Music of North Korea

The first evidence of Korean music is ancient, and it has been well-documented by surviving written materials since the 15th century and was brought to heights of excellence during the Yi kings of the Joseon Dynasty. Japan's invasion of Korea eliminated Korean music from 1905 to 1945. A brief post-war period rewakened folk and patriotic music. By 1951, Korea was split, into the Democratic People's Republic of Korea or North and the Republic of Korea or South Korea. Revolutionary song-writing traditions were channeled into support for the state, eventually becoming a style of patriotic song called taejung kayo in the 1980s {{ref|IIAS}}.

Related Topics:
Korean music - 15th century - Joseon Dynasty - North - South Korea - Taejung kayo

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In North Korea, culture, including music, iss controlled by a government which encourages light, state-sponsored music, or music with patriotic worker-driven themes played on radios or in public by large worker's orchestras. North Korean pop music is light and optimistic, usually performed by a young female singer in front of a large band. All music is in praise of Kim Jung Il, or otherwise the ideals of Communism, and songs have titles like "Our Life Is Precisely a Song", "We Shall Hold Bayonettes More Firmly" and "The Joy of Bumper Harvest Overflows Amidst the Song of Mechanisation". The only record label in North Korea is Pee, which publishes recordings by very few performers {{ref|roughguide}}.

Related Topics:
Kim Jung Il - Communism - Record label - Pee

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BBC radio DJ Andy Kershaw noted, on a visit to North Korea, that the only recordings available were by the pop singers Jon Hye Yong, Kim Kwang Suk, Jo Kum Hwa and Ri Pun Hui, and the groups Wangjaesan Light Music Band, the Mansundae Art Troupe and the Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble, who play in a style Kershaw refers to as "light instrumental with popular vocal" {{ref|roughguide}}. There is also a Sea of Blood Opera Company, two choruses, an orchestra and an ensemble dedicated to Isang Yun's compositions, all in Pyongyang. The Pyongyang Film Studios also produces many instrumental songs for its films. Music education in North Korea is done at the Pyongyang Music and Dance University and at children's music centres in each provincial capital {{ref|IIAS}}.

Related Topics:
Andy Kershaw - Jon Hye Yong - Kim Kwang Suk - Jo Kum Hwa - Ri Pun Hui - Wangjaesan Light Music Band - Mansundae Art Troupe - Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble - Sea of Blood Opera Company - Isang Yun - Pyongyang Film Studios - Pyongyang Music and Dance University

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