Younghi Pagh-Paan was born in 1945 in Cheongu, South Korea. From 1965 to 1971 she studied at Seoul National University until she came to Germany on a DAAD scholarship. Younghi Pagh-Paan studied at the Freiburg University of Music in 1974 under Klaus Huber (composition) and Brian Ferneyhough (analysis); she finished her studies in 1979. She became known internationally for the performance of her orchestral work “SORI“ at the Donaueschinger Musiktage in 1980. Her catalogue of works includes a wide range of compositions, from compositions for solo instruments to orchestral works, as well as the full-length music theater work “Mondschatten“ (“Moon Shadows“), which celebrated its premiere in Stuttgart in 2006. Younghi Pagh-Paan´s works have had their world premieres at renowned festivals such as the Musik-Biennale Berlin; the Ferienkurse für Neue Musik Darmstadt; the Akiyoshidal International Contemporary Music Seminar & Festival; Frau Musica Nova Köln; and at EXPO 2000. After visiting professorships at the music academies in Graz (1991) and Karlsruhe (1992/93), Younghi Pagh-Paan was appointed professor of composition at the University of the Arts Bremen in 1994, where she founded the Atelier Neue Musik, which she led until her retirement. Younghi Pagh-Paan has been honored with numerous awards for her work, including the Order of Civil Merit of the Republic of Korea, South Korea; the 15th KBS Global Korean Award; the Bremen Medal of Art and Science from the Bremen State Senate; the Paiknam Prize (Seoul) for her life´s work; and the European Church Music Award (Schwäbisch Gmünd, Germany). She is a member of the Academy of Arts Berlin and an honorary citizen of the city of Panicale in Italy. Younghi Pagh-Paan lives in Bremen and Panicale.
