Jonathan Lee, winner of the 2000 MIT Symphony Orchestra (MITSO) Concerto Competition and a junior in electrical engineering and computer science, will perform Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 with MITSO on Friday, May 11 at 8pm and Sunday, May 13 at 4pm in Kresge Auditorium.
Mr. Lee will also perform the first movement of the piece with the Boston Pops for Tech Night on Thursday, June 7.
Mr. Lee began playing piano at the age of six. As the winner of the 1996 Utah State Fairpark Salute to Youth competition, he performed with the Utah Symphony Orchestra in the annual "Salute to Youth" concert. He also won the 1997 Utah State University Piano Festival and was a finalist in the Stravinsky International Piano Competition. He currently studies piano with Senior Lecturer David Deveau.
"Performing with an orchestra is quite different from performing on one's own," said Mr. Lee. "One has to synchronize artistic interpretation. Chamber music works the same way, but working with four to five people interactively is a very intimate and easier thing to do. Working with an orchestra is a whole other ballpark," he said, because the soloist relies on one conductor to "control dozens of people, and to produce something that is artistic and beautiful."
At the MITSO concert, Mr. Lee will also perform Symphony Fantastique by Berlioz. Admission is $2 at the door.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on May 9, 2001.
