Okkyung Lee

Okkyung Lee (1975, South Korea) is a South Korean cellist, improviser, and composer. Moving to Boston in 1993, she received a dual bachelor’s degree in Contemporary Writing and Production and Film Scoring at the Berklee College of Music and a master's degree in Contemporary Improvisation at the New England Conservatory of Music. Since her move to New York in 2000, she has worked in multiple disparate contexts as both a solo artist and collaborator with artists from a wide range of disciplines.

Even though Okkyung is probably known best for her improvisational work which utilizes visceral extended techniques developed over the past two decades, she started developing site-specific works, responding to the architecture, audience, or objects surrounding her. This results in an immersive experience that challenges the built-in hierarchy in traditional concert settings.