Musical youth hit the right note

Every year, there are hundreds of large piano competitions in China, which are organized by professional institutions, governments and companies. Wu says that before winning this biennial event, which is run by the 160-year-old German-based Steinway & Sons, he had entered more than 20 contests.

Almost all Chinese children who learn piano will be asked to take part in a grading test. Now more than 300,000 do so every year, Feng says.

Werner Husmann, president of Steinway & Sons Asia-Pacific, says the skills and techniques of young Chinese pianists have improved greatly since Steinway started its operations in China a decade ago.

"I think what everyone in the West sees every year now is that if you look at international piano competitions and other piano events, it's very rare that you won't find Chinese contestants at least in the finals."

Husmann says this improvement is down not only to parental commitment but also to support from Chinese governments.

"Piano education in the West is not at the level I find in China: how much the government is funding it and how much you can convince people they'll really enjoy playing piano," he says.

"Looking at the results and the skill level in competitions around the world, what China has done in piano education in such a short time is way ahead of other countries."

In private education there are many colleges, high schools and primary schools that feature piano education. That is rare in the West, where learning the piano is more a matter of personal choice.

Wu Ying, dean of the piano department of the Central Conservatory of Music, says it did not have a piano department until 2001, but now it is an all-Steinway school.

"The college has invested a lot in equipment and technique, which are necessary to produce top professionals," he says.

However, while the piano market and related industries have welcomed this boom, experts like Wu find it a mixed blessing.

"We are happy to have some talented students who could be excellent professional pianists," he says. "But for other children, the piano is just a entertainment and parents don't need to be too concerned about grading tests or things like that."