Born in South Korea, Young-dong Kim graduated from Seoul National University where he specialized on Korean wind instruments. With his debut in 1978, he coined the term “Gukak Pop, 국악가요” followed by Gukak Symphony. His 1987 album “Zen, 선” introduced meditation music as a new genre and enabled Korean traditional music to be enjoyed beyond the traditional settings. His work often incorporates instruments from different parts of the world as demonstrated by “The Sound of the Wind, 바람의 소리,” which fused Korean instruments and the Chinese flute “Xun 훈”  with electric guitar.

In addition to his own albums, Kim has produced original scores for award-winning directors Ha Myung-joong and Im Kwon-taek and Modern Dance choreographers such as Ok-jo Chung. His work accompanied the artist Kwak Hoon’s installation at Venice Biennale in 1995 which marked the opening of the Korean Pavilion. In 2014, he composed the “Song of Asiad” for the Asian Games held in Incheon. This song was performed by the Grammy Award-winning soprano Sumi Jo.

For more on Kim’s work, see Keith Howard’s contribution in New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (London: Macmillan, 2001).