Ah yes, child prodigies, how wonderful. Just when you thought that you were good, you come across a tiny little child, who is five years younger than you are, yet twenty times better than you think you’ll ever be. Aren’t they just the best for your self confidence?
A few days ago, as I was taking a break from practicing violin, I was listening to some recordings of Sarasate’s Zigneunerweisen, when I stumbled upon this video of a girl named Mercedes Cheung playing it, at Banff Centre Artists Concert. I was completely in awe. Not only is Zigneunerweisen difficult to spell and pronounce, it’s a very high level piece, and it’s such a virtuosic composition, with so many technical difficulties, it’s extremely hard to be able to play it at a performance tempo, let alone with the great tone and clarity that Ms.Cheung performed it at, and at such a young age (around 9, I believe). As a violinist, even just watching the video, listening to all the fast runs, the left-hand pizzicato, was absolutely terrifying.
And in awe, I clicked on the description, hoping that it would somehow tell me the secret to playing that well (it did not). But what I found there was equally incredible. If my jaw had already been dropped, it was completely on the floor now.
At the age of 8, she was admitted with a full scholarship to the Juilliard School of Music Pre-College Young Talented Program as the 2010 youngest winner. Soon after she turned 9, she had passed the ARCT Violin Performer’s Diploma Practical Exam (the highest performing standing awarded by the Royal Conservatory of Music (or RCM)). She’s the youngest one in the history of the RCM to pass ARCT and the grade 10 violin exam (which she did at age 7), with first class honours (meaning she scored 90 or higher out of 100). Mercedes currently studies with Donald Weilerstein (Faculty of Juilliard School & New England Conservatory) and her father, Ephraim Cheung, who is the Music Director of Markham Symphony. She was also the world’s youngest violinist (age of 10) ever to have performed the most virtuosic and challenging repertoire : the complete 24 Caprices (by Paganini), in her Carnegie Hall debut recital in 2012. In addition to that, she also recorded these Caprices on DVD and CD, being the youngest to do so.
And after recovering from the sheer shock of knowing that such a talented person could even exist, I started to ask myself : “So, what about me?” I’ve been playing violin for two years now, but I’m already three years older than Mercedes was when she made her Carnegie Hall debut. How could I ever compare to someone like her?
But as I was watching a video of this girl playing Paganini’s 24th caprice (one of the most virtuosic violin pieces ever written), I realized that it was foolish to compare myself to someone like her. I mean, she comes from a musical family, she started violin before I probably even knew what a violin was, and she had made her debut at Carnegie Hall before I had even considered starting violin. It would be completely unreasonably to compare myself to someone as accomplished as her.
So I realized that instead of letting this push myself down, and should be proud of what I have been able to accomplish in these (almost) two years, and see Mercedes, and her playing as a goal to set for my future.
So next time you see a child prodigy, don’t think oh, I’ll never be as good as them. See them as an inspiration, a goal that you can achieve. Instead of constantly comparing yourself to someone that you can’t practically compare to, strive to make yourself better.
Because at the end of the day, no amount of despair at how amazing a child prodigy is, is going to make you a better player. So rather than crying over spilled milk, go and practice.
Seriously. Just go practice.
