Xiaolin Zhang, 11, a Year 6 pupil from Horizon English School in Dubai, has won the inaugural WhichSchoolAdvisor online music competition. Alex Atack for The National
Xiaolin Zhang, 11, a Year 6 pupil from Horizon English School in Dubai, has won the inaugural WhichSchoolAdvisor online music competition. Alex Atack for The National
Xiaolin Zhang, 11, a Year 6 pupil from Horizon English School in Dubai, has won the inaugural WhichSchoolAdvisor online music competition. Alex Atack for The National
Xiaolin Zhang, 11, a Year 6 pupil from Horizon English School in Dubai, has won the inaugural WhichSchoolAdvisor online music competition. Alex Atack for The National

UAE

Hard work and dedication pays off for Dubai pianist, 11

Xiaolin Zhang, 11, a Year 6 pupil from Horizon English School in Dubai, won the inaugural WhichSchoolAdvisor online music competition.

Nadeem Hanif

May 11, 2016

  • English
  • Arabic

DUBAI // Hard work and dedication are the secret to the success of a young pianist who has won a nationwide music award.

Xiaolin Zhang, 11, a Year 6 pupil from Horizon English School in Dubai, won the inaugural WhichSchoolAdvisor online music competition.

He impressed judges with his technical skill and the ease at which he played the instrument.

“I was so proud and happy when I found out that I had won, I couldn’t believe it,” he said.

“I decided to start playing the piano after seeing a classmate play it when I was young.”

The youngster first took up the instrument at the age of five and a half and has been improving his ability ever since by training up to two hours a day.

“As well as playing at home I also have piano lessons and that has really helped me,” said Xiaolin, who is from China.

The competition involved participants filming a short video of themselves playing their chosen instrument and sending that to judges at WhichSchoolAdvisor.

More than 50 young people from across the UAE took part in the competition.

“I love playing the piano because the music is so beautiful,” said Xiaolin.

He hopes his talent will one day lead him to a career as a professional musician but for the time being he is happy to be playing for the enjoyment.

Proud mum Yanjie Liu believes her son’s continued enjoyment at playing has helped him improve.

“We are all so proud of him but it has taken a lot of hard work on his part to get to the level he is at,” she said.

“The main thing for him is that he enjoys himself when he plays and that has helped him to maintain his interest.”

The competition judges unanimously voted for him as their winner.

“This is an impressive show of virtuosic piano playing,” said Said Anna Pym, freelance orchestral and session violinist and a competition judge.

“There is good phrasing and dynamic range as well as a lovely character change in the middle.”

Xiaolin was not only awarded the title of Which School Advisor Young Musician of 2016 but also took home a first prize cheque worth Dh12,000.

nhanif@thenational.ae

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While you're here

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
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The alternatives

• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.

• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.

• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.

• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.

• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases -  but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.

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