The tune of “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry reverberates through her living room as she arrives at the next note by ear. Sitting beside a large glass window is the electric Yamaha keyboard that Aditi Khanna (12) received when she was five. As she gazes out the window, Aditi draws inspiration for her compositions from the view.

 Despite taking piano lessons for 12 years, Aditi didn’t fall in love with the instrument then; rather, it was when she played solely by ear on her own terms that she did.

“I’ll start by finding that beginning note to the song, and after that my fingers know where to go to play the rest. Maybe I’ll mess up, but then I’ll start playing another song because that song has that note in it,” she said. “There isn’t really a set schedule to when I play, but I like the spontaneity of rushing to the piano whenever there’s a song stuck in my head that I need to get out.”

Aditi always knew her way around the piano and realized she didn’t need the sheet music to guide her through the notes.

“It’s always a weird thing for me to think, ‘Am I really a musician if I don’t even know how to read notes?’ But I definitely think I am,” Aditi said. “I find myself gravitating to instruments, whatever the instrument is. It’s a fun and intimate relationship I was able to have because there wasn’t a sheet of paper in front of my face. I like the fact that I almost can’t play [the piano]. I’m so limited there’s no limitations at all.” 

Aditi’s distinctive methods of playing the piano reflect on her creativity, a quality her mom, Vinita Khanna, admires.

“[Aditi] is never afraid to think outside of the box, even if that means taking risks and not doing things in the most traditional ways. She definitely is the quiet type, but inside her head I know she is formulating lots of deep and unconventional thoughts,” Khanna said. “She always sees the world with an original perspective, forc[ing] me to apply a new lens to my own, which is often very refreshing.” 

In addition to producing music, listening to music provides Aditi with a sense of tranquility.

“When I’m listening to music and I’m alone in that space, I feel really at peace,” she said. “When I am alone with it, I understand music in a way that isn’t binary.”

Having always been fascinated with sounds in many facets, Aditi based her final project in Susan King’s AP Computer Science A class on sound. 

“I didn’t know what I wanted in the beginning;  I just knew I wanted something with sound,” she said. “I tried several different ideas, but I ended up making a piano on BlueJ.” 

Despite her budding interest in computer science, her journey into computing wasn’t always a clear cut path for her.

After participating in robotics in 8th grade, Aditi started a new community team from the ground up two years later. Not only did she have to learn everything — from how to program the robot to how to wire each part — without the formal guidance of teachers or mentors, she also had to teach it to younger team members. Despite suffering several setbacks, including the shutdown of the TechShop, an open-access workshop that provided safety and equipment, the leaders of the team persevered and refused to allow the newly formed team fizzle out.

“Sometimes there’s no one to help you; you’re just going to have to figure it out with the little bit of knowledge you have and do a lot of research. There’s always something you can learn even if it doesn’t seem like you like it at first,” Aditi said. “At the end of the day, I struggled with robotics, but going really deep into it and having that really hands-on experience allowed me to develop my passion for CS.”

Described as the “mom friend,” Aditi maintains a sensible state of mind, always there for her friends.

“When I ask [Aditi] for advice, she’s always rational about it. Since she knows me so well, she knows how to reason it out with me. She’s such a caring person and always makes sure everyone’s okay,” Alyssa Huang (12), one of Aditi’s close friends, said. “She’s seen me out my highs and lows. She’s one of those people that I could just sit down and talk to, knowing that she’s not going to judge me. ”

Having met in seventh grade, Gloria Zhang (12) and Aditi “connected on a spiritual level.” And their friendship has only grown from there.

“I had just moved here from a different country and she was one of my first friends locally and it just felt really nice to have someone to talk to,” Gloria said. “In the summer after sophomore year, both of us took an interest in playing the ukulele. We just sang along and jammed to [songs on the] ukulele. With each other, we can just have fun and goof around — it’s really relaxing.”

Aditi hopes her unique perspectives have an impact, however big or small, on those around her.

“I’m not one who’s going to do a super fancy speech or touch people with my words because I don’t have the confidence yet to do that, and I hope to one day,” Aditi said. “The way I think or the way I talk to people just in the smallest way, if I can change somebody’s attitude or the way they thought about something, that’s how I want to make an impact.”