Lee Jong Suk and Shin Hye Sun Deliver a Tragic Love Story Based on Real Lives

Overview

Hymn of Death is a six episode SBS drama released in 2018, based on the tragic real life story of Yoon Sim Deok, known as the first Korean soprano, and playwright Kim Woo Jin. Set in the 1920s during the Japanese colonial rule of Korea, the drama portrays a love that could not survive the weight of its time, beautifully acted by Lee Jong Suk and Shin Hye Sun.

Broadcast SBS
Air Date November 27 2018 December 4 2018
Director Park Soo Jin
Writer Jo Soo Jin
Cast Lee Jong Suk, Shin Hye Sun, Kim Myung Soo, Kim Won Hae
Genre Period melodrama based on true events

Although short in length, each episode is dense and cinematic, delivering a quiet but lingering emotional depth that stays long after finishing.

Plot Summary

The story unfolds across 1920s Korea and Japan, a time marked by censorship, oppression, and social turbulence. Kim Woo Jin is a playwright trapped between the life society expects from him and the artistic ideals he wishes to pursue. His family background gives him privilege, yet he feels suffocated by the contradictions surrounding him.

Yoon Sim Deok, meanwhile, is celebrated as Korea’s first soprano trained in Western classical music. Despite her fame, she endures constant pressure as the primary breadwinner of her family and faces harsh societal expectations placed on women and artists of that era. Her voice shines on stage, but off stage she grapples with insecurity and loneliness.

The two meet through performances and studying abroad. They recognize a shared emptiness in each other. Their relationship deepens as they return to Korea, but the boundaries set by society, family, and the colonial government tighten around them. Ultimately, during a return voyage from Japan to Busan, they make a final choice that ends both of their lives together.

Rather than dramatizing their fate with sensationalism, the series quietly examines the emotional and social forces that shaped their decisions, giving weight to their despair and their love.

Characters and Performances

Kim Woo Jin played by Lee Jong Suk

Lee Jong Suk brings restraint and emotional nuance to Kim Woo Jin, portraying a young intellectual constantly torn between duty and desire. Rather than explosive expressions, he conveys conflict through subtle gestures, soft spoken lines, and contemplative gazes. This quiet performance aligns naturally with the character’s internal struggle.

Yoon Sim Deok played by Shin Hye Sun

Shin Hye Sun delivers a deeply layered portrayal of Yoon Sim Deok, switching between the confident artist on stage and the vulnerable woman suffering from financial and social burdens off stage. Her performance reveals the intense pressure placed on a pioneering female musician in a conservative society, making the character’s loneliness feel tangible.

Supporting Characters

The families, colleagues, and fellow performers surrounding them represent the rigid expectations and social norms of the era. Their brief appearances highlight how the world around the couple constrains every decision they make.

The Real Yoon Sim Deok and Kim Woo Jin

Hymn of Death is grounded in the true story of Yoon Sim Deok and Kim Woo Jin.

Yoon Sim Deok was born in 1897 in Pyongyang and is recognized as the first Korean soprano formally trained in Western classical music. After graduating from a girls high school in Seoul, she studied at the Tokyo Music School, an exceptional achievement for a Korean woman at that time. Through concerts, teaching, and recordings, she became a cultural icon of Korea’s early modern era.

Kim Woo Jin, also born in 1897, was a playwright and critic from Jeolla Province. His writings explored the adoption of Western theatrical forms in colonial Korea and later positioned him as a predecessor of expressionist theater in the country. Though not widely appreciated during his lifetime, his works gained critical attention decades later.

The two fell in love despite Kim Woo Jin already being married. Their relationship unfolded at a time when personal freedom, especially for women and artists, was severely limited. In 1926, during a boat trip from Shimoneseki to Busan, the couple took their own lives together. Their deaths caused a national sensation, and Yoon Sim Deok’s recording Hymn of Death became an enduring cultural symbol.

