It is said that the key to having children interested in the arts is exposure at a young age, and that is certainly true for Matt Wong, a 14-year-old jazz guitarist from West Windsor. He is debuting his first CD, “Fly Me to the Moon,” at Small World Coffee in Princeton on Thursday, October 20, at 8 p.m.
“My parents took me to a lot of music programs when I was really little, and I first saw someone play the guitar at a Gymboree music program when I was about three, and remember being completely fascinated by it,” he says. “Every time someone played a guitar on a video or TV show, I recall being mesmerized.”
When his mother, who plays classical piano, bought him a junior guitar, it quickly became his constant companion. He began taking guitar lessons from Paul Keyes when he was six. “I looked forward to each week’s lesson more than anything else,” he says. He currently studies with Paul Hofreiter.
Although guitar is his first instrument he has played the violin since fourth grade. He studies with Ileana Ciumac. Wong played in the jazz band at Grover Middle School and plays in High School South’s orchestra. He has also played with Youth Orchestra of Central Jersey for four years and is currently in the Symphonic Orchestra.
His mother, Lilian Tsang, works at Princeton University; and his father, William Wong, works at Princeton Financial Systems. His sister, Molly, 8, a third grade student at Maurice Hawk, plays the piano. The family moved to West Windsor 14 years ago, when Wong was only nine months old.
Wong also volunteers for the West Windsor Arts Council, where he organizes and promotes the monthly open mic nights. “I played at the Grover’s Mill Coffee House Open Mics every Tuesday during the summer, but now that the school year has started again, I’ve committed to playing only one gig each month,” says Wong, who also needs time to run cross country at High School South.
“I write and play jazz and rock influenced tunes, but I also play classical pieces,” says Wong. “Fly Me to the Moon” features classical, jazz, and rock with Wong playing all the parts of each song.
“The style of guitar playing that I have been focusing on for the past couple years is called fingerstyle,” says Wong. “It allows me to be able to play the melody, rhythm, bass, and a little percussion at the same time on the same instrument.”
Matt Wong, Small World Coffee, 14 Witherspoon Street, Princeton. Thursday, October 20, 8 p.m. Jazz guitarist promotes his debut album, “Fly Me to the Moon.” Wong, 14, is a West Windsor resident. 609-924-4377. www.smallworldcoffee.com.
