Origins & Early Life

Isang Yun, or Yun I-sang (Korean: 윤이상; 17 September 1917 – 3 November 1995), was a Korean-born composer who made his later career in West Germany. Yun was born in Sancheong (Sansei), Korea in 1917, the son of poet Yun Ki-hyon. His family moved to Tongyeong (Tōei) when he was three years old. He began to study violin at the age of 13 whereupon he composed his first melody.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Despite his father's opposition to pursuing a career in music, Yun began formal music training two years later with a violinist in a military band in Keijō (present day Seoul). Eventually his father relented once Yun agreed to enroll in a business school while continuing his musical studies. In 1935 Yun moved to Osaka where he studied cello, music theory, and composition briefly at the Osaka College of Music. He soon returned to Tongyeong where he composed a "Shepherd's Song" for voice and piano. In 1939 Yun traveled again to Japan, this time to Tokyo in order to study under Tomojiro Ikenouchi.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

When the Pacific War began in December 1941, he moved back to Korea where he participated in the Korean independence movement. He was arrested for these activities in 1943 and was imprisoned for...

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