Nine years old and the world at his fingertips. Nathanael Koh is certainly a boy destined for big things.
The Dunedin boy can not only play the piano, clarinet and cello, he’s also the youngest person in the world to pass a musical theory diploma from Trinity College in London, a first year tertiary qualification.
“What I like about music is that it’s very interesting and it heals the soul,” he said.
Home-schooled, Nathanael is hoping to gain entry into university as soon as next year, to study music.
The head of Otago University’s music department is confident he’d have no trouble fitting in.
“He’s at a level where he could comfortably do some musical exercises that we set at university,” Professor Anthony Ritchie said.
Nathanael is not only gifted in music, but also plans to sit Cambridge exams in both chemistry and maths later this year.
If that wasn’t enough, he has a sound knowledge of ten different languages, including a recent interest in learning German.
“When he was three he memorised the whole periodic table,” mum Wendy Seah says.
Then there’s the small fact he can complete a Rubik’s cube in under two minutes.
Not to mention, he also has a membership to both the Singapore and New Zealand High IQ ‘genius’ association Mensa.
Whatever field he chooses, you get the feeling he won’t have too much trouble succeeding.
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