Naperville Central High School student Chloe Ma is being recognized for her musical achievements at the state level, winning the Music Teachers National Association State Senior Composition Competition for 2026.
Discovering a passion for music
Ma has been involved in music for more than a decade, enrolling in piano lessons at a young age and learning her way around the keys.
“I remember being really happy that I could hear songs I liked and then play them myself,” Ma said.
It wasn’t long before she became curious about the theory behind the songs she was playing.
“I asked my piano teacher a lot of music theory questions. So eventually she was like, ‘Oh, let’s find you a music theory teacher,’” Ma said. “I love learning about how the different parts of music fit together. It’s kind of like taking a peek under the surface.”
Learning to compose
She said her newfound technical knowledge lent itself well to the next step in her musical journey: learning how to compose music herself.
“As my knowledge of music theory grew… I also got more comfortable with the different techniques, and I was able to use them more, like I was just able to use them more comfortably in my own writing,” Ma said.
She draws inspiration for her pieces from the world around her.
“I’m always keeping an eye out for what I could write music about,” she said.
Ma writes her music on her laptop, using a software called MuseScore. It allows her to listen to a composition as she writes, making edits to the piece in real time.
Recognition on the state stage
Ma has earned accolades for her work along the way, with her MTNA award – announced on Oct. 7 – being the most recent.
“I was in the car when I saw the notification,” Ma said. “I was definitely super excited when I saw it because I worked really hard on this piece over the entire summer. So it was nice to see that it worked out, and it was nice to get recognition for my work.”
Her piece now advances to regionals. Details of the composition remain under wraps until results are released in the coming months.
In the meantime, she said she looks forward to pushing herself and her music in new ways.
“Some parts of it are challenging, but I like the challenge,” Ma said.
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