Being raised by Asian parents, I forced to play music from a very early age. I remember my first grand piano, which I received as a “Christmas present” at age four. I barely remember those nascent stages of banging on the piano keys, but as I transitioned into a more polished musician, I developed a sense of pride that stemmed from my music. As I commandeered more works (of music), I grew to appreciate the rigorous practices, the lessons, and the pride and pressure of playing in front of a large crowd. I played for almost thirteen years before I finally called it quits right before I entered college. Through those thirteen years, however, I have experienced every possible sense of joy and pain associated with being a musician; the frustration of struggling with a new music piece, the embarrassment of missing notes in recitals, the satisfaction when an audience rises up for a standing ovation, and the relief when the culmination of all my hard work comes to fruition. I have devoted years of time and energy into the one thing I thought I would be all too happy to leave behind: my musical career. Yet, after my last piano recital in high school, I realized that I would lose something that has been part of me since I could remember. I realized that I would not be able to leave my one constant passion in life, my music.
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You're lucky to have a talent like that. Especially one that you're very proud of. I'm Asian as well, but I've always been pushed to transcend in my academic endeavours. However, I am teaching myself how to play the piano. It's difficult to say the least, but I'm still having fun with it. Sometimes I wish that I had this passion for it when I was younger but I'm a firm believer in the fact that you can never be too young to learn something new. I do hope that I'll be able to reach my full capacity in the area one day. I just have to remember to take it one day at a time.
Sounds like your parents were right to push you into music.
I started taking piano lessons by choice, but it was largely influenced (though not forced - I think it's better to influence rather than force) by my mother, who often played classical music, and also played the piano. I took lessons for six years and have been playing for almost ten (four with only self-instruction... um, actually more like, four with only rarely playing the piano and occasionally learning a new piece). I'm really busy now with college stuff and work and a zillion other things, but I still listen to music a lot and packed all my favorite sheet music, so when I do have time I can go to the campus pianos and start getting serious about my music again.
There are quite a few scholarships for pianists, btw, especially if you have some talent with composing, I recommend you look into those.
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