Background
DMA, Northwestern University
Hailed as a pianist of “dazzling virtuosity”, “enthralling sound”, and “wisdom beyond his years” by the Hyde Park Herald, Philippine-born Stephen Joven-Lee is an award winner of almost two-dozen competitions. This has led him to perform in many international stages including Carnegie Weill Hall, Lincoln Center, Severance Reinberger Hall, and Steinway Hall. Sought after as both a soloist and a chamber musician, he performs regularly at renowned institutions such as the Dame Myra Hess Concerts, Howland Chamber Music Circle, Fermata Chamber Soloists, and Evanston Chamber Music Society. He was also a multiple-time recipient of the esteemed Bowdoin International Music Festival Fellowship and the Gijon International Piano Festival Fellowship and Weber Scholarship, which led to solo concerts and collaborative performances with members of the Ying Quartet and Symphony Orchestra of the Principality of Asturias. Joven-Lee is on the Young Artists Roster of the Fil-Am Music Foundation, who sponsored his third and most recent appearance at Carnegie Hall.
Joven-Lee began piano studies at age 10 in the Philippines. He is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory, where he was the recipient of both the Rudolf Serkin Prize and John Elvin Prize for excellence in piano performance, as well as the Faustina Hurlbutt Prize for outstanding graduating student in piano. He went on to receive a Master of Music degree at The Juilliard School, and was one of eight selected pianists to compete in the school’s Gina Bachauer Piano Competition. With his dissertation, tilted “Finding the Difficulty of a Passage: A Technical Method” on dissecting virtuosic piano etudes, Joven-Lee completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music, where he won 1st place in the Thaviu-Isaak Piano Competition, the piano program’s most prestigious honor. His mentors include Jose Ramon Mendez, Julian Martin, Alvin Chow, Amy Gustafson, Steve Laitz, and Brian Alegant.
Alongside performance, Joven-Lee is a passionate teacher and scholar. He currently serves on the faculty of Northwestern University’s department of Music Theory & Cognition. He also taught Music Theory & Ear Training at The Juilliard School. As a scholar, he has done research and writing to be published by the Juilliard Orchestra. Joven-Lee recently gave masterclasses at the Manila Pianos Artist Series, Indiana University Blossom Piano Camp, and Palmetto International Music Festival where he serves as co-director.
Joven-Lee is also an avid composer and conductor, having premiered many pieces in Europe and North America, including his own.