Why Wunderkinder are not miracles

Being born rich is almost mandatory for this to happen. Access to opportunities is also very important. Perhaps there are thousands of other geniuses and prodigies not only in music, but in many other areas. But these children are more concerned about having something to eat and getting water and having to walk long distances to get to school.

Prodigies are intellectual sponges. It’s really a crime to deprive them, but it’s also a crime to push then mercilessly.

Let's remember that, in the end, music is not about prestigious prizes, outstanding technical performance, it's about human relationship and living together. A language to tell stories and to communicate with the people around us, with no regard to some intellectual perfection of the sounds being played. A social communion of the emotions, and the encouragement of living through our difficult lives, and to throw love at each other!

It is not worth it. I hated my childhood and the result was that I ended up blocking out almost my entire life. I have no memories of childhood because I was so pressured and was under constant stress, constantly being yelled at to "do better" or being beaten, was never told I was succeeding or given positive reinforcement. Music was never about joy when it was taught to me. I ended up becoming homeless after not being able to deal with the cruelty and pressure from my parents, went in a downward spiral and almost ended it all. Now, over a decade later, I have come back to music on MY terms, I teach music and focus on making sure children have structure, but not to the point where they hate their lives, because that kind of stress on a child is just not healthy.

To be born ... 1. a genius 2. in the right family 3. at the right time 4. in the right place 5. with the right contribution 6. with a random/lucky break .... BINGO !!!! (or you might say close to a miracle) 🙂

Musical prodigies are not the only ones who have followed this narrow path. Behind many talented athletes there has been a parent, teacher or coach that has been their guide--for better or worse.

The sad thing, often, about child prodigies is that people often lose interest in them when they grow up -often it's just the cuteness thing seeing a child sing or play so well!

The one thing this doesn't deal with is the financial cost. Talent, practice and determination still don't guarantee success. For a family with very limited financial resources, trying to deal with a talented child can cripple their living conditions. The cost of tuition, instruments, travel....is huge, and unless there is plenty of available wealth, it is impossible to give a talented child the full support they might want or need. These Wunderkinder do truly live in a world apart from the rest of us. It makes me question how many of them are never noticed because they don't have financial backing.

Actually, Mozart did have several talents that had little to nothing to do with music. He was a great writer, could speak backwards fluently and was generally good at conversation and languages. He was also good at seeing through people, interpreting actions as a part of a kind of bigger picture - a character. This can be seen - or rather heard - in his operas where he perfectly puts every bit of human temperament and contradiction into music. Another famous child prodigy that was an allrounder is Mendelssohn. He was great at writing, the visual arts, a natural leader and organiser, and a kind of activist for older music - as well as a brilliant teacher. The only prodigy that comes to my mind that was only good at music is Liszt. He was in fact ashamed to be walking amongst people who had a better general education.

I’m thankful for my childhood. I started music late in life (15 years old), but I don’t regret all that time I spent playing call of duty and such mindless activities, they me made who I am today. I’m glad I have learned in life that to achieve anything at all you need to have will and commitment. I disagree with David regarding the last statement, sometimes prodigies reach the top, that’s true, but that doesn’t save them from suffering and it doesn’t necessarily make their adult life “easier”. There are many renown world class musicians that suffer from depression, think of Horowitz, Glenn Gould, even Martha Argerich. Even the greatest of all musicians, namely Mozart, Beethoven and Bach had to struggle really bad in their lifes, each with their unique set of struggles. In other words, the investment and effort taken into making a child a prodigy doesn’t automatically translates into having a better or easier life. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying parents shouldn’t encourage kids to learn new things and follow their passions, but it should never become a burden on the child such that the child feels they had no childhood. Even Johann Sebastian Bach, humanity’s greatest musician went to a regular school, and had to learn to adapt himself to the regular plain old society we all know. In fact, there’s a certain beauty in that, having to live what everyone else lives makes us more empathic and open in our knowledge about the world. Some of this kids, from what is seen in the documentary, are being segregated from society, they are being forced to practice for hours everyday. Jesus Christ.

Well-balanced documentary! Thank you. I was immediately plunged back to my childhood in the 1950s. In the conformist middle of postwar America, growing up in a huge working-class family from which no-one had attended college or traveled beyond a small radius, I was inexplicably boiling over with a passion for Dvorak, Handel, Bach, Copland, Barber, Brahms. I was in the school madrigals and choir, and I pleaded with my parents to give me piano lessons. They were unenthused, or confused, but finally they found a pleasant lady around the corner, and I began. But it was very uninspired teaching, and everyone in the family would yell at me when I practiced the old upright piano in our small house, and just getting a piano and lessons had already been such an uphill struggle. So at every turn, my talent was slowed for want of robust support from knowledgeable adults. Years later I was playing on my own competently, and I genuinely loved studying music theory in college. I still love music, of course, but what a different track my life might have taken with real fuel to feed my originally fiery ambition. I was also intensely ainterested in art, geology, biology and paleontology, but again, no-one noticed. To parents of intellectually intrigued kids--I say give them as much support as they will absorb! Don't push maniacally beyond that, of course, because that could be just as unproductive. But don't ignore potential brilliance. Raphael, Mozart and Euler didn't dazzle the world because they were raised with low expectations.

I wouldn't call myself a prodigy, but my mother would be the first to tell you that I've had an opus performed by age 13. Now that I'm in my 20s, I can say that I don’t remember a lot from my teen years (due to trauma). I felt very pushed when it came to certain aspects of music. It didn't feel fun anymore, and I lost all sense of passion. I felt extremely disgusted with my music. What I started as a means of expression felt like a tool. While it wasn't the main cause, I fell into a major depression and ended up dropping out of school and all activities. I couldn't leave the house for almost three years. It created a lot of trauma around many things, including creating and performing music (if you know an anime called Your Lie in April, it was kind of like that). To all the parents out there, please listen to your kids. Yes, this even refers to Asian parents like mine. Kids crying after every lesson and hiding away is NOT normal. I have gone through many treatments to the point where I have reclaimed certain things in music, but I cannot deny that I lost a lot, including my formative teen years.

Where's Ling Ling?

My mother is very gifted with talent and passion for music. As a kid she wanted to play violin and she would have been supported but here mother didn't wanted to "waste" her own time bringing her to lessions, concerts... My mother started as a grown up but she could never reach that level she could by starting earlier. As long as the kids have fun and want it let them start early. It's a porblem if they absolutely hate it.

I love the mentallity of DG. So strong and focused. He choses long term choice and doesn't take his childhood negatively.

The thing about musical parents demanding “perfection” of pitch and technique when their progeny are young is that bad habits are extremely difficult for any musician to unlearn. The child’s brain is obviously much more elastic than that of an adult, but the errors in finger and arm position in string instruments can be insidious, and the muscle memory hard to erase.

I never told or ask my son if he practice his piano lessons. What I loved most was when everyone was in bed he would start playing piano, in the dark and the sound of the music carried me to dreamland. Defenitly gifted.

David Garret is in all points right. Our kids also have a certain talent, Their disadvantage is having parents, who are not musicians themselves and have no or only few connections to the "decision making" people. It is much harder to pull the right strings...

Everyone grows up in their own “shoebox” of sorts. Some have far too little adult input, some have maybe too much. There is no ideal childhood, though. We all become adults one day, with pressure, sacrifice, responsibilities and many never succeed at anything big once they’re adults. These young musicians were gifted with music in their blood as well as supportive parents. Now they’re successful! Lucky them. 💕

Amazing that David Garrett is so humble despite his prodigious talent (and hard work)!