Brian Lee, Pianist
A pianist of deep musical insight, beautiful tone, and technical command, Brian Lee’s performances have touched audiences both small and large in a wide array of venues as a soloist and chamber musician. He has appeared at Harris Concert Hall at the Aspen Music Festival, Rose Wagner Center for the Performing Arts in Salt Lake City, St. Paul’s Chapel at Columbia University, the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown (MA), George Weston Recital Hall in Toronto, and the Orpheum Theatre in Sioux City (IA), in addition to numerous churches and educational institutions. He has collaborated with many prominent artists, including cellist Joel Krosnick of the Juilliard String Quartet, mezzo-soprano Emily Lodine, pianist William Phemister, and violinists Stephen Clapp and David Taylor. Lee has also been featured as soloist with several orchestras, and has given premieres of works by American composers, including Gunther Schuller, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, and Alex Freeman.
Lee is a graduate of Wheaton College (Illinois), New England Conservatory, Royal Conservatory of Music, and The Juilliard School, where he earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree. He has studied piano with William Phemister, Gabriel Chodos, Marianna Milkis, Joseph Kalichstein, and other renowned teachers. Formerly on the faculty of Northwestern College (IA), Lee is currently Associate Professor of Sacred Music at Moody Bible Institute, where he guides young pianists to excel in performance and ministry. He also teaches "Intro to Music", where he combines history, biography, theory, analysis, theology, popular culture, and critical listening to help students understand and view music holistically. He has served as a competition adjudicator and masterclass teacher in the Midwest. A church musician, both as a pianist and worship leader, he and his wife Helen, an accomplished writer, are the proud parents of three sons.