Peabody Conservatory alum Byeong Woo Lee was among those selected to compose official music for the Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremonies during the games in PyeongChang, South Korea.
Image caption: Byeong Woo Lee
The opening ceremonies began this morning at 6 a.m. and will be re-broadcast tonight at 8 p.m. Lee's compositions for the ceremonies include music for the short film River of Time, Future of All, as well as a piece titled Peace in Motion.
Born in Seoul in 1965, Lee grew up listening to his older brother play the guitar before taking up the instrument himself.
"I still remember that special moment when I touched the strings with my finger and played a chord," he said in a profile published by the Peabody Alumni Association.
At the Conservatory, Lee studied under Julian Gray and received his master's degree in guitar in 1998. That same year, he became the first classical guitarist to win first prize in Peabody's annual Yale Gordon Concerto Competition.
"A school is only great as the teachers and for me, that teacher was Julian Gray," he told the Alumni Association. "He was the best teacher I have ever met."
Lee later went on to receive a second master's degree in chamber ensemble in 2000.
In addition to being an award-winning guitarist, Lee has won several awards for his film and video game scores. He received accolades for his film scores for Korean horror films The Host and Mother.
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