Inspired by sound of music

As a young scholar of the Lang Lang International Music Foundation (2016-18), Guo has also participated in joint recitals at Carnegie's Weill Hall.

"Sometimes a slow, romantic movement can prove a tougher challenge for young musicians than quick, upbeat ones, since mastery of rubato usually requires years of experience to nurture and blossom. Fifteen-year-old Chelsea Guo, from Juilliard's pre-college division, seemed right at home in the second movement larghetto from Chopin's Concerto No 2. She negotiated Chopin's arabesques with unforced elegance, displaying a genuine gift for lyrical finesse," wrote Michael Cameron for Chicago Music Report at a concert, which was a collaboration between the Midwest Young Artists Conservatory and the Lang Lang International Music Foundation.

According to Guo's mother, He Jing, who, along with her husband, furthered their graduate studies in the United States during the 1990s and later immigrated there, her daughter showed passion for music at an early age.

"When she was 2 years old, she passed by a music store and was curious about the instruments," He says. "I bought her a ukulele because it was the smallest instrument in the store and she played at home every day."

She adds that Guo was 5 years old when she took her first piano class.

He also plays the violin and piano.

She admits that she didn't expect her daughter to become a professional musician until Guo started winning major competitions, including being awarded the "special commendation for young talent" at the Ettlingen International Piano Competition in Germany in 2012.

In May, Chelsea was invited to give recitals at Wigmore Hall in London and Howard Assembly Room, Leeds, as part of the first Leeds Piano Festival. Part of the project in Britain was community outreach, Guo says, which saw her perform for a group suffering from dementia. After she played, an elderly man approached her and said that he wouldn't remember her name the next day, but he would remember that he had a joyful day listening to her beautiful piano music.

"This experience also led me to think about why music is so powerful," Guo says. "I have traveled around the world, playing and studying, and it's the impact of the music I channel that always astounds me. It can cause tears by tugging the heartstrings, smiles of healing, looks of far-off nostalgia, gleaming eyes of inspiration-this is what makes my aspiration worth the effort."