The drama reimagines their emotions and inner conflicts, building a poetic narrative rather than reenacting the historical record word for word.

Historical Background Korea and Japan in the 1920s

The drama takes place during the Japanese colonial period. Korea had been annexed by Japan, and strict censorship governed artistic and intellectual expression. After the March First Movement in 1919, various cultural and nationalist movements emerged, and art became a key space for exploring identity and resistance.

Meanwhile, urban Japan was undergoing rapid modernization with Western fashion, cafes, dance halls, and the spread of cinema and recorded music. This modern lifestyle influenced Korea as well through magazines, travel, and performances. New roles for women emerged during this time, creating tension between traditional expectations and the possibilities of modernity. Yoon Sim Deok stood at the center of this cultural shift.

The visual settings in the drama, such as theaters, narrow streets, train stations, and old wooden buildings, successfully reflect this transitional period and the oppressive reality of censorship. Scenes of theater rehearsals being altered or halted by authorities represent the fragile boundary between artistic freedom and political control.

OST Interpretation Hymn of Death and Music in the Drama

The Original Song Hymn of Death

The real Hymn of Death was recorded in 1926 by Yoon Sim Deok in Osaka. It uses the melody of On the Waves of the Danube by Ion Ivanovici, paired with Korean lyrics attributed either to Yoon Sim Deok herself or Kim Woo Jin. The song expresses sorrow, resignation, and a longing for peace, themes that resonate strongly with the couple’s fate.

The recording became one of Korea’s earliest widely known popular songs and remains a cultural artifact tied to their tragic end.

Drama OST

The drama features both the original melody and newly arranged pieces. One of the most notable tracks is a vocal ballad with powerful, emotional delivery that mirrors the rising desperation between the two protagonists. Soft piano and string instrumentals accompany quieter scenes, allowing silence and subtle facial expressions to carry emotional weight.

Rather than relying on dramatic crescendos, the OST supports the drama like a soft current, guiding the story with restrained elegance.

Cinematography and Tone

Hymn of Death uses calm, still shots and spacious compositions. Instead of flashy techniques, it employs muted colors, warm tones, and deep shadows to create a nostalgic yet melancholic atmosphere. Close ups of eyes, hands, and moments of stillness help express feelings that dialogue cannot. This approach makes the entire drama feel like a long lyrical poem.

Memorable Scenes

Their first meeting at a train station, captured through lingering gazes rather than dramatic gestures, sets the quiet tone of the story. Yoon Sim Deok singing on stage while Kim Woo Jin watches her from the audience reflects the essence of their connection, a love shaped by longing and distance.

The final scenes on the ship avoid melodramatic exaggeration. Instead, the story focuses on their shared silence and the heavy decision that lies between them. Knowing the historical ending does not reduce the emotional impact.

Themes and Interpretation

This drama goes beyond a simple tragic romance. It raises questions about how people survive emotionally under political oppression, how art becomes both an escape and a burden, and how choices can become impossible when society denies individuals agency.

By focusing on a real pioneering female artist, the story also reflects on the challenges faced by modern women during the early twentieth century, highlighting their struggles for both professional respect and personal freedom.

Who Should Watch This Drama

Viewers who enjoy slow paced melodramas rich in atmosphere, as well as those interested in historical settings, realist character studies, or stories based on true events, will find Hymn of Death meaningful. Its short runtime makes it easy to watch, yet the emotional weight lingers long after.

Conclusion

Hymn of Death transforms a tragic historical event into a poetic narrative about love, art, and the burdens of an unforgiving era. With Lee Jong Suk and Shin Hye Sun delivering restrained but powerful performances, supported by an evocative soundtrack and delicate cinematography, the drama offers an experience that feels intimate and timeless.

Although we already know the ending, the journey toward that ending encourages reflection. If the couple had lived in a different time, if society had allowed them more freedom, could their story have been different. The drama leaves viewers with these lingering questions, allowing the emotional echo to continue long after the final scene.