A dazzling array of musical talents will be showcased throughout the season during these hour-long programs, organized by John Beutel and sponsored by the Stoughton Area Senior Center. All Music Appreciation events are free and open to the public.
Kaju and Lina Duo:
Two Korean pianists met at a conference in Wisconsin while teaching and are committed to fostering diversity through music and the arts, uniting people and communities. Our repertoire includes beautiful traditional duo music, as well as new works by various composers. With a fearless and creative spirit, we strive to push the boundaries of our art, inviting audiences to join us on a captivating musical journey.
Free Will Donation
Kaju Lee—
Pianist Kaju Lee has built a national and international career, performing solo and collaborative repertoire in Australia, Austria, Canada, the Philippines, South Africa, South Korea, and throughout
the United States. Recent significant performances include the Mozart Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, No. 9 in E-flat Major, K. 271, with the KwaZulu- Natal Philharmonic Orchestra, South Africa's premier orchestra, in Durban City Hall (South Africa). The classical web magazine ArtSMart, which covers the arts in Durban and surrounding areas in South Africa, stated of this performance:
”Kaju Lee delivered this rapid and brilliant music with skill and aplomb. Her performance was delicate and it was much to the taste of the audience, and she and the orchestra were given prolonged applause at the end”
Currently, Dr. Lee is Assistant Professor of Piano Pedagogy and Collaborative Piano at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, where she oversees the keyboard area and teaches Applied Piano, Piano Pedagogy, Class Piano and Collaborative Piano. She recently launched the UW-Platteville Collegiate chapter of MTNA (Music Teachers National Association), for which she serves as faculty advisor.
In 2022, she recorded a CD with Daniel Rowland (tuba) of commissioned works, titled Widening Circles, and a CD titled 100 Years of Music for Cello and Piano with New Zealand cellist Emily Duffill. Lee completed her Doctor of Musical Arts in Collaborative Piano at the University of Colorado-Boulder, where she studied with internationally-renowned teacher Anne Epperson. She also holds degrees from the Manhattan School of Music and McGill University in Montréal.
Lina Yoo Min Lee—
Hailed as “Brava” and the grandeur and nuance of the classical piano repertoire, delivering performances that are technically superb and emotionally compelling” by Rorianne Schrade by New York Concert Review, Lina Yoo-Min Lee (D.M.A.) is a highly prolific pianist and proactive pedagogue renowned worldwide for her captivating and insightful expressionist style. She has performed extensively both in the US and abroad, gracing prestigious venues such as Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, Boston Symphony Hall, and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Her most recent major piano solo recital, "Music by Women," held at Carnegie Hall in New York City in October 2022, received high acclaim for her exquisite interpretation of an eclectic program and powerful pianistic virtuosity.
Lee kicked off the 2024-2025 season by premiering three commissioned song cycles from Asian American composers, set to Asian American texts, at the Schubert Club in Minnesota with her singer, Jennifer Lien.
As a passionate pedagogue and educator, Lee actively teaches piano and presents her research internationally.
Community engagement and arts outreach hold a special place in Lee's heart. She is dedicated to promoting the works of underrepresented and historically marginalized composers. She founded and served as the Artistic Director of the DEIB Festival in Madison, Wisconsin, focusing on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, as well as leadership, collaboration, and community engagement. Additionally, she actively supports providing high-quality music education and performances to underserved communities and children with disabilities.She is also the Chair of Madison Area Music Educators, a non-profit organization fostering growth and enrichment in the local community's cultural and artistic life.
Lee's educational background includes training at Walnut Hill School for the Arts and New England Conservatory’s Preparatory School. She holds a B.M. in Piano Performance and M.M. degrees in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, where she was awarded various scholarships. She further pursued her studies and earned a D.M.A. in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a full scholarship and the Jeanette Ross Award.
Currently, Lee serves as an Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Before this, she served on the piano faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and taught at the Peabody Preparatory School of the Johns Hopkins University through the piano pedagogy program.