Jacob Velasquez may only be 5 years old, but do not be fooled by hi age. The piano prodigy, who was already reading music sheets a year ago, is capable of learning an entire sonata in just one afternoon. His photographic memory is the key in helping him to play without having to take his eyes off the piano keys.
Despite Jacob’s young age, he has already won numerous accolades. In fact, he has also been admitted into the National Musician’s Guild, which is no small feat even for those who have been practicing the piano for years. Believe it or not, it only began just a year ago. When his mother, Tina, heard music coming from the living room, she thought that it was his father playing. However, she knew that it was not possible as his father was at work. “Willie was at work and I was in the kitchen and I hear the song Willie was playing the night before. I came in here and said, ‘Jacob, oh my gosh, that’s you,’” she recalled.
After Jacob was able to read music, he started learning Beethoven’s Sonata and was able to play it in only three weeks. The youngster’s photographic memory gift allows him to simply take one look at music sheets and he will be able to memorise the entire song. After his parents got to know about their son’s gift, they decided to let him audition for the National Musician’s Guild, which was by no means an easy task even for adults. “He had to learn 10 classical pieces all by memory. He did amazing, actually, he exceeded the expectations,” said his proud father.
According to Jaffird Sierra, Jacob’s piano teacher, Jacob’s gift has enabled him to learn full songs in merely one class, which will normally take others probably a month or more to learn. Although his feet are still unable to reach the pedals, he is still able to make the necessary adjustments based on his size limitations. “I think he has it in his mind the whole knowledge but he has too short of hands and he is too small and he wants to play,” explained Jaffird. The best part of being a prodigy is that Jacob actually enjoys it as he is able to learn different songs. For the full story, you can read it here.
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