| Douglas Yeh Lee |
| Douglas Yeh Lee is one of the leading figures in China’s experimental and traditional music communities. Within the past decade, the American transplant has carved out a singular niche that few others occupy, that of skilled improvisational artist (he has a reputation for leaving jaws on the floor, layman and critic alike), musical polymath (proficient at a dozen different instruments alongside throat-singing and beatboxing) and dynamic live performer known for his eclectic collaborations with a seemingly-limitless roster of colorful characters and ensembles, including transgressive Japanese butoh dancers, fellow all-star musicians (marquee names like Sainkho Namtchylak, Yan Jun, Li Tieqiao, Wu Na, Xiao He and Dickson Dee) and other lunatics that he meets when he is busking, an activity that he does frequently and anonymously.
Having received formal training since toddlerhood in Western classical music (violin, viola, cello, bass) and later in traditional Chinese music (namely stringed instruments like the erhu and pipa, the latter of which is pictured above), the Oklahoma-born Li dove into the global music cannon and the sprawling world of improvisation after enrolling at San Diego State University with a double major in Western classical violin performance and literature. |
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