Lee Jae Phang is a Malaysian concert pianist and teacher. Spending his formative years in the UK, he attended both the Wells Cathedral School and the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) on full scholarships, graduating from the latter with a Master of Music in Performance (Distinction). Shortly after, he was also admitted as a Fellow of the Royal Schools of Music with Distinction. 

 

During his years as a student, Lee Jae performed in masterclasses for Kathryn Stott (duo partner of Yo-Yo Ma), Gábor Takács-Nagy (founding member of the Takács Quartet), Sir Stephen Hough CBE, faculty members of The Julliard School Jerome Lowethal and Matti Raekallio among others. Lee Jae also won competitions such as the Mark Ray Solo Piano Recital Prize, the Helen Porthouse Paganini Prize for Duo Performance, and the Concerto Auditions at the RNCM. A pivotal point in his career came when he won the BPSE & Beethoven-in-Altaussee Festival’s “1st Beethoven Performance Award” in 2016, where the audience also voted to award him the Audience Prize at the festival competition. Now, Lee Jae is presenting all 32 of Beethoven’s piano sonatas in a series of recitals around Malaysia with the support of Yamaha Music Malaysia – the first such undertaking by a single performer in the country. 

 

Lee Jae’s skill as a performer has led him to perform around the UK, in Germany, Austria, Italy, China, Hong Kong, Cambodia, and Malaysia. Music festivals he has appeared in include MusicFest Perugia, the Northern Aldborough Festival, and the Church Stretton Arts Festival. Today, apart from his Beethoven recitals, Lee Jae performs regularly in concert series for music societies such as the prestigious German-Cambodian Cultural Society in Phnom Penh. 

 

Notwithstanding his performing commitments, Lee Jae allocates time to his role as a skilled and dedicated teacher. His students regularly gain outstanding marks in music exams and win prizes in both local and international piano competitions, such as the Euroasia Malaysian Piano Competition and the Hong Kong International Piano Open Competition. His educational role is further extended by serving on competition juries (most recently at the Chopin Society of Malaysia’s International Music Competition Malaysia 2022 at Sunway University) and giving lectures and masterclasses in Penang and Johor, where his lecture on “The Art of Phrasing” drew a full attendance. Most recently, he was invited to present a lecture recital on “Playing Mozart on the Piano” at the Grand Pod @ Sungei Wang, initiating a vibrant new series of seminars there.