Lang Lang called him "Master Lai" after they performed a piano duet at the National Center for the Performing Arts last year. The totally blind 12-year-old Lai Jiajun let his fingers dance over the keyboard, and smiled as if he had noticed the surprise on Lang Lang's face. Lai has magic hands and a memory that enables him to precisely repeat a song on the piano after listening just one or two times. He treasures the gift and loves spending hours at a time playing. His hobby became his major preoccupation when he was admitted in June to the prestigious Middle School Affiliated to Central Conservatory of Music. Lai is now practicing at least six hours a day. "I think it's strange when my peers and their parents ask me whether I get bored practicing piano for so many hours a day. If I am not enthusiastic about my hobby, what is the point of doing it? " Lai says. Lai, however, is dissatisfied with his magic hands. He thinks they are too small and not supple enough to cover some piano pieces. Even so, he is confident that his hands will get bigger and more flexible. Lai was blind soon after being born four months premature. He was put on a ventilator, but given too much oxygen, which cost him his eyesight. Aged 2, his father, Lai Gehong, bought him a toy electric piano. Music quickly grabbed little Lai's attention. He played for two months and memorized the sound of each key. One day, his parents found that he could play Two Tigers, one of the songs his mother sang to him every night. Gradually, Lai learned to repeat the pop songs he heard on TV and radio. His parents wanted to send him to music classes, but hesitated because as factory workers they earned little and had spent most of their savings trying to cure Lai's blindness. Even so, at a family meeting it was agreed Lai would start the long process of professional training. But hiring a private tutor was also a problem. Piano teachers in his hometown of Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, said they saw a promising future for Lai but added they were not qualified to teach a blind child. "Jiajun had found something which made him happy and it was our duty to do our best and support him," his father says of this time. As such Lai often went to a piano shop to practice and was always the last one to leave. The shop owner was moved and offered the boy a piano, together with free classes. In 2005, the family took a bold step and, financed by locals in Hangzhou, they traveled to Beijing. It was here they met Zhou Guangren, a renowned pianist. Zhou recognized Lai's talent and asked her favorite pupil to teach Lai. She even bought the youngster a piano. While Lai's mother started work as a librarian, his father accompanied him full time to piano lessons. He needed his father's assistance to find out the requirements of a score. But his biggest challenge was getting his arms, wrists and fingers to coordinate. It didn't take long, however, before he began to analyze the deviations in a piece of music by different conductors. Zhou says her post-graduate students are unable to do this. "I like to overcome difficulties, it keeps me progressing. It takes me three times longer than other children to learn a new piece of music, but it is fun for me. Father always tells me not to compare with others but to concentrate on myself," Lai says. Lai says his father taught him to accept his disability at an early age, even when others poked fun at him because of his blindness. "Although I can't see the sunshine, there is sunshine in my heart," Lai says. As Lai has matured he has also developed other interests, including learning English. His bookshelf contains not only thousands of music CDs but also audio English learning materials. He listens to an English radio program every night and phones in to talk fluently in English with the hosts. Sometimes he talks to himself in English, on buses or on the subway, which gets him noticed by foreign visitors. Lai also attends Beijing Institution for the Blind for regular schooling. He likes English and Chinese classes, in which he can read novels. Currently he is reading Anne of Green Gables. "I think Anne has a daring character. She always gets herself into trouble but she learns from this," Lai says. When his father picks him up from school, they talk about school life. Sometimes Lai complains about his teachers and classmates, but his father helps him to understand that people have different perspectives. "If I could see for three days, I would look at my piano, my parents and all the people who care and help me," Lai says. "Every day of my life is colorful because I am doing something I am enthusiastic about. In the world of music, I feel free and optimistic." Source: China Daily
