Ten-year-old Connor Sung practices the piano at least five days a week.

And that dedication has taken him to Carnegie Hall, where he performed J.S. Bach’s “French Suites No.6 in E major” in May and won first place in the elementary school division of the Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition.

“He is very talented,” said Jenny Shin, who has been Connor’s piano teacher since he was 3. “He is a fast learner and is eager to learn new pieces.”

Connor’s piano achievements have also earned him recognition from the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District board. Connor, a fifth grader at Lakeview Elementary School, was recently honored with a “You Are The Advantage” award – one of the district’s most prestigious commendations.

“It was very exciting, but also very nerve-racking,” he said about performing two short pieces in front of the board.

Connor’s performance at the Weill Recital Hall, a smaller auditorium within Carnegie Hall, was made even more special when his older brother, Andrew, also performed on the same day and took first place in the middle school division.

Organizers told their mother, Ivy Sung, they believed that was the first time two siblings received first prize and got to perform on the same day at the iconic venue.

“It is very rare indeed to have siblings on the same program, and I don’t believe it has ever happened before,” said Cosmo Buono, co-founder of the Bradshaw & Buono International Piano. “We choose pianists who have distinguished themselves as interpreters of music not just technicians, and both boys indeed demonstrated that capacity.”

Cosmo said his organization works to find young artists it believes should be heard and present them in recital at Carnegie Hall.

“That made me even more proud,” said Ivy Sung, whose other two children, Andrew, 15, and Breanna, 11, also study with Shin.

“My sister and brother influenced me to play the piano,” said Connor, who practices an average of two hours during school days and three to four hours on weekends. “Every time I would go over to the piano hall they were always practicing … so then my mom just put me in piano.”

When Connor is not practicing the piano, he enjoys playing video games and playing with his brother and sister, both alumni of Lakeview Elementary.

Connor said he plans to continue playing piano, but he hasn’t decided what he wants to be when he grows up.

“We are very proud of him,” Ivy Sung said. “He is a normal boy and gets distracted, but this time he really worked hard.”

Contact the writer: 714-704-3709 or desalazar@ocregister.com