AMAZINGLY TALENTED BLIND AND NEURODIVERGENT PIANIST AMAZE CROWD AT KING CHARLES III CORONATION CONCERT
We can all agree that talent that only comes once in a lifetime deserved the biggest stage possible. For a child prodigy, that meant a feast fit for royalty. Lucy Illingworth, a 13-year-old blind and neurodivergent pianist, first wowed the world a few months ago.
Her piano performance of Chopin's Nocturne at Leeds railway station shocked the judges of British talent show The Piano and moved passers-by to tears. Lucy was now performing to a much larger audience in an unparalleled setting - she performed to 20,000 people, including King Charles III and Queen Camilla, at a coronation concert at Windsor Castle.
Lucy has shared the stage with contemporary singers and music legends such as Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, Take That and Andrea Bocelli. The prodigy played Bach's Prelude in C, a short but uplifting tune that sums up the young girl's journey to this moment. Now, she shined on the stage in front of one of the hugest crowds of royalty.
This wasn't the only great accomplishment Lucy had accomplished in the last few months. A few weeks before performing at the Coronation concert, Lucy performed at the piano finale at the Royal Festival Hall in London. There she again impressed the jury by performing Debussy's Arabesque No. 1 with her teacher Daniel Bat. "This piece is a bit more difficult," commented renowned pianist Lang Lang, a Classic FM judge. “Chopin's Nocturne makes it easier to control the speed. This part should be... like opening a treasure. It's a challenge, it's a job. But no exams, no fun, right?”