WALK ACROSS THE third floor hallway during lunch. What do you hear?

The technical storm of a Chopin etude fills your ears. The sound from the piano is pleasing, exciting, dramatic. The artist evokes strong emotions from you that he himself feels.

Walk up to the South Attic — the source of the pristine melody — as the piece ends, making way for an equally mellifluous, but more somber, Beethoven sonata.

Open the door. Peek inside and find the virtuoso at work.

Sitting on the bench is Daniel Cheng, who is not only playing but listening to the feeling he conjures, the music he makes as he pours himself into the keys.

Though it may not be obvious from his modest appearance or quiet manner, Cheng, a 15-year-old junior, is one of the most accomplished young musicians in the state of Illinois.

On a cold Saturday morning, Cheng leaves his house at 11 a.m. with his parents, embarking on a three-hour drive to Wheaton, Ill. What is he doing on a Saturday morning like this?

On the ride there, he listens to professional recordings of the four pieces he is to play. He is tired and bored, but not nervous, just curious. Curious about his ability to perform in front of an audience today. One question runs through his mind: Will he be able to get through all 20 minutes of playing?

Prelude: “A little snapshot of life”

It all started nine years ago, when Cheng, then a first-grader, was encouraged by his parents to take on piano lessons with his older sister and future Uni graduate, Christine Cheng (Class of 2007).

Daniel Cheng plays a selection in the South Attic. Gargoyle photo by Danny Ge (click to enlarge)

While Daniel was starting to study music for the first time in his life, his sister had already played violin for a number of years before she started piano lessons. In a way, Christine was the first musical influence in Daniel’s life, and he has continued to look up to her throughout his musical career.

“She always had two instruments, which was very impressive, while I’m just doing piano,” recalls Daniel. “She’s a very good example of hard work and diligence.”

After Cheng agreed to take piano lessons, his mother quickly found a teacher, Susan Crawford, with whom he has studied ever since.

“Daniel has always been inquisitive,” says Crawford. “When he was very young and starting to take piano lessons, he would always ask if he could do more than I would assign him. For example, I would assign a one-octave scale, and he wanted to know if he could practice two octaves!”

On the day of his first lesson, a young and eager Daniel Cheng hopped into the car with his mother and sister, wondering about what new things he would learn.

As he walked into Crawford’s house, Cheng was instantly captivated.

“It was fun and enjoyable,” he recalls, “a little snapshot of life, like something special that you can just remember.”

All the little things were what made the house so special. Cheng saw a tissue box shaped like a piano, a chair with adjustable height, and a footstool to use so that his feet weren’t hanging in the air while he played.

But the most fun came when his lesson was over, and it was his sister’s turn to tap the keys. As he waited the 30 minutes for his sister’s lesson to be over, Cheng would walk over to a back room and visit Crawford’s cats.

Today, Crawford still has all of the things that Cheng adored as a child. Though he has outgrown the footstool, he still sees the piano key tissue box and uses the adjustable chair, and above all, he still plays with her three cats.

It’s 2:10 p.m., and Cheng steps out of the car into the bitter cold at Wheaton College. He heads to his warm-up room, which is in a different building from the auditorium where he is to perform later.

Cheng takes the stage, adjusting the chair before settling down and beginning his first piece.

Intermezzo: “I really liked it”

With Crawford’s guidance and her focus on teaching technique and musicality, Cheng began to develop into a fine young musician.

“I would always let him challenge himself,” says Crawford. “He always was well prepared for his lessons, but I wanted to be careful that we didn't skip anything in his musical development since he was so precocious. I could tell at a very early age that he would develop into quite a pianist. He is like a sponge that soaks up everything it touches.”

Christine Cheng signs her handprint a few days before graduating from Uni in 2007. An inspiration to Daniel, she is a student at the University of Illinois. Gargoyle photo by Linda Song (click to enlarge)

Cheng also considers himself lucky to have started with Crawford at such an early age.

“She’s willing to work with younger kids,” he remarks. “It’s easier to work with older kids since they understand more, but she’s still willing to work with younger ones.”

Starting in his first year of piano lessons, Cheng was introduced to music competitions in the form of the Achievement in Music theory and performance exam, which is divided into 12 levels and consists of a written portion testing a student's knowledge of music theory as well as a live performance. Students are awarded certificates of achievement if they receive sufficient scores.

What really made the AIM competition so valuable for Cheng was the performance experience he gained from participating. As he puts it, “Playing in front of an audience is a lot different from just practicing or playing for your teacher.”

For Cheng, all that experience paid off in sixth grade when his teacher entered him in the ISMTA junior performance competition. This was his first real competition, and the event that would propel him into the stratosphere of Illinois musicians.

The ISMTA junior competition is divided into district and state levels, with district winners advancing to state. In his first year competing, Cheng played the first movement of a Mozart sonata in B flat major and advanced to state, where he received an honorable mention.

“It was so exciting playing the Mozart sonata,” he says. “I really liked it. I can still play the first four measures.”

For Cheng, the Mozart sonata was the first piece that motivated him to adopt a more energetic attitude toward his music. His success at ISMTA inspired him to take his piano playing more seriously, to explore his joy of music and to see exactly how far he could go.

“One of the most unique things about his playing is the range of emotions I experience when I hear him,” says Daniel's sister, Christine. “There are times when his melodies touch my heart because of how beautiful and expressive they are. This happens because he understands the original intent of composer.

“There are times when his energy and intensity makes the listener feel that passion and excitement. Finally, there are times when it is just awesome to hear him play very difficult passages but with incredible accuracy and rhythm.”

