By the time 10 p.m. rolled around Tuesday evening, the sound of the applause echoing through Davies Symphony Hall made it fairly clear whose hands the future of classical music lay in.

Lang Lang, the 25-year-old Chinese piano virtuoso, played a selection of pieces by Beethoven to a sold-out audience in San Francisco Tuesday night, attracting the young and old who sought a chance to see a glimpse of the future.

Joining him on stage was James Gaffigan, the 29-year-old associate conductor of the San Francisco Symphony.

Lang said he became fascinated by Western classical music after watching a Tom and Jerry cartoon when he was 2 years old and has been attracting audiences from all over the world to his music since he was 15, when he performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, stepping in for a pianist who fell ill.

He has also received immense popularity both on the Internet and in record stores. His most recent release, “The Magic of Lang Lang,” has spent 11 weeks on the Billboard’s Classical Album Chart. It debuted at no. 1 on the first week of its release in March.

Renowned for his ability to use and invoke emotion while establishing a connection with the audience are what separates him from others, said Margaret Oentrich who, along with her husband Jisten, traveled from Germany just to attend Tuesday evening’s performance.

“He’s the kind of performer that comes around once a generation,” Margaret Oentrich said. “His charm and humor are what separates him [from others]…he has a way to connect with the audience—those are rare qualities in a world famous musician.”

The Oentrichs are two of the many emerging Lang Lang devotees who have followed him extensively throughout his world tour. The Oentrichs said they have watched him perform 14 times in countries such as Germany, Austria, Spain, and his native China.
“Tonight he was in top form…absolutely excellent,” Margaret Oentrich said of Lang’s performance.

Lang is part of a new generation of classical musicians who are establishing themselves as the future of the genre, said Cyrus Ginwala, who conducts the symphony ensemble and teaches piano courses at SF State.

As Lang captivates audiences across the world on a nightly basis, Gustavo Dudamel, a 27-year-old Venezuelan conductor, is set to become the music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra in 2009.

“[Dudamel and Lang] are good for music in general and classical music in particular—anything which raises awareness and brings in new audiences,” Ginwala said.

“The rise of these two phenomenal artists mirrors similar trends in the United States during the 1950s and 1960s. Conductor Leonard Bernstein was Dudamel’s age when he first burst on the scene, most notably as an emergency replacement for a conductor with the NY Philharmonic,” he added.

Back at Davies Symphony Hall, a seemingly never-ending line formed after Lang’s performance, as devotees waited for the young phenom to sign autographs and pose for pictures.

“He’s an idol in China,” Margaret Oentrich said while her husband snapped pictures of the artist. “Millions of children around the world want to be just like him.”

To find out more information about Lang Lang, check out his Web site.