Roxan Lim knew from the moment she heard the cello that it was the instrument for her. She was only six years old then, but she was immediately drawn to the cello’s sound.
Her affinity for the instrument was confirmed when she held the bow like a natural the first time she tried playing it … even if she was dwarfed by the cello. “I liked the cello because it sounded more like human voices,” says Roxan at her home in Hulu Kelang, Selangor.
There has been no turning back for Roxan. Her talent on the cello earned the eight-year-old musician an honourable mention in the school students category (age 6-10) in the 2012 American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition. She was also invited to perform at the Winners Concert at Carnegie Hall, New York, in May.
Her family – her parents, grandparents and older brother Max – was so proud of her they flew to New York to watch her perform. “It was truly an eye-opening experience for us. People respected Roxan despite her young age, and were very professional. She also met and heard players from other countries, which she only used to watch on YouTube,” relates Roxan’s mother Sylvia Fong, 45, a lawyer.
To support her daughter’s aspirations, Fong has been trying to enter Roxan in competitions, but found most did not have places for those in her daughter’s age group. Then she came across the American Protégé competition, which had a category for young players. Fong then submitted recordings of Roxan’s performance, one of which was Goltermann’s Rono from Concerto No. 4, Opus 65. She played that piece during her performance at Carnegie Hall.
Fong says the Carnegie Hall stage crew had difficulty getting a chair of a suitable height for Roxan because she was so petite ... in fact, the judges remarked that she was possibly the youngest Malaysian to have played in that esteemed hall.
“It’s physically challenging for her to play the cello at her age due to her small size. In fact, the cello she is playing is a half-size cello. To compensate for her size, she has to pull harder at the bow. Playing a complete suite or concerto requires a lot of stamina and memorisation from her,” says Fong.
Roxan played the Bach’s Suite No. 1 in G (Courante) with much concentration and expression for us during the interview. When I asked her how playing the cello made her feel, she sighed innocently, “tired,” followed by a slump of her shoulder. Although strenuous, there was no mistaking the passion
Roxan poured into her music. The avid reader practises about an hour a day and her parents do not push her to do more.
“We do not believe in long hours of practice but quality of practice,” says her father Lim Tim Lee, 45, a senior bank executive. “Her teacher says she has her own, natural style of playing and we should preserve it.”
Although she has not sat for any formal examinations, Roxan plays Diploma level pieces. Next year, Fong plans to arrange for Roxan to sit for the Grade 8 exam.
“In young children, it is very important to instil and preserve interest in music, which is a very good foundation for them. The intensity of concentration is very good training and will help them in other areas of their lives,” says Fong.
The private school student also excels at her studies, and is into outdoor activities like swimming and skiing.
Her parents spend RM6,000 monthly on her music fees, which includes renting the German-made cello Roxan is currently using. A good, brand new cello will fall in the five-figure range.
Roxan, who turns nine in November, also takes piano lessons, which she started at four. Her brother Max, 10, plays the piano and violin.
“She is still young and I am ready if one day she decides to burn her cello and take up the electric guitar! But if she really wants to pursue music, we will do what it takes to support her all the way,” declares Lim.
“If Roxan really has the gift and talent people say she has, then it’s not fair if we do not do our best to support her,” adds Fong.
Technical perfection
In Chong Lih Yoong’s home, they squabble over who gets to practise on the piano. Lih Yoong’s two younger sisters almost always have to pry her away as she could be practising up to six hours, especially during school holidays.
“I have never had to push her to practise,” says her mother Ting Wai Eng at their home in Sri Petaling, Kuala Lumpur.
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