Kim Won-gyun

KIM WON-GYUN (1917-2002). Prominent composer, who in 1947 composed the national anthem of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as well as songs such as the "Song of General Kim Il Sung" and the music for revolutionary operas. He was born in Wonsan in 1917 and studied at a music school in Japan. He became a member of the Central Committee of the Korean Musicians Union in 1954 and later became its vice president and president. In 1960, he became dean of the Pyongyang University of Music and Dance, and in 1985, president of the Pibada Opera Troupe. In September 1990, he was chairman of the North Side Korean Reunification Music Festival. Kim was also a delegate to the ninth (1986) and 10th (1998) Supreme People's Assemblies. He received many honors and awards, including Labor Hero, Merited Artist, and People's Artist, the highest cultural award, and was a Kim Il Sung Prize winner. In 2006, the rebuilt Pyongyang Conservatory, a monumental edifice on the banks of the Daedong River, was named the Kim Won-gyun Conservatory, apparently at the suggestion of Kim Jong Il.

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