The music of composer Grace Ann Lee (b. 1996) is based on everyday sounds, imageries, and experiences like raindrops, refracting light, and traffic jams, recreated into dynamic and emotive soundscapes. Her recent projects explore Korean identity, weaving cultural memory and personal narrative into storytelling deeply rooted in traditional folklore, melodies, and rhythms. She is the newly appointed Composer-in-Residence of the Korean National Symphony Orchestra for the 2026/2027 season.
A two-time recipient of the ASCAP Morton Gould Award, Lee has spent the past year developing her new orchestral works at MacDowell Artist Colony and Yaddo, and has previously held fellowships and presented her music at the Tanglewood Music Center, Aspen Music Festival, and Copland House’s CULTIVATE program. Her recent collaborators include the American Composers Orchestra, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Mycelium New Music, musicians from the Louisville Orchestra, Buffalo Chamber Players, Front Porch, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, among others. She holds commissions from the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the Korean National Symphony Orchestra, New World Symphony, Sound Mind, United States Air Force Heritage of America Band, the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America, the Music from the Copland House, and Michael Karsher’s Young New Yorkers’ Chorus.
