Tong-Bai Deng was born in 2008 in Chicago and began his journey in music at the age of six when he started piano studies with Ms. Ludmilla Derka. At the age of seven, he won his first competition, the 46th Granquist Music Piano Competition in Chicago. This marked the beginning of his remarkable journey in music, as he won first place in the same competition in the higher age and level divisions in the following two years.
Throughout his journey, Tong-Bai Deng attended various festivals and concerts such as the 2017 Glorious Grands: A Piano Extravaganza Festival, the 2018 Steinway & Sons Piano Spring Concert in the Chicago area, the Salt Greek Music Teachers Association Concert, and the Music Institute of Chicago Summer Master Class. In 2018, he won first place at The 4th United States Virtuoso Artists International Piano Competition in Dayton, Ohio, in the age 8-9 category.
Tong-Bai Deng’s musical prowess continued to blossom in 2019 when he was invited to perform at the Philadelphia International Music Festival. He took private lessons from Dr. Sung Hoon Mo at the Music Institute of Chicago in 2018-2019 and began to study with Dr. Svetlana Smolina in 2019.
In 2020, Tong-Bai Deng won the First Prize in the Performance Group at the 2020 Art Star Youth Performance of China and also won second prize at the Colibri International Arts Competition for Young Performers in Los Angeles, CA (age 12-14 group). The following year, TONG-BAI DENG won First Prize and a Russian Music Award at the Triumph Music Festival in Philadelphia, PA (age 12-14 group), where he was also invited to play at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts Winners Recital.
Tong-Bai Deng’s accomplishments in music continued to pile up in 2021 and 2022, as he won multiple first prizes at different competitions, such as the Colibri International Arts Competition for Young Performers in Los Angeles, the Barum Music International Competition, the Charleston International Music Competition, and the Pelican International Music Competition for Young Artists. He also participated in the Chicago International Music Festival, where he had private lessons with several renowned professors and performed at the festival.
In 2023, Tong-Bai Deng attended the GOCAA International Piano Competition as well as the Chicago International Music Competition and Festival. He played his first solo concert in August, of about an hour long. To further improve his skills, he also began studying in person under Dr. Winston Choi and joined New Music School(NMS), then played for NMS jury in December 2023, being accepted into its highest division.
Apart from his piano skills, Tong-Bai Deng has also been studying conducting with Dr. Maxim Kuzin since 2019. He is an active member of the school band and a chamber music team in high school.
You can find Tong-Bai’s 2021 International Piano Competition performance here.
You can find Tong-Bai’s 2024 Winter Music Competition piano performance here.