5 & repeated in 11)

It was not by their sword that they won the land,
    nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
    and the light of your face, for you loved them. (Psalm 44:3)

God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear (2x), ...
The Lord Almighty (of host) is with us (2x);
    the God of Jacob is our fortress (refuge). (Psalm 46:1...7, 11 - one of my favourite hymns)

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in (all) the earth.” (Psalm 46:10 - listen to the hymn)

Clap your hands, all you nations (people);
    shout to God with cries of (triumph) joy. (Psalm 47:1 - another favourite hymn)

Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise,
    in the city of our God, his holy mountain. (Psalm 48:1 - another favourite hymn)

How lovely is your dwelling place,
    Lord Almighty!
My soul yearns, even faints,
    for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
    for the living God. 
Better is one day in your courts
    than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
    than dwell in the tents of the wicked. (Psalm 84:1-2 & 10 - two of my favourite hymns)

The fact is the Sons of Korah had a very humble beginning. Korah was a descendant of Levi, who had been set aside by God to be priests for the people of Israel. They would not have inheritance of their own for their inheritance is the Lord himself (Deuteronomy 10:9). Instead of being content with the privilege of serving in God's temple, Korah aligned himself with 250 rebels to challenge Moses and Aaron's leadership (Numbers 16). Korah, along with some of the ring leaders and their families, were swallowed up by the earth when the ground opened up beneath them. The rest of the 250 rebels were consumed by fire from the Lord as a penalty because they treated the Lord with contempt. Obviously some of Korah's descendants survived. After seven successive generations, the prophet Samuel arose from the line of Korah, the genealogy of which is recorded in 1 Chronicles 6:31-38, and Heman and his sons became temple musicians. So Heman was a Korahite. Of interest, Asaph was a Gershonite, also a direct descendant of Levi.

Gotquestions.org has a beautiful writeup on the Sons of Korah. Here is a reflection (and my take home message) of what I can learn from the Sons of Korah:
One wonders if the poet who penned these lyrics was remembering his ignoble beginnings, his distant ancestor who perished in an earthquake for his pride and rebellion. Perhaps it was that reflection that prompted the following words of the Psalms: “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth’” (Psalm 46:10). For each of us, our own songs of renewed purpose and redemption should flow out of a heart of humility as we remember the fallen state from which He raised us and the redemption that we experience through His grace. This was certainly the case for the sons of Korah.