Sept. 2022 - Jan. 2023 (for SAT voices)

Is the fierce and ferocious tiger scared of anything in this world? What could it be? Inspired by Pansori, a traditional Korean genre of musical

storytelling, this piece seeks to tell the story of the Korean folk tale about a tiger that mistakes a dried persimmon for a terrifying, unearthly beast. The word “dried persimmon” is left in Korean (곶감 / “gojgam”) to bring out the foreign nature of the character.

Commissioned by The May Festival for CINKOA: CINCINNATI KOREAN CHOIR.

World Premiere by CINKOA at 25 for 25: A New Time for Choral Music on March 19th, 2023.

illustrated by Satoko Kitagawa

Jan. 2023 (for flute, violin, cello, and piano)

The second chapter of Avast, Ye! begins as the pirate captain and the crew set sail again after a successful treasure hunt. Soon, the celestial singing of maidens drift towards them in the salty air, calling and beckoning. Peculiar, that maidens would be found amidst the untamed waves of the sea. But the pirates are given no room for even a seed of suspicion, as they sail deeper and deeper into the sirens’ nest.

Extended techniques such as the seagull effect on cello and scraping the fronts of the white keys on piano were used to illustrate a lively ship and its crew on a voyage.

World premiere by the Nu Deco Ensemble at National YoungArts Week 2023.

YoungArts Week 2023

illustrated by Satoko Kitagawa

May 2022 (for strings orchestra and ocarina)

for Mr. D & the Siwanoy Sinfonietta

“Bald Eagle...is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly...[he] is too lazy to fish for himself. [While a turkey is] a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America...He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage.” - Benjamin Franklin.

Franklin’s letter to his daughter reveals his criticism of the original eagle design for the Great Seal, saying that it looked more like a turkey. So what if the turkey was our National Bird?

Performed by the Siwanoy Sinfonietta at the Tuckahoe Strings “American Voices” Concert 2022.

Nov. 2021 - April 2022 (for full orchestra)

Inspired by Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, this piece illustrates the eloquent, stirring story of Hester Prynne, a resident of the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony who conceives a daughter through an affair and is forced to suffer through a life of social degradation, repentance, and loneliness. Each movement focuses on a major character of the novel and explores the themes of sin, knowledge, the nature of evil, human identity, and female independence.

Scarlet Symphony Mvt. 1 - Hester, the Adulterer

Yuri Lee

Hester, the Adulterer: The town awakes, restless and anxious as the people gather to watch Hester Prynne emerge from the prison and make her way to the scaffold, where she will be publicly condemned. Women in the crowd squawk and complain about the embroidered badge of a letter “A”, a symbol of her crime as an adulterer, beautifully stitched in gold and scarlet. It is as if the first violins are singing: “Hester Prynne, the adulterer, there she is up there. Look at her with her red dress and gold thread” (m.24-26). Hester’s inner thoughts, represented by the solo violin, are overwhelmed by the surrounding turbulence of shaming and alienation.

National YoungArts 2023 Finalist Winner

Orchestra Winner of The National Young Composers Challenge 2022.

Winner of the Juilliard Pre-College Composition Competition 2022.

Performed by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra at the National Young Composers Challenge Composium on April 2nd, 2023.

illustrated by Satoko Kitagawa

March 2022 (for voice, violin, harmonica, and guitar)

lyrics by Jessi Kaufman & music by Yuri Lee

Written, performed, and produced for an 11th grade English assignment, Bindlestiff Blues narrates the story of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men about two migrant workers who move from place to place in search of new job opportunities during the Great Depression.

The song explores the lives of Lennie, a burly but child-like migrant; George, a companion and care-taker of Lennie; Slim, a skilled worker and omniscient figure; Candy, an aging ranch handyman; Crooks, an African-American stable-hand; Curley, a confrontational, aggressive young man; and Curley’s wife, the only female character in the story, desperate for company.

Feb. 2022 (for clarinet, violin, and piano)

Inspired by Edith Wharton’s novella Ethan Frome, this piece explores the theme of inverted fairytale. The bright, playful beginning reflects the somewhat untroubled life of the Frome household and the light-hearted interactions between Ethan and Mattie. But Zeena’s jealousy of her husband and cousin’s budding romance begins a chain reaction of events that eventually leads to a dangerous sleigh ride aimed at a big oak tree, leaving Ethan crippled, Mattie paralyzed, and Zeena even more miserable than before. 

And they lived not-so-happily ever after.

Premiered @ Juilliard Pre-College Chamber Music on May 7, 2022, with Gabriel Paley (clarinet), Yuri Lee (violin), and Andrew Gu (piano).

Performed at the Juilliard Pre-College Composition Senior Recital on April 22nd, 2023.

A revised version performed for my senior recital on April 22nd, 2023.

Feb. - Oct. 2021 (for violin and piano)

Millions of people’s bright futures were extinguished, leaving their families and friends behind to suffer the aftermath of sudden tragedies. Many lives, dreams, opportunities, loved ones, and happiness were lost due to COVID-19. Even without a pandemic, we sometimes encounter moments where we forget how to smile, where the colorful world is soiled by gloom, where we blindly stumble through life and wonder if we will ever see again.

This piece is dedicated to those of us who are stranded in darkness, to serve as a reminder that no matter how long or cold the journey may be, there is always light at the end of the tunnel.

Performed at The Juilliard School Pre-College Composition Recital on Nov. 13, 2021 @ Morse Hall, with Ethan Fisher-Chaves (violin) and Yuri Lee (piano).

Winner of the National YoungArts competition 2022.

illustrated by Yuri Lee

July 2021 (for flute, horn, and piano)

A friend once told me, “I wish mosquitos disappeared from Earth; they benefit no one.”

The annoyingly energetic mosquitos are given a second purpose in this piece, transforming into beautiful stars as they float upwards to decorate the sky.

Ensemble Winner of the National Young Composers Challenge 2021; performed by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra members @ Steinmetz Hall in April 2022.

June 2021 (for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano)

Here’s a new version of Sherlock Tango, this time with a new instrumentation and protagonist. Who’s Nyarlock? He is my version of the genius.

Performed and recorded by International Contemporary Ensemble in July 2021.

National YoungArts 2023 Finalist Winner

The American Prize National Nonprofit Competition in Composition (chamber division) 2022 winner

Tribeca New Music Young Composers Competition 2022 Honorable Mention

June 2021 (for bandoneon, violin, cello, and piano)

Inspired by the world’s beloved Sherlock Holmes, this piece begins with a creepy carousel-like music that the mischievous Moriarty, the arch-enemy of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s mastermind detective. Holmes intervenes before the situation becomes too perilous, looking for clues and solving the puzzle before humanity suffers great destruction. The love-hate relationship between the consulting detective and the consulting criminal progresses throughout the wild, maniacal tango.