By THIRSTY
Tereza Lee is an inspirational
force of nature. Because of her outreach to Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) about her
family’s precarious immigration status, he was inspired to introduce the
Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act in 2001 that put
undocumented immigrant children on a pathway to permanent U.S. residency. Known
as the “original dreamer,” Tereza continues her activism to this day working
for the benefit of others.
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| Tereza Lee |
Born in Brazil to Korean parents, she was raised in Chicago where she began to play the piano at seven. At 16, she was awarded a scholarship to the Merit School of Music and won first prize in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Concerto Competition. She went on to appear as a soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and had her Carnegie Hall debut in the Weill Recital Hall in 2009. She has also appeared as a soloist at Steinway Hall and Lincoln Center.
A graduate of Manhattan School of
Music (MSM), where she earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees, she is currently
pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts Degree at MSM while serving as a teaching
fellow and a faculty member of MSM Sunday. Married to jazz trombonist Danny
Kirkhum, Tereza now resides in New York City.
Because of her unusual passion to
aid others while pursing the highest standards of music, performance and music
education, it is Stay Thirsty Magazine’s
privilege to name Tereza Lee a SPOTLIGHT ARTIST for Fall 2017.
Chopin Scherzo No.3, Op.39 performed by Tereza Lee
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