Pianist Paik Kun-woo as romantic spouse of deceased actress Yun Jung-hee

▲ This file photo shows the couple in Paris after Pianist Paik won the 'French Cultural Order Awards' in 2011. (Yonhap)

▲ This file photo shows the couple at the press conferene of a special exhibition of the Actress' works at the Korea Film Archive in Seoul in 2016. (Yonhap)

▲ This photo, provided by VINCERO Classical Music Agency, shows Pianist Paik at his solo concert. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Jan. 20 (Yonhap) – An iconic South Korean actress Yun Jung-hee, who passed away in France on Thursday (local time), often described her husband Paik Kun-woo, 77, as a pure and soft-hearted person during her lifetime.

After starring in Director Lee Chang-dong’s film “Poetry” in 2010, the Actress appeared in the once popular South Korean TV talk show “The Knee-Drop Guru” and declared that she met the love of her life who is authentic and thoughtful.

Her spouse Paik, also known as “the architect on the keyboard” for his contemplative and philosophical music world, was not only a world-class pianist but also a courteous, friendly husband and also friend to the Actress.

Actress Yun recalled that when she first met Pianist Paik in Munich, Germany in 1972, her spouse gave her a flower without saying a word. She explained, “My husband was too reticent; while other international students in Munich drank beer, he bought a flower from a guy who sold flowers and gave it to me without a word. I have never received such a flower in my life.”

The rather close-mouthed and introverted young man later then became her lifelong companion who still silently stood by her at all times.

In the Korean community in Paris, France, where the couple lived for a long time, many residents were reminded of how the couple always held each other’s hands. The reporter who is writing this article, once a Paris correspondent, also spotted the elderly couple holding hands at cultural events such as the Pianist’s concerts and the Paris Korean Film Festival in 2018 and 2019.

Back then, the Alzheimer’s the Actress suffered from had already progressed to some extent; yet, she quietly listened to her husband’s music in one corner of his concert.

As an iconic South Korean actress, her marriage announcement with the Pianist in 1976, when she was actively performing in the industry as the most famous actress, was definitely unexpected news to her fans. Pianist Paik, who studied at the prestigious Julliard Conservatory in the U.S., won the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition in 1969 and the Naumburg Competition in 1971; however, he was relatively unknown to the public compared to the Actress, who was so much loved by the public.

The two first met at a cultural event in Munich, Germany, and then bumped into each other once again at a Korean restaurant in Paris, France, two years later. They then began a fateful love and tied the knot two years later. The wedding ceremony was held privately, with only a few acquaintances attending in hanbok at the home of Artist Lee Ungno, to whom the couple relied on like their parents, at the 20th district in Paris.
The unforeseen marriage between a sensational star and a promising pianist was talked about as the best romance story of the time, and the two have been together for nearly 50 years, reckoned as iconic love birds in the entertainment industry.

Five months after their daughter Jin-hee was born, the couple was even involved in an attempted abduction case, and they dramatically escaped just before being kidnapped at a concert hosted by a rich Swiss man.

The Pianist has always been proud that his wife was a movie star – “She is a perfect actress. How can she be so faithful to her job?” he once said.

Ahead of the release of Director Lee’s film “Poetry,” starring Actress Yun, in May 2010, Pianist Paik had just released the Brahms newsletter on Deutsche Grammophone. At a press conference announcing the release, the Pianist said, “My wife’s personality was well projected in the movie. I looked as if Director Lee has seen through Yun as a human being.”

Actress Yun, who returned to the big screen for the first time in 16 years at that time, played the role of “Mija,” who learns poetry by raising her grandson alone. Mija was also the Actress’ real name (Son Mi-ja), and “Mija” in the film ironically also suffered from Alzheimer’s disease as the actual “Son Mi-ja” did, gradually losing her language and memories.

The rumor that the Actress was suffering from the disease had already spread in the Korean community in Paris prior to the film’s release in 2019. Then Paik Gun-woo, who never publicly mentioned his wife’s illness, confessed in an interview with a domestic media in 2019 that her wife was “suffering from Alzheimer’s disease for 10 years.”

As a musician, Paik Gun-woo never let go of his music despite her wife’s deteriorating condition. He held a recital tour with the release of the Schumann newsletter in 2020, and he also made a return with Spanish composer Enrique Granados’ “Goyescas” album last year, meeting nationwide audiences.

“Until now, it has never been easy to live as a musician. I now want to enjoy myself while doing music. I think I finally have found some freedom of mind,” the Pianist once said in his press conference held in Sept. of 2021.

(This article is translated from Korean to English by Ha eun Lee)

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