artwork by Aliza Morell

Chelsea Music Festival Records is pleased to announce a new album by the The Lee Trio —

Midsummer Night Magic

The fourth album released by Chelsea Music Festival Records, Midsummer Night Magic brings us joy & solace through the stories it tells. Uljas Pulkkis paints pictures of Finnish Midsummer childhood legends. Edmund Finnis’s timeless landscape invites us to listen deeply. And our love for Robert Schumann’s music lays a foundation for how we tell our own stories as musicians, mothers, and human beings—with vulnerability, empathy and swelling hope. We are so glad to share these stories with you. —The Lee Trio

The Lee Trio is an award-winning piano trio made up of three virtuosic performers, educators, and sisters from San Francisco. Since its critically acclaimed Wigmore Hall debut in 2002, The Lee Trio’s “gripping immediacy and freshness” and “rich palette of tone colours” [The Strad] has inspired and moved audiences worldwide, establishing itself as one of the premier chamber ensembles on the international stage. The trio is delighted to release its new album, Midsummer Night Magic, comprised of music very close to their hearts, with premiere album recordings of “Fern Flowers” by Uljas Pulkkis and “Five Trios” by Edmund Finnis, alongside Robert Schumanns’s “Fantasiestücke” and “Piano Trio No. 2.”

The Lee Trio is thrilled to feature the work of Queens-based painter Aliza Morell as the artwork for both the full album and the singles leading up to its release. An artist incredibly adept with her use of color, Morell has stated “by juxtaposing carefully mixed colors to create optical vibrations and harmonies, it can take on almost musical properties.” The glowing light, touch, and movement in the paintings that bring a sense of magic to the natural world provide a beautiful complement to the album.

“The Lee Trio didn’t just put four pieces together. They curated an entire midsummer experience.”
— Colleen Wheelahan, Classically Colleen
“[The Lee Trio shares] phrases with loving attention to detail and balance even as they celebrate the varied conversations in the music at hand(s)…
The juxtaposition of old and new music is as seamless as The Lee Trio’s playing.”
— Donald Rosenberg, Gramaphone
“…the Trio’s delightful recording of [these] four [pieces] proved the wisdom of their selection…. There’s no need to create a special playlist if you’d want magical music for a midsummer’s night or indeed any other time.”
— Kenneth Kapp, Shepherd Express

PRESS

Listen to our singles!
Featuring artwork by Aliza Morell (Courtesy of Massey Klein Gallery)

The Lee Trio

Lisa Lee - violin
Angela Lee - cello
Melinda Lee Masur - piano

Recording production, engineering, and editing by David v.R. Bowles,
Swineshead Productions, LLC

Mixed & Mastered by Brett Leonard

Album Artwork: Aliza Morell, Braid, 2023. 
Courtesy Massey Klein Gallery
and Private Collection, Boston

Fern Flowers (2015) - Uljas Pulkkis (b.1975)

  1. Midsummer Night Magic

  2. The Vision

  3. Fern Flower Dance

Piano Trio No. 2 in F Major, Op. 80 (1847) -
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

  1. Sehr Lebhaft

  2. Mit innigem Ausdruck

  3. In mässiger Bewegung

  4. Nicht zu rasch

Five Trios (2019) - Edmund Finnis (b.1984)

Movt. I 
Movt. II
Movt. III
Movt. IV
Movt. V

Fantasiestücke, Op. 88 (1842) - Robert Schumann

  1. Romanze. Nicht schnell, mit innigem Ausdruck

  2. Humoreske. Lebhaft

  3. Duett. Langsam und mit Ausdruck

  4. Finale. Im Marschtempo

"It is not just their rich palette of tone colours that marks them out, but also the delicious sense of collusion that animates their ensemble playing. From the outset the players gripped the attention with the immediacy and freshness of their expression”
- The STRAD

Our deepest gratitude to these friends whose generosity made this album possible–

  • Risa Schwartz & David Schwartz in memory of Sol Schwartz 

  • Julia Chang 

  • Drs. Annelise Goldberg & Aaron Roland

  • Christine Lin Egli

  • Sylvia & Andy Oh

  • Susan Smith Allen

  • Elizabeth & Steve Thomson

  • Margo & Anthony Viscusi

  • Nancy Field

  • Joan & John Allison

  • Mel & Yen Bachmeier

  • Phyllis Fujimoto

  • Sally & Philip Kipper

  • Janet Martinez

  • Hanna-Sofia & Martti Mattila 

  • Ed Schlieben

  • Margy & Lewis Steinberg

  • Paul J. Tascarella in memory of Maria Luisa Tascarella

  • The Darko Family

  • Judi Kanter

  • Devree Molnar & Philip Kovoor

  • Alice E. Read

  • Gale Shelton

  • Dr. Warner North

  • Kevin Jim

  • Leila Marcus

  • Mr. and Mrs. John P. Balestreri

  • Paul Buxbaum

  • Joan Chow

  • Donna Kline

  • Martin Laeuchli

  • Warren George Weis Jr.

  • Eva & Mike Monroe

  • InterMusic SF Musical Grant Program

Check out our previous releases: