Young-ja Lee (composer)
{{short description|South Korean music educator and composer (born 1931)}}
{{family name hatnote|Lee||lang=Korean}}
{{Infobox Korean name
|hangul = 이영자
|hanja = 李英子
|mr = Yi Yŏngja
|rr = Yi Yeongja
}}
Young-ja Lee ({{Korean|이영자}}; born 4 June 1931) is a South Korean music educator and composer. She is considered by many the greatest living female Korean composer.{{citation |title=Korean women's voice: The vocal music of Young-Ja Lee|author=Cho, Kyoungwha|date=2012}}
Life and career
Born in Wonju, she studied at Ewha Womans University, the Conservatoire de Paris, and the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. She continued her education at the Manhattan School of Music. Lee endured hardships during the Japanese occupation and Korean War, but emerged to become one of the dominant forces in Korean music in the 20th century.{{citation |title=Celebrating women composers|author=University of South Florida|date=2012}}
She was one of the six founding members of the Korean Society of Women Composers and served as the first president for the organization. She is often called the "Face and Mother of Korean Modern Music."{{citation |title=Young-Ja Lee's Lyric Songs on Poems by Nam-Jo Kim (Life of Korean Women Artists)|author=Cho, Kyoung|date=2011}} Her works have been performed internationally{{cite book |title=A Guide to Piano Music by Women Composers: Women born after 1900|author=Dees, Pamela Youngdahl|year=2004}}{{cite book |title=International who's who in classical music|publisher=Europa Publications Limited|year=2007}} and are available as recordings.{{citation |title=Composers on Record: An Index to Biographical Information on 14,000 Composers Who Have Been Recorded|author=Green, Frank|date=1985}}
Young-Ja Lee's music combines elements from French, West African, Indonesian gamelan, and traditional Korean music, creating unusual intercultural compositions. She is also noted for her particular mixtures of Western and Korean music.{{citation |title=The Pianist's Bookshelf: A Practical Guide to Books, Videos, and Other Resources|author=Hinson, Maurice|date=1998}}
Works
Selected works include:
- Pelerinage de l’Ame for Violin, Cello, and Piano
- Trio for flute, clarinet and bassoon
- Variations for piano
- Lament for three kotos
- Six songs
- Réminiscences de la Proven
References
{{reflist}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Young-ja}}
Category:20th-century South Korean classical composers
Category:Conservatoire de Paris alumni
Category:South Korean music educators
Category:South Korean expatriates in Belgium
Category:South Korean expatriates in France
Category:Royal Conservatory of Brussels alumni
Category:South Korean women classical composers
Category:South Korean women music educators
Category:20th-century South Korean women composers
{{Women's-History-stub}}