After a paralyzing stroke in August 2012, South Korean pianist Lee Hun returned to the stage as a one-handed performer. Now 54, Lee is preparing for his first major orchestra performance on May 2 at an international music festival in South Korea, playing Ravel’s ‘Piano Concerto for the Left Hand.’ The stroke had damaged approximately 60% of his brain’s left hemisphere, initially leaving him unable to walk or speak.
Lee’s journey from despair to professional performance has made him South Korea’s only known professional left-hand-only pianist and drawn comparisons to Paul Wittgenstein, the Austrian pianist who lost his right arm in World War I and commissioned works from famed composers including Ravel and Prokofiev.
When a major stroke paralyzed South Korean pianist Lee Hun’s right side in August 2012, his first worry was not music. “After the stroke, I didn’t even imagine playing the piano,” said Lee, now 54. “I only thought about whether I could stand on my feet again.”
The stroke had damaged approximately 60% of Lee’s left hemisphere. He could not move his right arm or leg and suffered temporary aphasia, a loss of speech ability. When Lee returned to South Korea in a wheelchair, his father—the baseball legend Lee Hae Chang—said his son could not recognize him.
Finding a Path Forward
In 2013, Lee’s former piano teacher Chun Yung Hae dined with him and mentioned there were more than 1,000 pieces written for the left hand alone. Lee began practicing that night.
“He is a pianist so he must play the piano,” Chun said. “He was completely hopeless and in despair, so I tried to give him some hope. But I didn’t expect him to play as well as this.”
The Comeback
Lee’s recovery took years of practice and rehabilitation. He gradually rebuilt his ability to walk and speak. In 2016, he made his formal debut as a one-handed pianist at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, where he had received treatment. He performed Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Six Etudes for the Left Hand Alone” and “Amazing Grace” alongside Chun on piano.
Since then, Lee has steadily built a performance career. He has given recitals, appeared on television, and written a memoir. He now walks without assistance and speaks with relative ease. Local media call him “Korea’s Paul Wittgenstein,” after the Austrian pianist who lost his right arm in World War I and became a pioneer in left-hand performance. Wittgenstein commissioned works from famed composers including Ravel, Prokofiev, Strauss, and Britten.
The Milestone Performance
On May 2, Lee will perform at the Icheon Young-Artist International Music Festival, marking his first performance with an orchestra. He will play Ravel’s “Piano Concerto for the Left Hand”—the same piece Wittgenstein commissioned nearly a century ago.
“I’m so, so nervous I could die,” Lee said during a recent interview, smiling. “It’s just one concerto but working with an orchestra has its own difficulties.”
Lee’s agency director Chung Eun-hyon said the performance represents a lifelong dream. “I feel deeply emotional as I help make his dream come true,” Chung said.
Lee Eungkwang, head of the cultural foundation responsible for the festival, said the performance captures something essential about Lee’s artistry. “He plays a sort of music that truly touches the heart of people,” Lee Eungkwang said. “It’s not about finger dexterity.”
The Distant Dream
Lee has spoken of an ultimate goal: performing with both hands. In November 2024, at a concert, he succeeded in pressing a piano key with his right hand. Once. The act was small but symbolically significant.
Medically, recovery remains unlikely. Dr. Koo Jaseong, Lee’s physician at St. Mary’s Hospital, said prospects for regaining full right-hand function are dim. “I still would like to give him a round of applause to his efforts,” Koo said. “Though rare, there have been reports of miraculous recoveries too.”
For now, Lee continues to perform with his left hand, drawing audiences who witness not only technical skill but something deeper: the musical expression of a person who lost everything and chose to create again.