by Aviva Gat
On May 17, Leonard Chong played his violin in the Edith Knox Performance Competition against people up to the age of 25, including students at the University of Southern California. The audience was huge, but he wasn’t nervous. He just wanted to make sure he stayed focused and didn’t mess up. As one of the six finalists, Leonard played Henryk Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 2 — a 25 minute piece — without sheet music. He received a standing ovation and second place. Not bad for an 11-year-old.
This wasn’t the first competition Leonard placed in. He won the Southwestern Youth Music Festival competition in 2006, 2007 and 2008 and is looking forward to this year’s competition in July. He also placed first in the South Bay 2008 American String Teachers Association junior competition and second in the Los Angeles ASTA competition, advancing him to the state finals where he was recommended to the national competition. He also won a scholarship for private lessons from the Music Teachers Association of California’s South Bay branch.
“Playing the notes is one thing,” said his father, Fernando Chong, recalling an intermission when a woman came up to them and said her husband couldn’t get out of his seat because he was crying. Leonard’s piece affected him that much. “Being able to play the way he does and touch people, he makes it very musical.”
Leonard just finished sixth grade at Manhattan Beach Middle School where he plays in the string orchestra. While at Pennekamp Elementary School, he played in the Honors String Orchestra, which appeared in the movie “Eagle Eye” with actor Shia LaBeouf.
Leonard started his musical career at age 5 on the piano. At age 6, he switched to the violin. He once told his father that if he was stranded on a deserted island and could only bring one thing, it would be his violin, because he couldn’t live without it.
“If you want to be good at an instrument you have to concentrate on one,” said Chong. “There is only so much time to practice.”
Leonard practices two hours on school days. But now that it is summer, Leonard said his dad wants him to practice up to three hours. But Leonard also wants to play his video games. His father said he sets the bar high.
“He already knows the pressure [of competitions],” the senior Chong said. “We train on how to handle that pressure. One thing we discuss is preparation. It’s like if you study for a test, no problem. But if you didn’t study well, you’ll be very nervous.”
The hardest thing about playing the violin is intonation, said Leonard. He practices every piece much slower than it is supposed to be played to perfect the intonation. Sometimes with long pieces, his fingers get a little tired.
His violin teacher, Elmer Su, said practicing slowly has made Leonard improve.
“I make sure my fingers are comfortable before I go faster,” said Leonard.
His idol is Jascha Heifetz, a violin virtuoso, who is widely regarded as one of the twentieth century’s greatest violinists.
Leonard is the third of four siblings. Three play the violin and one plays the cello. Sometimes the quartet practices together, playing pieces arranged by their father, who was formerly a classical guitar player.
Now the senior Chong, who owns Ws China Bistro and China Grill Contemporary Bistro, listens to his children play.
Leonard said if his dream of becoming a soloist doesn’t work out, he would be a chef at one of his father’s restaurants. ER