Timothy Lees

Timothy Lees, Concertmaster of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra since 1998, is an accomplished performer who is increasingly in demand for his thoughtful chamber music playing and controlled command of the orchestral literature.

A native of Philadelphia, PA, Mr. Lees graduated from the Eastman School of Music where he received the coveted Performer’s Certificate, and in March 1991, he won third prize in the Sitson Ma International Violin Competition. He has distinguished himself both here and abroad, and has established his reputation as a leader serving as the Concertmaster for the internationally renowned Spoleto Festival Orchestra, the New Jersey Symphony, and the Charleston (SC) Symphony Orchestra.

An avid chamber musician, Mr. Lees has collaborated with such artists as Peter Wiley, Steven Tenenbom, Ida Kavafian, Yefim Bronfman and Jaime Laredo and makes regular appearances at the Linton Music Series in Cincinnati, OH. In addition, he has been heard at the summer festivals of Aspen, Spoleto and Sebago-Long Lake. As a recitalist, Mr. Lees has been featured in performances in Cincinnati, Philadelphia and San Diego’s Mainly Mozart Festival.

He is a former member of the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra and the Concerto Soloists of Philadelphia, where he also performed as a soloist. Mr. Lees has appeared as soloist numerous times with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra performing such works as the Beethoven, Bruch, and Korngold Violin Concertos, Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for Violin and Viola and the Brahms Double Concerto. Highlights of the 2003-04 season will include solo appearances with the Charleston and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestras. In March of 1999 he won critical acclaim for a Carnegie Hall performance with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Edith Eisler of Strings Magazine writes: “The display of egotism is almost redeemed by the soaring melodies and the famous bravura violin solo, played with spectacular virtuosity by concertmaster Timothy Lees [Strauss, Ein Heldenleben]”.