First violinist Michelle Lee was a finalist in the Julius Stulberg International String Competition in Michigan and won first prize in the Junior Division at the Jeunesses Musicale International Violin Competition in Bucharest, Romania, subsequently performing on a live broadcast for Romanian television.

While completing her undergraduate studies at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana under the tutelage of Sherban Lupu and Danwen Jiang, Michelle was the winner of the university's concerto competition, a recipient of the John D. and Fern K. Armstrong Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Performance, a winner of the Paul Rolland Memorial Award, and winner of the Thomas J. Smith Scholarship Auditions. Michelle performed as soloist with the University of Illinois Symphony Orchestra, the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, and also performed for radio broadcasts in the Czech Republic and on WILL-90.9 in Champaign-Urbana.

In 2001, Michelle began graduate studies at Yale University with Syoko Aki, earning both a Masters in Music and an Artist Diploma. While at Yale, she was twice a winner of the Yale Chamber Music Competition and was chosen three times by the faculty to perform on the highly selective Yale Chamber Music Gala. She recently completed studies with Edward Dusinberre at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she served as assistant to the Takacs Quartet. Her other principal teachers have been Mary Nagy, Terrine Gomez, Myron Kartman, and Zinaida Gilels.

A native of Decatur, IL, Michelle went to the National Spelling Bee in eighth grade.