Shon Iksung
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Shon Iksung 손익숭 | |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Inyang, Metzetta |
| Genres | Classical |
| Instruments | Cello |
| Associated acts | Hanzeong Symphony Orchestra |
Shon Iksung (1846-1904) was a Metzettan composer, conductor and cellist. Considered the country's first great classical musician, he penned many firsts for the nation; Metzetta's first symphony was particularly noted as a milestone achievement. He is also notable for having composed the score for the national anthem, Atop Mount Riwa in 1883 under the instruction of Emperor Daeku. His works have been extensively recorded, particularly by the Hanzeong Symphony Orchestra of which he was the conductor from its 1885 until his death.
His musical style was considered direct and unornamented, with simple melodies underpinned by deceptively complex harmonies.
Early life
Iksung was born in Inyang. During his teenage years, western musical instruments began to trickle into Metzetta. Intrigued by these new sounds he took up the cello and wrote some pieces for the instrument. In 1871, at 25 he attended Metzetta's first symphonic performance and vowed to create a symphony Metzetta could call its own; doing so took an entire year of work.
Career
Early works
Iksung had written several short pieces of cello music in his late teens, among the first pieces of Metzettan music written in the western idiom. His 1868 suite for string quartet with accordion and clarinet proved successful by virtue of being one of only a few high-quality native works available at the time. As one of the country's only serious classical musicians he was selected by Emperor Daeku to travel to Levantia to study for a year starting in the spring of 1869; he spent time in Burgundie, Yonderre and Anglei learning from various composers and returned to the country in time to witness the 1871 symphonic premiere in Hanzeong. Immediately after he began work on his own symphony, which debuted in the same concert hall in 1872. The symphony was an immediate hit and a source of much national pride, incorporating several traditional Metzettan folk melodies into the closing movement. The symphony still sees regular performances today and is perhaps the most recorded Metzettan symphony of all.
Golden period
The symphony's publication is considered to have kickstarted Shon's "Golden period" which was a highly productive time for the artist. Following the first symphony Shon composed a slew of concertos, string quartets and short orchestral works, but longed to pen a second symphony. After finishing his only work for organ in 1875 he began writing early drafts for his second symphony, trashing many attempts that were not up to his standards. He would work almost exclusively on this project for nearly two years, publishing very little until the second symphony was ready to debut in 1877. Once again the premiere was well-received, however the stress of the creation led Shon to never again compose a full symphony, focusing on other kinds of music for the rest of his career, though he kept this decision to himself at first. For the remainder of the decade, Iksung invested himself heavily in the writing of operas, penning 4 between 1877 and 1880. Though not the country's first operas, especially if traditional analogues are counted, they were still warmly received by the press, though notably not as strongly as his symphonies had been. Pressure was mounting for a third, but Shon would not relent and continued writing what he felt passionate about rather than subjecting himself to the pressure of another monumental task.
In 1881 Iksung wrote several vocal pieces and piano etudes, as well as returning to his beloved cello sonatas. The next year he wrote another opera, which garnered only lukewarm praise and seemingly killed off the composer's operatic ambitions; he did not write another for over ten years. In 1883 he was commissioned by the Emperor to compose the music for a new national anthem, a prestigious task for the nation's now most famous classical musician. Atop Mount Riwa was highly praised by the imperial family and immediately adopted as the official song of the nation. Though his passion had been dampened by his opera's lacklustre reception the success of the anthem reinvigorated the artist, and he wrote prodigiously throughout 1883 and 1884. In 1885 he became the conductor of the Hanzeong Symphony Orchestra, leading the group in performance, composing material for them and deciding the artistic direction and repertoire they would pursue. He would hold this position for the rest of his life. Being busy with the orchestra slowed his output, but cello pieces were still published regularly in addition to his orchestral songs.
Later works
In 1887 Iksung returned to string quartets, a genre he had not visited in some time, also penning an unusual wind octet. In 1888 and 1889 the composer was so busy with various orchestra tours around the nation he found little time to write, only publishing sporadically. Starting in 1890 he began to feel the need to write another opera, to prove he could do it right, and started sketching ideas. He also began to write for the traditional tanso flute, a Metzettan instrument rather than a western one, which lead to writing several other pieces for native instruments, with some definite influence from the western style he was comfortable with. In 1893 he debuted his newest opera; Dalrae and Byeol, which vindicated the artist and became his most beloved opera. He arranged several of his older pieces for performance by a full orchestra and arranged several foreign piano pieces for performance by the HSO too, in an attempt to expand their repertoire with unique works that other orchestras would not already be performing. In 1895 he scored his first ballet, an experience he reportedly enjoyed and felt energised by.
