By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
A 23-year-old Korean violinist became the youngest ever musician to be tenured with the prestigious Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO),Yonhap News reported Friday. Julianne Lee (Lee Ju-ram) won the permanent position after a one-year probation with the group.
A Boston Globe article reported that Lee beat over 200 players to win a spot last year. She had never considered auditioning, until a former BSO violinist, who was impressed by her playing, suggested it. Twenty-two years old at the time, she was the youngest player to be admitted in recent years ― in 1935, a 17-year-old trumpet player had joined the group.
A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, the violinist will earn her master's degree next May from New England Conservatory.
Born in Seoul, Lee grew up in New Jersey, Canada and Paris in a musical family. Her father, Jae-kyu, 56, is a cellist with the KBS Symphony Orchestra here and her sister Janet, 27, is a tenured cellist with the Bochum Symphony Orchestra in Germany.
Classical music buffs will be able to hear Lee perform in Seoul, Jan. 4-5 next year. She will perform as a soloist with the KBS Symphony Orchestra, alongside her father.