Alumni Spotlight: Earl Lee ’15 GD
Winner of the 2022 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award, Earl Lee ’15 GD is a renowned Korean-Canadian conductor who is currently serving as Assistant Conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. His appearances in the 2021-2022 season include leading the San Francisco Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic, and the New York Philharmonic in its annual Lunar New Year Gala. Lee debuted with the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra at New York’s Lincoln Center, the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood, and with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam as a participant in the Ammodo masterclasses led by Fabio Luisi.
Earl recently joined the Ann Arbor Symphony as Music Director at the beginning of the 2022-2023 season.
Earl has degrees in cello from the Curtis Institute of Music and the Juilliard School and in conducting from Manhattan School of Music and the New England Conservatory. He was the recipient of the 50th Anniversary Heinz Unger Award from the Ontario Arts Council in 2018 and of a Solti Career Assistance Award in 2021. He has also been awarded a Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Scholarship by Kurt Masur and the Ansbacher Fellowship by the American Austrian Foundation and members of the Vienna Philharmonic.
Join us in Jordan Hall on October 26 at 7:30 PM as Earl Lee '15 GD conducts the NEC Philharmonia in a performance of Labyrinth of Light by fellow NEC alumnus Erqing Wang '20 and Mahler's Symphony No. 1 in D Major ("Titan"). Read more about the concert.
Why did you choose NEC?
NEC had a very well known Orchestra Conducting Department with a very sought after teacher to study with, Hugh Wolff.
How have your NEC experiences shaped your artistic approach?
My experience at NEC is why I am doing what I do now. It became the foundation of my skills as a conductor.
I believe conducting involves a lot of guesswork, especially in the early stages of your career. Instrumentalists can spend hours at home practicing and experimenting; however, conductors spend all their time studying the scores and it is not until we stand in front of the orchestra that we realize how to best conduct the piece. Therefore, it is very important to spend a lot of time at the podium with great musicians and with well structured guidance.
I feel lucky because NEC provided me with all of these things. NEC’s Lab Orchestra was made up of amazing classmates, and Hugh was a great teacher who always had a structured agenda for his students. Hugh is still a very dedicated mentor of mine, and continues to help me work through new pieces. He always graciously makes time to meet with me and, for that, I am very grateful!
Every Thursday afternoon I conducted the Lab Orchestra. During each session, Hugh Wolff would often stop me and ask me questions about what is in the score, without allowing me to look at it. I caught on to this pattern pretty quickly so as soon as he stopped me, I would peak at the score immediately to take in as much information as possible before he asked me a question.
What have you been up to since graduating from NEC?
I worked as a Staff Conductor for a few orchestras including the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. I am currently the Assistant Conductor at Boston Symphony Orchestra, and recently joined the Ann Arbor Symphony as Music Director.
Do you have any advice for young musicians/current NEC students?
Be patient and work hard!
Share any other stories about what has inspired you at NEC and beyond.
The conducting field is extremely competitive as there are so many of us with very few positions available. I remember when one of my colleagues was frustrated about not getting any invitations to live auditions, and Hugh Wolff encouraged him by saying, “If you hit the same spot with consistency and patience, you will eventually poke a hole.” A few months later, that same colleague won the Assistant Conductor position with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Learn more about Earl:
Graduation year: 2015
Degree: Graduate Diploma
Major: Orchestral Conducting
Current Job: Music Director: Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, Assistant Conductor: Boston Symphony Orchestra
Website: earlleeconductor.com
Facebook: facebook.com/earl.lee.7731
Instagram: earlleeconductor