Sebastian Lee was the eldest and most distiguished of three musical brothers, natives of Hamburg, though bearers of an English Name.
Like most virtuosos, Lee published many pieces designed to exploit a virtuoso's power upon his instrument-variations, fantasies upon operatic themes, divertissements, etc. More important are his numerous compositons intended for purposes of instruction, many of which were primarily written for the use of the Conservatoire in Paris. His method for cello is one of the most widely used of all such instruction books.