Lee Hwajungseon
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Lee Hwajungseon 이화중선 | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | Lee Bong-hak 1898 |
| Died | 1944 (aged 45–46) |
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| Years active | 1913–1944 |
Lee Hwajungseon (Korean: 이화중선; Hanja: 李花中仙; 1898–1944) was a traditional Korean singer and musician. She studied pansori under Song Man-gap, one of the Five Great Master Singers and perfected his style. Numerous recordings of her work remain. Her specialties were Jeokbyeokga and Chunhyangga.[1]
Lee Hwajungseon came from a poor family. Her father was a small businessman who traveled around a lot.[2] She received art training at a gwonbeon during her childhood and became a kisaeng. When she was about fifteen years old, she began studying singing with the singer Zhang Dezhen, and she learned many short songs from her teacher.
Career
At the age of seventeen, Lee Hwajungseon was deeply moved by the Hyoryusha dance troupe that performed in her village. She moved to Seoul and, under the guidance of Song Man-gap and Lee Dong-baek, showed amazing talent, mastering the three major narrative operas: Chunhyanga, Sugunga and Heungboa. In 1923, she participated in a pansori competition held at Gyeongbokgung Palace and became famous overnight for singing "Autumn Moon Full Festival," becoming a famous pansori singer. Lee Hwa-jungseon's meteoric rise to fame during the Gyeongbokgung Palace pansori competition has also inspired other female singers. During the Japanese colonial period, when Korea lost its sovereignty, she comforted people's hearts with her songs.After moving to Seoul in 1924, Hwa-jungseon joined the Joseon Kwon Drama Troupe. In 1928, after the death of her husband and teacher, Jang Deok-jin, she moved to Imsil. There, she and her sister, Lee Jung-sun, who was also renowned for her singing talent, ran a small tavern in the market. The sisters performed at local events as the "Singing Sisters Duo", quickly gaining fame. In the early 1930s, she officially married Lee Jae-sam, a civil engineer. With Lee Jae-sam's financial support, she moved to Seoul alone, where she reached new heights in her career. She recorded "Chunhyangjeon" and "Hungbojeon" for Columbia Records, OK Records, and Victory Records, achieving great fame and reaching the pinnacle of female pansori singers through her participation in the "Joseon Vocal Research Association." However, in 1944, after recording a new album and completing a tour to comfort Korean workers in Japanese coal mines and military factories.[3]
Death
Hwa-jungseon died at the age of 45 when her ferry capsized due to rough seas on her way back to her hometown.[3]