Moranbong Band
| Moranbong Band | |
|---|---|
| Origin | North Korea |
| Genres |
Pop Fusion Rock Trot |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Past members | Kim Hyang-sun (김향순) Kang Phyong-hui (강평희) Ri Sol-lan (리설란) Ri Yun-hui (리윤희) Seon-u Hyang-hui |
| Korean name | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 모란봉악단 |
| Hancha | 牡丹峰樂團 |
| Revised Romanization | Moranbong akdan |
| McCune–Reischauer | Moranbong aktan |
The Moranbong Band (Chosŏn'gŭl: 모란봉악단; RR: Moranbong akdan lit. Tree peony Hill Ensemble), also known as the Moran Hill Orchestra, is an all-female music group in North Korea whose members were selected by the country's supreme leader Kim Jong-un. Performing interpretive styles of pop, rock, and fusion, they are the first all-female band from the DPRK, and made their world debut on July 6, 2012. Their varied musical style has been described as symphonic because it is "putting together different kinds of sounds, and ending in a harmonious, pleasing result."
The band has been referred to in the West as "North Korea's version of the Spice Girls".
The need for a modern pop band in North Korea has been attributed to the regime's necessity to please important social strata: Pyongyang elites, military and technical professionals, women, and in particular, young people. The existence of the band suggests the acceptability of fashion items such as mini-skirts and high heels for women, and their short hairstyles have become popular among middle-class Pyongyang girls. The band quickly became a cultural symbol of limited openness to Western influences to the young of North Korea. In addition to the targeted elite groups, the band's exposure has concerned virtually the whole population with TV sets.
The founding of the new, more modern band can be seen as an acknowledgement that several other light-music bands, such as the Wangjaesan Light Music Band and Pochonbo Electronic Ensemble, have gone out of fashion. Features of the Moranbong Band suggest that it's a response to the success of South Korean hallyu, Korean Wave, of contemporary pop music.Sherri L. Ter Molen goes on to say that the band's debut roughly coinciding with the release of Korean Wave star Psy's "Gangnam Style" was not incidental. With the advent of the Moranbong Band, groups created by Kim Jong-un's father Kim Jong-il have diminished in importance. The Unhasu Orchestra has disappeared and the Sea of Blood Opera Company demoted.
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