Through the touch of his piano teacher, Azariah Tan is able to know how much pressure to put on the keys. -- ST PHOTOS: ONG WEE JIN

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When he plays the piano, people sit up and listen, not realising that this prize-winning young musician is sometimes himself struggling to hear.

Azariah Tan Peng Chay, 18, has a condition that has robbed him of 80 per cent of his hearing ability. Yet he is studying at the National University of Singapore's (NUS) Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music, hopes to make a career as a concert pianist and this year won first prize in the senior category of the National Piano and Violin competition.

The biennial contest held by the National Arts Council appears in the early resumes of many noted musicians, including violinist Kam Ning, who was one of the judges this year.

First, second and third prizes are awarded to pianists and violinists in four categories, based on age: junior, intermediate, senior and artist. Winners receive a trophy and cash awards from $200 to $5,000.

This year saw a record 321 entries received, with some competitors still in primary school while others were full-time students at local music schools. The youngest winner was a Primary 2 pupil at Singapore Chinese Girls' School, Amanda Lee Yun Yee, eight, who dreams of giving a recital in Vienna, Austria, some day.

'You hear hundreds of people and just a couple of times something that makes you sit up and listen immediately. Azariah has that talent,' recalls the professor of piano at the University of Michigan. 'What directs his fingers is sheer music-making.'

When he first heard Azariah play, he had no idea that the pianist had hearing problems. 'It certainly doesn't come out in his playing,' he says.

The teen has bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, a permanent condition that affects a person's ability to speak and hear. Meeting strangers can sometimes be a nerve-racking experience for him. Although he wears a hearing aid, he must still read lips while trying to follow the conversation.

Yet on stage, he is assured and polished. His solo performance at the prize-giving on Sunday was fearless, winning loud applause from the audience, including the judges on the panel.

Sunday's prize is not the first honour he has received. In March this year, he was awarded the International Young Soloist Award by VSA Arts, an international non-profit organisation which helps people with disabilities enjoy the arts. He received a prize of $5,000 and went on to perform at the well- known Kennedy Center Family Theatre in Washington DC in April.

In 2007, he performed at the annual ChildAid charity concert here and was also offered a scholarship and a place at the Royal College of Music in London. He turned it down, feeling he was not ready to live alone.

The National Arts Council-Conservatory scholar says he owes his success to the support of people such as his teacher at the conservatory, Mr Albert Tiu.

'It's hard for me to tell how my hearing is affecting my playing, but I get feedback from him,' he says.

One of the greatest challenges he faces is perceiving the subtle nuances of music, especially the range of tones from soft to loud. 'Hearing aids compress these ranges and I have to try to compensate for that.'

Mr Tiu, who taught two of the other prize winners this year, says he helps Azariah correct his playing by showing via touch how much pressure is needed on the keys. He has taught the teen since he joined the conservatory in 2007.

The teenager got his musical start at six when his parents enrolled him in a piano course at the Yamaha Music School. His mother, a teacher, and father, a freelance corporate trainer, continue to support their only child in his chosen career.

'We are overjoyed tonight,' says his father Leslie Tan, 49. 'Although he's in a disadvantaged position, his teachers did not give up on him. We are grateful to all the support he got from people.'

As for Azariah, his dream is the same as that of all young artists.

'I hope to make a career in performing and teaching. I would like to be an all-round musician, composing and conducting as well as playing the piano,' he says, conscious all the while that there may be a time limit on these hopes.

akshitan@sph.com.sg