Oakland Teen, An Interationally-Renowed Cellist, Featured in Opening Concert For Bravura Philharmonic

The Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, recipient of the American Prize Award, presented its 10th Season Opening Concert on Sunday, September 25, at 7 pm. The theme of the concert was “Heroic Masterworks” which the orchestra presented as a showcase for great classical music that was written to celebrate heroism in the human spirit in commemoration of the 15th anniversary of 9/11. The first movement of the Shostakovich Cello Concerto was performed by 16-year-old cellist Noah Lee from Oakland, NJ. The program included Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 (Eroica), and the ever-popular Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture.

In 2012, at the age of 12, cellist Noah Lee caused an international sensation by winning 1st prize at the 7th International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians in Switzerland, becoming the first and only American cellist ever to win the competition. Two years later, he won the grand prize at the 10th Antonio Janigro International Cello Competition in Croatia, the first American cellist to receive the award.

Noah Lee won the Bravura Philharmonic Young Artist competition and soloed with the orchestra when he was ten years old. Noah’s performance with the orchestra was met with a roaring standing ovation. He has since appeared as a soloist with the Russian State Orchestra, Princeton Symphony, Ensemble 212, Lausanne Sinfonietta, and the Zagreb Soloist at the Euphrasian Basilica in Croatia. Noah’s performances have been aired across the United States on the NPR radio program From the Top, where he has been featured seven times. He has also been heard in broadcasts of European stations such as Radio Television Suisse and Croatian TV Istra, and on Dutch Public TV.

Noah Lee is a 2016 Davidson Fellow Laureate, an award given for talent development for demonstration of extraordinary accomplishments. The Davidson Fellowship is "one of the 10 biggest scholarships in the world.” He was also named the 2016 Junior Peace and Music Ambassador USA by the Harmony for Peace Foundation. He will be its representative at musical and cultural events throughout the year, promoting international cross-cultural understanding and collaboration using his talents.

Noah is enthusiastic about educational and music outreach. He is the founder and president of the "Back to Bach" Project, an outreach program to provide peer-to-peer inspiration to young school children. He is also the lead cellist and a founding member of the Heartstrings Cello Ensemble, a group dedicated to providing concerts and performances to impact local and global communities. Noah Lee is a scholarship student at the Don Bosco Preparatory School, and studies with Richard Aaron at The Juilliard School, Pre-College Division. Other influential teachers are SooYoun Lee, Julie Albers, and Hans Jorgen Jensen.