Dr. Muen Vanessa Wei
The Lee University School of Music will present Dr. Muen Vanessa Wei, piano, in a faculty recital on Monday, Sept. 1, at 7:30 p.m. in Squires Recital Hall, located in the Humanities Center on Lee’s campus.
The recital is the seventh concert in Wei’s “Complete Beethoven’s Piano Sonata Concert Series,” which showcases all 32 of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas over five semesters. The performance will feature Sonatas Op. 2, No. 2; Op. 26; Op. 81a “Les Adieux;” and Op. 101.
“Beethoven’s sonatas are like intimate conversations across time, each revealing a facet of his genius,” said Dr. Wei. “In this recital, we encounter the playful wit and exuberance of Op. 2, No. 2, the profound gravity and solemn funeral march of Op. 26, the tender farewell and longing of ‘Les Adieux’ Op. 81a, and the quiet introspection and lyrical grace of Op. 101. Through these works, I hope to guide the audience on a journey through Beethoven’s heart and imagination."
Dr. Wei joined Lee’s School of Music in 2021 as an assistant professor of piano and teaches courses such as applied piano, piano seminar, and piano for ministry. She also serves as the director of Lee’s Presidential Concert Series.
Prior to Lee, she served as a guest professor at China West Normal University and piano faculty at New Tampa Piano and Pedagogy Academy. She has collaborated with many great musicians such as Lynn Harrell, Ian Hobson, Peter Lloyd, and Joel Smirnoff. Dr. Wei also has a debut album titled “Im 3/4 Takt” that was considered “one of Centaur’s finest releases to date” by Fanfare.
She earned a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Illinois at Urbana, a Master of Music from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and a Bachelor of Music from the China Conservatory of Music.
The recital is free, non-ticketed, and open to the public. Livestream viewing will be available at leeu.live.
For more information about the concert, contact the Lee University School of Music at music@leeuniversity.edu or call (423) 614-8240.