(Medium Length | 400 Words)
Scholar-performer Sonia Lee has given performances, talks and masterclasses in nearly 150 cities on four continents. Her performances have been praised by critics as "masterly" (Aliénor News & Notes), "nicely rendered" (Early Music America Magazine), "full of elegance and expression" (Cleveland Classical), and possessing "grace and flair" (Sounding Board). She is a laureate of the Mae & Irving Jurow International Harpsichord Competition, the Montréal Baroque Galaxie-CBC Rising Star Competition, and the Canadian Music Competition.
A performer on the modern piano and various historical keyboards with a versatile repertoire spanning from the 16th to the 21st century, Lee has appeared as soloist and collaborative artist at numerous festivals and venues, among them: the early music festivals of Utrecht, Boston and Costa Rica, Rome Festival, Nordic Historical Keyboard Festival, Early Keyboard Music Cycle of Buenos Aires, Midtown Concerts of New York, Milwaukee Museum of the Pianoforte, Schubert Club, Handel House Museum of London, KEK-Japan Concerts, the Early Music Colorado Fall Festival, National Music Museum of Vermillion, Hong Kong Cultural Centre, Taipei National Concert Hall, and the Olympus Hall of Seoul. As director or guest director, she has led the University of Illinois Collegium Musicum, Dulces Exuviae, Musicerend Gezelschap, the Phantasie String Orchestra, and La Réunion Musicale. Her discography includes collaborations with the Classical Chamber Players, La Donna Musicale, and La Réunion Musicale on Mark Records, Arabesque, W. W. Norton, and other labels.
A sought after adjudicator, Lee has been invited to judge at numerous international and regional competitions and festivals, including the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra Bach Piano Competition (California), Calgary Performing Arts Festival (Canada), and the Gianni Gambi International Harpsichord Competition (Italy). Her recent residencies and masterclasses include Conservatorio Statale di Musica "Gioachino Rossini” (Italy), Alfrēda Kalniņa Cēsu Mūzikas Vidusskola (Latvia), Conservatory of Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam), La Napoule Art Foundation (France), Universidad de Costa Rica (Costa Rica), Temple University (Pennsylvania), Irvine Valley College (California), and University of Cambridge (UK).
Currently Editor of the Early Keyboard Journal and the Historical Keyboard Society of North America (HKSNA) Newsletter, Lee has taught music history and performance at Illinois Wesleyan University and the University of Illinois. She is the Immediate Past President and a member of the Board of Directors of HKSNA, and has served as a board and advisory member for numerous regional and international arts and social-service organizations. She resides in Pasadena, CA. Visit www.sonialeemusic.com.
