Arts-Entertainment
The Shane Lalani Center for the Arts presents Cat-Griz Schools of Music on Saturday, April 4th at 3 pm in the Dulcie Theatre.
Wonki Lee, Assistant Professor of Saxophone at Montana State University, and Dr. Er-Hsuan Li, Assistant Teaching Professor of Piano at Montana State University, will be performing their program French Masterpiece for Saxophone and Piano.
Wonki Lee is an acclaimed classical saxophonist, praised by New York Concert Review for delivering “a knockout performance.” Widely recognized as one of the leading saxophonists of his generation, Lee is known for his lyrical tone, technical precision, and deep commitment to both traditional and contemporary repertoire.
As a soloist, he has performed in major venues around the globe, including La Plantation in Beijing, Yamaha Ginza in Tokyo, the Seoul Arts Center, Lotte Concert Hall, and Lincoln Center in New York. Recent highlights include a sold-out recital in Tokyo featuring an all-American program and a solo appearance with the Bozeman Symphony Orchestra. Beyond his solo career, Lee is a fervent orchestral saxophonist. He has worked with distinguished conductors including Leonard Slatkin, Robert Spano, Philippe Entremont, and Norman Huynh, and has performed with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, New World Symphony, Tokyo Wind Symphony Orchestra, Bridgeport Symphony, and Bozeman Symphony. He previously served as principal saxophonist of the New York Wind Orchestra.
Equally committed to education, Lee is an enthusiastic mentor to the next generation of saxophonists. He regularly presents masterclasses and lectures across the United States and Asia, with recent engagements at Juilliard, Korea National University of Arts, and Tokyo College of Music. Born in Tokyo to Korean parents, Lee began playing the saxophone at age thirteen and later moved to New York to pursue formal music studies. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied under renowned saxophonist Dr. Paul Cohen.
Praised by the New York Concert Review for having played with astonishing maturity and flair, Dr. Er-Hsuan Li, NCTM, is a highly accomplished pianist. Through his work as a musician and teacher, Li strives to advocate for the nature of both reexploring the past and envisioning the future in classical music.
A native of Taiwan, he has performed and toured across the United States, as well as in Mexico, Austria, Spain, Russia, and Taiwan, with notable performances at Carnegie Hall, the Harris Theater in Chicago, the Mozarteum in Salzburg, and the Taiwan National Concert Hall. Li earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance at the University of Colorado Boulder, a Master of Music degree from Northwestern University, and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music.
Next summer, he will tour with saxophonist Wonki Lee to Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. He is also a prizewinner in various competitions in the United States and Taiwan, including the Bruce Ekstrand Memorial Performance Competition and the Rondo Forma Competition. This season, Li will premiere a newly commissioned solo piano work by Colombian American composer Fabian Beltran and release the professional recording of John Clay Allen’s piano concerto, The Stone Harp, with the Boulder Symphony and under conductor Devin Hughes.
Montana State University faculty artists Wonki Lee, saxophone, and Dr. Er-Hsuan Li, piano, bring their program French Masterpieces for Saxophone and Piano to the Dulcie Theatre. This vibrant concert features beloved 20th-century works including:
- Tableaux de Provence (1960) – Paule Maurice
- Divertimento (1964) – Roger Boutry
- Sonata in C# (1943) – Fernande Decruck
This performance promises to be a delightful afternoon celebrating the beauty of musical collaboration by two of Montana’s top concert musicians.
This production is generously sponsored by Marilyn Clotz & Mary Ann Bearden, Key Property Montana, and Carol Lalani in Memory of Sal Lalani.
Cat-Griz Schools of Music at the Shane Center will premiere this Spring on Saturday, April 4 at 3:00pm. Tickets and additional information are available at www.theshanecenter.org.