Both my parents were
musicians -
My father played and taught trumpet in Sydney; was president of
the Musicians Union for ten years, and; was
Musical Director for some wonderful
performers when they came to Australia, including
Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong and Sammy Davis Jr.
My mother was a vocalist and sang
many commercials
for radio and television and appeared on televised variety shows
in the nineteen fifties and sixties as a member of
the Lester Sisters and the Clair Poole Singers.
I started studying music at
9 years of age -
winning the under 17 years open section (vocal)
of the City of Sydney Eisteddfod at the
age of 13 and gaining entry to the
Conservatorium of Music high
school as a soprano.
Since then my vocal style has changed from classical to - modern.
I have been a member of
many groups, trios and duos - country,
rock, alternative, avant-guard, jazz, blues and even
heavy metal, doing back-up harmony vocals and
lead vocals, and had my own originals band -
"Lee and the Strangers".
We performed my original songs.
However the bulk of my live
performance work was as
a solo singer/guitarist.
I did this for almost 20 years--mainly in the pubs,
restaurants and clubs of Sydney.
Apart from a couple of
happy years with the Cordon Blue
Agency in Sydney, I did most of the booking, organizing,
advertising, and setting up the sound, for my shows.
I have also done
voice/overs and sung commercials for radio and
television; studied acting at the Ensemble Theatre
with Hayes Gordon in the 1960s and more
recently with Sandra Lee Patterson at
"C" for Casting in Sydney.
I am proud to have
studied with
the following singing teachers:
In chronological order
The Beautiful Miss Neta
Maughan
Elizabeth Todd
John Forest
Prof. Philippsborn
Alan Hendrie
Joyce Simmons
Edwin Coppard