Yun Sim-deok
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Yun Sim-deok (; 25 July 1897 – 4 August 1926) was a Korean singer. She was the country's first professional
soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...
.


Life and career

Yun was born in
Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...
in 1897. She studied at the Pyongyang Girls' Middle and High Schools, and graduated from Kyongsong Women's Teaching College in
Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...
in 1914. After graduation she became a primary school teacher in
Wonju Wonju (; ) is the most populous Administrative divisions of South Korea, city in Gangwon Province, South Korea, with a population of 364,860 as of 2023. The city is located approximately east of Seoul. History During the time of Joseon, Gr ...
. After teaching for one year, Yun went to Japan, becoming the first Korean to study at the Tokyo Music School. In Japan, she met and fell in love with a married English literature student, Kim U-jin, with whom she had an affair. After graduating from music school, Yun returned to Korea, where she debuted as a soprano in 1923. Though audiences were impressed by her powerful voice, she was unable to make a living performing Western classical music, and became a pop singer and actress to support herself. Yun and Kim U-jin committed suicide together in 1926, jumping off a passenger ship en route from Simonoseki to
Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
. The shocking news caused a sensation in Korea, and Yun's 1926 recording of "Hymn of Death" (; also called "Death Song") sold a record 100,000 copies following her death.


Legacy

Yun's most famous recording, 1926's "Hymn of Death," is considered the first "popular" ''( yuhaeng changga)'' Korean song. It was recorded in
Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...
by the Japanese Nitto recording company, with Yun's sister accompanying her on piano. The song is set to the tune of " Waves of the Danube" by Ion Ivanovici. Two films have been made about Yun. The first, a 1969 film titled ''Yun Sim-Deok,'' was directed by An Hyeon-cheol () and starred Moon Hee. The second was a 1991 film called '' Death Song,'' directed by Kim Ho-sun and starring Chang Mi-hee. The film won numerous awards in South Korea, including Best Film at the 1991
Blue Dragon Film Awards The Blue Dragon Film Awards () is an annual awards ceremony that is presented by ''Sports Chosun'' (a sister brand of the ''Chosun Ilbo'') for excellence in film in South Korea. The Blue Dragon Film Awards considers only blockbusters and popula ...
and the 1991 Chunsa Film Art Awards. A television series was also made in 2018 titled ''
The Hymn of Death ''The Hymn of Death'' () is a 2018 South Korean television miniseries based on true events, starring Lee Jong-suk and Shin Hye-sun. It aired on SBS from November 27 to December 4, 2018, and is available on Netflix worldwide. Synopsis The s ...
''.


Gallery

Yun Sim-deok 01.jpg Yun Sim-deok 02.jpg Yun Sim-deok 03.jpg Youn Shim-Deok.jpg


Actresses who played Yun Sim-deok

* Portrayed by Moon Hee in the 1969 film ''Yun Sim-Deok''. * Portrayed by Chang Mi-hee in the 1991 film '' Death Song''. * Portrayed by Shin Hye-sun in the 2018 SBS TV series ''
The Hymn of Death ''The Hymn of Death'' () is a 2018 South Korean television miniseries based on true events, starring Lee Jong-suk and Shin Hye-sun. It aired on SBS from November 27 to December 4, 2018, and is available on Netflix worldwide. Synopsis The s ...
''.


Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yun, Sim-Deok 1897 births 1926 deaths 1926 suicides 20th-century Korean actresses Joint suicides Korean songwriters Korean stage actresses Korean women singers People from Pyongyang Suicides by drowning Suicides in Asia 20th-century women singers 20th-century songwriters 20th-century women composers 20th-century Korean women writers