Music is a fascinating form of art.
It knows no boundaries and is accessible to everyone. It can be created by anyone and anything. It can be felt by all and communicated where words fail. It’s beautiful, engaging, and simply perfect in all its forms.
If you’ve ever wandered the mall or public transportation stations, you’ve likely come across musicians honing their craft and even some who have mastered it. You’ve heard different genres and witnessed unique presentations.
Some of these spaces include an instrument that is as grand as its name; the piano. It’s as spectacular as it is massive. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say it can be a bit intimidating.
So anytime we see someone sitting at the classic instrument, we can’t help but become curious. We might even slow our pace to see what it is they will create.
In a recent video posted by the talented boogie-woogie piano master, DR K Boogie Woogie, we see a young boy playing at a piano in a mall.
He’s focused and determined to nail a scale that he’s been practicing while being filmed.
“That’s pretty good,” someone says off-camera.
As the child stands, a tall, silver-haired man with dark sunglasses coolly approaches the young boy.
“What’s your name?” he asks.
The boy answers inaudibly.
The man is DR K Boogie Woogie. He’s a fixture at public grand pianos. He specializes in the boogie-woogie genre made famous by African Americans from the south in the 1870s.
Dr. K effortlessly performs the scale that the young boy was attempting to master. The boy watches, already fascinated.
But it’s only the beginning.
He then plays the scale again with more chords creating a more robust and full sound.
Before we know it, he runs his fingers along the length of the keys, giving the boy and the audience a glimpse into what they’re about to see.
Suddenly, a head-bobbing, foot-stomping, boogie-woogie groove is in full swing. The boy smiles widely and turns to his family who is just as excited to hear the tune as he is.
Passersby slow their pace to watch Dr. K play with vigor. The music may be fast-paced but he’s as cool as a cucumber. He doesn’t seem to break a sweat as he begins stomping his feet and slamming onto the keys.
The boy’s family begins to dance and people stop and stare. It isn’t long before camera phones are being pulled from their pockets and purses.
Throughout the piece, Dr. K carries on a conversation with the boy while not missing a single beat.
Dr. K asks the boy if he takes piano lessons. The boy answers yes. Dr. K then asks if his teacher knows the boogie-woogie. The boy shrugs. “I don’t know,” he says.
When Dr. K asks if the boy would ask his teacher, he says he will.
At one point, an older lady comes up from behind the pair and begins to dance. This is, after all, what the genre is all about!
The two continue a casual conversation as the piano plays over them. Dr. K proceeds to give the boy lessons on the genre including telling him how to count the bars.
As they wrap up, Dr. K insists that the boy ask his teacher about the boogie-woogie.
When he finishes, the crowd erupts in applause. He shakes the boy’s hand and asks the boy one last time to question his piano instructor on whether she knows the boogie-woogie.
“I thought he was very good,” Dr. K says to the camera as he stands to leave.
“Well done, well done.”
It sure was. This will definitely be a lesson that this little boy will never forget.
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