Final works
Having been considered a "safe" artist for most of his career, Shon began to compose darker, more somber music, including a litany of elegies. In 1898 he scored his second ballet, and in 1900 composed perhaps his final "great" score, The Magnolia Waltz, a patriotic and vigorous piece which would remain a mainstay of HSO performances until the present day. In 1901 an obsession with canons began to take hold of him, with increasingly complex canons being written right up until his death; indeed the final score he published before he died was for a canon which, if correctly performed, would take hundreds of years to complete. It is considered an early work of avant-garde music.
Works
| Name | Genre | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cello Sonata No. 1 | Solo | 1865 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 2 | Solo | 1865 | |
| Metzettan Dance | Chamber | 1866 | For cello, viola and flute |
| Three Pieces for Piano | Solo | 1866 | |
| Suite for Cello and Percussion | Chamber | 1867 | |
| Metzettan March | Chamber | 1867 | For trumpet, tuba, 2 horns and trombone |
| Suite for String Quartet with Accordion and Clarinet | Chamber | 1868 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 3 | Solo | 1870 | |
| Solo Horn Suite | Solo | 1871 | |
| Symphony No. 1 in D | Symphony | 1872 | In 3 movements |
| Cello Concerto No. 1 | Orchestral | 1872 | |
| Suite for String Quartet and Flute | Chamber | 1872 | |
| Delicate Orchids | Chamber | 1873 | String quartet |
| Horn Concerto | Orchestral | 1873 | |
| Piano Concerto | Orchestral | 1873 | |
| Cello Concerto No. 2 | Orchestral | 1873 | |
| Yang-jo's Journey | Chamber | 1874 | String quartet |
| Nightmare of Lukantos | Chamber | 1874 | String quartet |
| Adamant Hill | Orchestral | 1874 | |
| Plum Blossoms | Orchestral | 1874 | |
| Mossy Stones | Chamber | 1875 | String quartet |
| Fugue | Solo | 1875 | Shon's only piece for organ |
| Bassoon Sonata | Solo | 1876 | |
| Solo Piece for Harp | Solo | 1876 | |
| Symphony No. 2 in G | Symphony | 1877 | In 5 movements |
| The Wife of A Sailor | Opera | 1877 | |
| Monsoon | Opera | 1878 | |
| Solo Piece for Recorder | Solo | 1878 | |
| Canon in A Flat | Chamber | 1879 | String quartet |
| The Stolen Dagger | Opera | 1879 | |
| A Piece for Two Pianos | Chamber | 1879 | |
| An Ancient Istroyan In Empress Anru's Court | Opera | 1880 | |
| Memory No. 1 | Vocal | 1881 | |
| Memory No. 2 | Vocal | 1881 | |
| Piano Etudes Nos. 1-6 | Solo | 1881 | |
| Memory No. 3 | Vocal | 1881 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 4 | Solo | 1881 | |
| Maker of Dyes | Opera | 1882 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 5 | Solo | 1882 | |
| Atop Mount Riwa | Score | 1883 | Music only; Shin did not write the lyrics. National anthem. |
| Piano Etudes Nos. 7-9 | Solo | 1883 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 6 | Solo | 1883 | |
| Cello Etudes Nos. 1-3 | Solo | 1883 | |
| Memory No. 4 | Vocal | 1883 | |
| Clarinet Sonata No. 1 | Solo | 1883 | |
| Monologue for Flute | Solo | 1884 | |
| Cello Etudes Nos. 4-6 | Solo | 1884 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 7 | Solo | 1884 | |
| Clarinet Concerto No. 1 | Orchestral | 1884 | |
| Violin Concerto | Orchestral | 1884 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 8 | Solo | 1885 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 9 | Solo | 1885 | |
| Clarinet Concerto No. 2 | Orchestral | 1885 | |
| Chusu In Mwolla | Orchestral | 1885 | |
| Clarinet Concerto No. 3 | Orchestral | 1886 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 10 | Solo | 1886 | |
| The Riverbed | Chamber | 1887 | String quartet |
| Suite for Wind Octet | Chamber | 1887 | |
| Canon in A Minor | Chamber | 1887 | String quartet |
| Cello Sonata No. 11 | Solo | 1888 | |
| Clarinet Concerto No. 4 | Orchestral | 1888 | |
| Cello Concerto No. 3 | Orchestral | 1889 | |
| Trombone Concerto | Orchestral | 1889 | |
| Waltz for Tanso | Solo | 1890 | |
| Suite for Tanso Trio | Chamber | 1890 | |
| Suite for Tanso and Bipa | Chamber | 1890 | |
| Cello Concerto No. 4 | Orchestral | 1891 | |
| Etudes for Haegeum Nos. 1-4 | Solo | 1891 | |
| Suite for Tanso and Piri | Chamber | 1891 | |
| Hun Sonata | Solo | 1891 | |
| Cello Sonata No. 12 | Solo | 1891 | |