The enchanting andante of Mendelssohn’s “Rondo Capriccioso” captivates the audience with its beautiful melody, while setting up perfectly the presto that soon follows.

Next up is the third movement of Beethoven’s “Tempest” sonata. The piano is well suited for Beethoven’s interwoven themes within his piece, which only makes Cheng’s job easier as he delivers the haunting melody.

Crescendo: “Exciting and deliberate”

Following his success with the Mozart sonata, Cheng’s piano studies accelerated around the time he attended Uni as a seventh grader. As a subfreshman, he once again entered the ISMTA junior-level competition and once again earned an honorable mention at state, this time by playing a Haydn sonata in D major.

Cheng tried again his freshman year and tied for first with a Beethoven sonata in C major, earning $50 in prize money (the prize for first place was $100, which was split between the two first-prize winners).

Also during this time, Cheng participated in the Arcadia Student Chamber Music Festival from 2004 to 2006. Every year, he played the piano as part of a group while his sister played the violin.

“I really enjoy playing with Daniel no matter what the competition or event,” says Christine. “Since the first time we started playing together, we really connected well as ensemble players. His playing made me a better violinist since I would perform with even more emotion and musicality. It is always a great experience to play with him.”

In his first year competing in the music festival, as a sixth-grader, Cheng played a duet with his sister and won first prize. The next year, they played a trio with a cellist and won again. In 2006, Daniel and Christine were part of two trios, one of which featured another Uni grad, Jennifer Roloff (Class of 2008), on the oboe. The trio of Uni students won first with a Bach double violin concerto (Roloff played a violin part on the oboe) while the other trio involving Cheng and his sister placed second.

“It was a good experience to play with different sorts of instruments,” says Daniel.

Despite his success, Cheng still had room to improve his playing. During the summers following his subfreshman and freshman years, he attended the Illinois Summer Youth Music advanced piano camp at the University of Illinois, which requires a repertoire list and a short performance as part of its application process.

“The summer camp gave me more enthusiasm, especially the second year, to look to the future and take [piano] more seriously,” says Cheng. “It gave me mental and emotional impetus.”

For both of his two years in the week-long camp, Cheng chose two pieces to work on with U of I professors and to eventually play at a recital at the end of the camp.

During his time at ISYM, Cheng developed an affinity for the work of French composer Claude Debussy. In his first year, he played Debussy’s “Arabesque No. 2” in the ISYM honors recital, and the year after that he played Debussy’s “Golliwogg’s Cakewalk” and a prelude from the “Pour Le Piano Suite.”

“Those Debussy pieces reflected the essence of the music I enjoy,” says Cheng. “[They were] exciting and deliberate.”

Just last summer, Cheng elevated his playing again while he attended the prestigious Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music Piano Academy.

“It was a very intense three weeks,” he says. “The people there were very good.”

Like the ISYM camp, the Jacobs camp required a repertoire list, but instead of a live performance, Cheng sent two recordings of himself and a letter of recommendation from Crawford. He was expected to take three pieces at different levels of completion to the camp to work on with the instructors.

Cheng took advantage of this camp to improve four pieces he was preparing for the ISMTA senior-level state contest. He was to play Mendelssohn’s “Rondo Capriccioso” opus 14, a Bach prelude and fugue in D major (BWV 850), the third movement of Beethoven’s “Tempest” sonata, and Chopin’s “Winter Wind” etude.

“The longer you are with a piece, the more maturely you play it,” explains Cheng. “You also start to enjoy it more and appreciate it. A professor at the camp said that one must enjoy what one is playing, and I really took that to heart."

Aside from intense piano study, Cheng genuinely enjoyed his stay at the camp, which featured a summer music festival highlighted by the Beaux Arts Trio, which is considered to be one of the best ensembles in the world. He also feels fortunate to have bonded with his fellow campers during his stay.

“The campers there showed a lot of passion for music,” he says. “ It was really good that I could connect with people who enjoy music.”

Finally, the last piece to drive it home. Chopin’s “Winter Wind” etude. This exciting piece should be the perfect way to end the day for Cheng.

The winner is announced. First place: Daniel Cheng.

Appassionata: “With fire and passion”

“It was really unexpected, and I’m really thankful for it,” comments Cheng about winning ISMTA. “Performing the pieces was a lot different from practice; there were some unwanted things, but performing also brings out more feelings and musicality than in practice. Most importantly, I had grown to enjoy the pieces over time.”

The ISMTA competition has helped Cheng develop as a musician and learn a little bit more about himself. The Mendelssohn and Chopin pieces were both composed during the Romantic period, which Cheng says has become his favorite period of music.

“Romantic music is my favorite," he says. "It does a lot with technical piano playing, while at the same time inciting passionate feelings and more emotions. It makes the music feel connected and alive.”

Above all else, passion and joy for what he plays is Cheng’s guiding principle in furthering his musical career. No matter how many more competitions he participates in, no matter where he plays, he will always sit down and pour the same energy into his music with the same feeling that makes it enjoyable to everyone, including the pianist himself.

“I want to be able to understand the music, connect it with myself, and express the emotions,” he says. “I want to play all types of music — from simple tunes to elaborately massive pieces — with fire and passion.”

His sister, for one, believes Daniel is well on his way to doing that.

“I believe music to be a universal element that everyone can encounter and understand in their own way,” says Christine. “As musicians, we must use our talent to express ourselves in a way that allows listeners to appreciate something beautiful. Through the way Daniel is able to create a wide range of feelings in the listener, he is becoming that kind of musician.”