The Hymn of Death
Kim U-jin and Yun Sim Deok
Yun Sim-deok (Korean: 윤심덕; Hanja: 尹心悳; 25 July 1897 – 4 August 1926) was a Korean singer. She was the country's first professional soprano.
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 (Hangul: 김우진), with whom she had an affair.[3]
Yun was born in Pyongyang in 1897. She studied at the Pyongyang Girls' Middle and High Schools, and graduated from Kyongsong Women's Teaching College in Seoul in 1914. After graduation she became a primary school teacher in Wonju.
Yun's most famous recording, 1926's "Hymn of Death," is considered the first "popular" (yuhaeng changga) Korean song. It was recorded in Osaka 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.