| Haegeum Concerto | Orchestral | 1892 | |
| A Handful of Cherries | Chamber | 1892 | For cello, viola and flute |
| Clarinet Sonata No. 2 | Solo | 1892 | |
| Dalrae and Byeol | Opera | 1893 | |
| Dance of The Magpies | Chamber | 1893 | For cello, viola and flute |
| Delicate Orchids (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1893 | The 1873 string quartet arranged for full orchestra |
| Metzettan Dance (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1894 | The 1867 chamber piece arranged for full orchestra |
| The Riverbed (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1894 | The 1887 string quartet arranged for full orchestra |
| Clarinet Sonata No. 3 | Solo | 1894 | |
| Red Onions (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1894 | Arrangement of a folk song from Corcra |
| Yonderre Our Land (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1894 | A new orchestral arrangement of Leon de Saue's Yonderian national anthem |
| Waltz for Tanso (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1895 | The 1890 solo piece arranged for full orchestra |
| Suite for Tanso Duo | Chamber | 1895 | |
| Suite for Viola and Flute | Chamber | 1895 | |
| Six Bears | Score | 1895 | Ballet score |
| Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1895 | A new orchestral arrangement Conchobar Memius's Urcean national anthem |
| Lament for Horn | Solo | 1896 | |
| Elegy in E Minor | Solo | 1896 | For piano |
| Elegy in F Minor | Chamber | 1896 | String quartet |
| Elegy in E Minor (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1896 | The 1896 piano piece arranged for full orchestra |
| Lament for Piano | Solo | 1896 | |
| Stretton Market (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1896 | Arrangement of a traditional piece from Anglei |
| Mossy Stones (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1897 | The 1875 string quartet arranged for full orchestra |
| Elegy in B | Solo | 1897 | For horn |
| Clarinet Sonata No. 2 (Arr.) | Chamber | 1897 | The 1892 solo piece arranged for string quartet, accordion and clarinet |
| Elegy in G Minor | Orchestral | 1897 | |
| Elegy in G Sharp | Solo | 1898 | For cello |
| A Dream of Death, A Nightmare of Life | Score | 1898 | Ballet score |
| Canon in B Flat | Chamber | 1898 | String quartet |
| Lament for Cello | Solo | 1899 | |
| The Inyang Variations | Solo | 1899 | 48 pieces for piano based on a single theme |
| Lament for Horn (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1899 | The 1896 solo piece arranged for full orchestra |
| Cello Sonata No. 13 | Solo | 1899 | |
| Lament for String Quintet | Chamber | 1900 | String quartet with added double bass |
| The Magnolia Waltz | Orchestral | 1900 | |
| Etudes for Guitar Nos. 1-5 | Solo | 1901 | |
| The Tiger Canon | Chamber | 1901 | String quartet with added double bass |
| Twelve Tone Canon | Chamber | 1901 | String quartet, accordion and clarinet |
| The Tiger Canon (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1901 | The 1901 chamber piece arranged for full orchestra |
| Canon in B Flat (Arr.) | Orchestral | 1902 | The 1898 string quartet arranged for full orchestra |
| Canon in Honour of Dalrae | Chamber | 1902 | String quartet |
| The Magnolia Waltz (Arr.) | Chamber | 1902 | The 1900 orchestral piece arranged for string quartet |
| The Hanzeong Variations | Solo | 1903 | 48 pieces for piano based on a single theme |
| Canon in C Minor | Chamber | 1903 | String quartet |
| Cello Sonata No. 14 | Solo | 1903 | |
| Lament for Haegeum | Solo | 1904 | |
| Constructed Canon | Chamber | 1904 | String quartet, horn, trumpet and trombone |
Legacy
Shon's impact on the music of Metzetta cannot be overstated; his fusion of western music with traditional Metzettan sounds paved the way for all who followed him. His national anthem has not been altered since he composed it and much of his music remains regularly performed; all of it is available on recordings. Since 1982 a computer at Galko University has been performing his Constructed Canon, and will likely never finish it.
He married Kino Isugu and fathered two children; his daughter Shon Mina was born in 1885 and named after the character from the famous Istroyan play by Koripides and his son Shon Nim was born in 1886, and went on to become a composer and conductor himself.