Lise began her involvement with Balkan music in 1976 in the vibrant dance scene of the San Francisco Bay Area. She was a member and director of Westwind International Folk Ensemble for many years. At a Balkan music and dance camp Lise first heard the sound of the santouri (Greek hammered dulcimer) and was hooked. She began studying santouri with the Philadelphia-based musician Yiannis Roussos. She and her husband George Chittenden moved to Athens, Greece, where she continued her studies with the master musician Tásos Dhiakogiórgis. Lise plays santouri, accordion, and baglamá in the bands Ziyiá and Édessa and has toured internationally with the band Rebetiki Paréa. She has taught santouri at Balkan music workshops on both the west and east coasts as well as in Hawaii.