Bio

Edward Lee is a senior at Bergen County Academies in New Jersey and studies viola with Professor Sophie Arbuckle at Juilliard Pre-College. This year, he served as Principal Violist of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA, performing at Carnegie Hall and touring East Asia. He is a National YoungArts Award Winner and has earned top prizes in national and international competitions, including the NFMC Wendell Irish Viola Competition and the International Grande Music Competition.

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Outside of performing, Edward researches education policy and inequality. His paper examining redlining's impact on New Jersey schools was accepted for publication in the American Research Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences. He has worked with Yale's Education Collaboratory and Columbia's EPIC Lab on various projects. Edward co-founded Clexical to make contemporary classical music more accessible and Letter by Letter, which pairs young writers with pen pals who encourage their literacy skills. He also runs civic literacy workshops for elementary and middle school students through Youth Speak NJ. A Daily Point of Light Award recipient, he is driven by the belief that education and music can bring people together.