20th century
Baroque
Classical
Romantic
20th century
21st century
Solo repertoire
Piccolo
Alto flute
Bass flute
Yun Isang
Aitken, Robert
Amirov, Fikret
Amlin, Martin
Amram, David
Andriessen, Jurriaan
Arnold, Malcolm
Arrieu, Claude
Auric, Georges
Babbit, Milton
Bacchus, Peter
Bacri, Nicolas
Baker, Michael Conway
Baksa, Robert
Barber, Samuel
Barrere, Georges
Bartók, Béla Viktor János
Baton, René-Emmanuel
Beaser, Robert
Bennet, Richard Rodney
Berg, Gunnar
Berio, Luciano
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Bernstein, Leonard
Bloch, Ernest
Bolling, Claude
Bon, Maarten
Bonis, Mel
Boughton, Rutland
Boulanger, Marie-Juliette
Boulez, Pierre
Bourdin, Roger
Bournonville, Armand
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Bozza, Eugène Joseph
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Brings, Allen
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Tomasi, Henri
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Wilder, Alec
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Yun, Isang
Zgraja, Krystof
Etude No. 5 for flute solo
Isang Yun: Etude for solo flute No. 5, "Allegretto" was written in 1974 as part of "5 Etudes for Flute(s) Solo". The etudes were commissioned by and dedicated to the Swiss flutist and composer Heinz Holliger, a prominent advocate for new music and extended instrumental techniques.
By 1974, Yun had fully developed his unique compositional style, which synthesizes Korean traditional music elements (such as the use of extended principal tones or Hauptton technique, where a central tone is ornamented with microtonal inflections) with Western avant-garde techniques (like twelve-tone and serial music).
This period marked a transition from his earlier "sound compositions" toward more discursively structured instrumental works. The 5 Etudes are a prime example of his mature solo instrumental writing, which showcases a deep understanding of extended instrumental techniques and non-Western scales, often inspired by Korean instruments like the taegŭm (traditional transverse flute). The etudes function both as technical studies and artistic expressions of his unique East-West musical language.
Yun, a South Korean national living in Berlin, had been a victim of the 1967 "East Berlin Affair," where he was kidnapped by South Korean intelligence, imprisoned, tortured, and sentenced to life imprisonment for alleged espionage for North Korea. International pressure led to his release in 1969, and he returned to Berlin a committed political activist for Korean democracy and reunification. This trauma profoundly influenced his work, which often contained political messages of peace and reconciliation.
Andreas Kißling (flute), 2008, Internationale Isang Yun Gesellschaft e.V. /Naxos
Etude No. 5, "Allegretto"
Yun Isang
Isang Yun (1917-1995) was a Korean composer who initially studied violin, cello and composition in Korea and Japan. During Japanese occupation in World War II Yun was imprisoned for being active member of Korean independence movement. After the war he taught music at various schools and universities in Korea. In 1956 he managed to come to Europe to study composition in Paris and Berlin. He permanently moved to West Berlin in 1964 but was abducted in 1967 by Korean Park regime which sent him to Seoul and imprisoned him for life. Nearly 200 artists from around the world petitioned for his release until Yun was released in 1969. The petition was initiated by Igor Stravinsky and Herbert von Karajan. Upon his return to Germany, he became a professor of composition at the State College of Arts in Berlin where he worked until 1985.
Isang Yun’s music is characterized as a fusion of traditional Korean music with modern techniques of Western music called “sound compositions”. Among his most notable compositions: 5 symphonies, Concerto for Violoncello and Orchestra (1975), Flute Concerto (1977), and Violin Concerto No.1 (1981). Among his other compositions for flute: Etudes I-V for flute solo (1974), Salomo for alto flute solo (1977), and Sori for flute solo (1988).