Five- year- old piano prodigy headed to Carnegie Hall
Ryan Wang’s performance schedule for the next several months includes dates at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, an appearance with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and a stop at Italy’s Fazioli Pianoforti concert hall.
An impressive roster for a pianist by any stretch of the imagination, but particularly for the West Vancouver prodigy — who is only five.
Fresh from a second- place finish at the recent American Protege Piano and Strings International Competition, Ryan has been fielding international interest in his considerable talent, which has seen him master an 18- page concerto — Matthew Edwards’ Concerto for Young Pianist — intended to be played by children more than twice his age.
Ryan’s Carnegie Hall appearance later this month is at a concert to celebrate the Protege winners.
Ryan’s mother, Iris, said she’s as surprised as anyone by her son’s success, though there were hints of his musical ability early on.
“He sang before he talked,” she said in a phone interview Monday evening, after Ryan’s bedtime.
The petite pianist had been worn out by yet another round of recognition that day: four trophies garnered at the North Shore Music Festival.
As a toddler, Ryan would start most mornings plonking away on an electronic keyboard for an hour at a time, said Iris. She soon started taking him to see concerts by children’s performers, where he would sing and dance along with uncanny precision.
Ryan was enrolled in a preschool music class where he immediately caught the teacher’s attention, and it wasn’t long before his teacher at Collingwood School joined the chorus of those calling on Iris to put Ryan in more formal music lessons.
She was a little reluctant to start her son on a serious hobby so soon. “I was thinking four years is so young, right? You cannot even read the notes.”
But Ryan’s age has proved to be no obstacle. In the year he’s been taking piano lessons, Ryan has proven to be a natural performer, who, Iris says, doesn’t suffer stage fright. “I get more nervous than he does.” Though Ryan’s international tour starts this weekend with his trip to New York City, he will be making some time to perform for local audiences as well. He will be performing at West Vancouver’s Kay Meek Theatre on June 9, with all proceeds to be donated to the Sarah MacLachlan School of Music.