Daniel

19 December 2023

Daniel, 13, from Manchester, taught himself to play the piano in lockdown using YouTube after watching Bohemian Rhapsody. Daniel was invited by the Goo Goo Dolls to their Manchester show after they saw his performance from series one on social media.

What does the piano mean to you?
I basically spent all of lockdown with the piano; it was my best friend during lockdown, and I feel like I'm growing with the piano. During quarantine, I searched how-to-play-the-piano videos on the internet, and I sat at my piano with nobody else, no friends or family, and I just began learning by watching YouTube.  Later on, I started to get some lessons, but it was years later. It's my safe place and whenever I'm angry or sad, playing the piano always calms me down.

How did playing the piano help you through lockdown?
It was really helpful for my mental health. I always think of the piano as my best friend and that’s what it was for quite a few years. I can't really think of a time before piano when I was really confident. I remember that I just I didn't want to do anything. How a best friend always wants to give you support, boost your confidence, and make you better in life, that's basically what the piano does for me. For lots of people, lockdown was a really bad time because they didn't have anybody, and it was the worst time ever. I started playing the piano for my grandparents because they had nothing to do, and they were stuck in a flat in Spain so that was a really cool experience.

What memories do you have music of Christmas coming together?
I remember quite a few years ago, my mum would always put on Kelly Clarkson songs from her Christmas album, so that’s one of my favourite Christmas memories. I can now play a bit of Kelly Clarkson on the piano, but I like rock quite a lot. I feel like I’ve grown up in the wrong era as I like 80s music.

What did you enjoy about the first series that you hope is here for the Christmas special?
Everybody that I met from the first series I loved and was really attached to the piano so I hope to see some of the people from the first season again.

Was there anything that you had learnt from series one that you brought into your performance for the Christmas special?
I feel like performing in the first series gave me a lot more confidence. In season one, I was really nervous before my performance, and I thought I was going to faint! Performing at the Christmas Special was a completely different feeling; it was so much easier to do it and it didn't feel as scary. I felt a lot more confident.

How are your fellow pianists ahead of performing?
We were in a room together and we were all talking about how we’ve grown from the first season and how much we’ve progressed. We were really supportive of each other before and after our performances and it’s a great experience to be around all the other pianists because we all play different genres and different styles of music on the piano. But we all support each other because we share the piano in common.

When you were performing at King’s Cross Station, how did it feel when you heard the applause?
I'm always in a bubble when I’m playing piano so I don't really know what's going on around me. I just turn off everywhere else and I can just focus on me and the piano. The moment that people started clapping, it's like life came back to normal. I thought, “Wow, I just did that” It was a crazy thing to do again.

Was there a moment from the Christmas Special that stood out to you?
One of my biggest moments was seeing Mika and Lang Lang again. In the first series, Mika and Lang Lang really supported me playing the piano and told me how good I am. Mika said that he saw himself in me and that he could see that this is what I’m going to be doing when I'm older. That was one of the biggest compliments he could give to me because when I was younger, I never thought about music and even when I started playing during lockdown, I just saw it as something to do over lockdown. Hearing that Mika thinks that I'm capable of doing this in the future really inspired me to work harder with piano, so it was good to see him and Lang Lang again. Being complimented by some of the greatest musicians in the world is one of my favourite memories of my life.

Do you have a Christmas song or a piece of music that represents Christmas to you the most?
Christmas Alone Again by Tom Petty. It’s a song that my dad always put on and I think it's just ingrained in my brain from when I was younger! It always comes on every Christmas and reminds me, “Christmas is back! Put out the big trees!”

Why do you think music is so important at Christmas time?
Music brings families together and music is basically a universal language; everybody knows music, and everybody loves music and there’s always emotion in it. When music is played at Christmas it brings people closer together, which is the whole meaning of Christmas.

Being involved in the first series of The Piano – How has that made you a different person, musically?
The Piano really has changed who I am. I was on the programme when I was twelve years old so doing something like that at that age really changed me musically and emotionally because it's changed my confidence and the way I see the music. Before, I just thought of music as a thing to listen to but now I think of music as a way to give emotion to people.

What other musical opportunities has The Piano given you?
A few weeks after The Piano, I got a message from the Goo Goo Dolls saying that they saw my performance of their song Iris and that they wanted to meet me, which was absolutely crazy! They invited me to go meet them in Manchester, I already had tickets for their show, but I thought, “Yeah, I’ll go anyway!” At first, they just wanted me to go on stage for the soundcheck and that was already such a great experience but then they brought me out on stage during their show to finish their set and to play Iris with them and I did not expect that! I played in front of three thousand people, and it blew my mind! It’s something that I don't think I'll be able to comprehend for quite some time. It was an incredible experience, and I will remember it for the rest of my life. It’s one of the best things I've ever, ever done. It’s something that nobody else can say that they’ve done, and I am so grateful for being able to experience it.

Did the Goo Goo Dolls give you any advice?
Yes, the keyboard player from the Goo Goo Dolls gave me tips on how to play the piano better when playing live. He told me not to overcomplicate things and that has really helped me when I've performed live in other places, like King’s Cross Station! John Rzeznik, the lead singer, told me to make sure that I give everything I've got into every performance and that’s really powerful, coming from him.

Do you think that The Piano has encouraged a younger generation to learn the piano?
The Piano has really changed a lot of views on the piano because I remember when I first started playing the piano every kid in school would always question, “Why do you play the piano? Why do you enjoy the piano? Why are you not playing football?” But after watching the show they have changed their minds on music and started to look at it more like football, like it’s a way to spend time. I hope that’s the same for kids all across the country. My sister is six years old and there is a little boy in her class and, after watching the show, he is really into piano and would love to learn how to play. He’s asked me to help him and to teach him a little bit. People have told me that it’s really good for children to see the piano as something cool to do and not just something to do with classical music.

What advice would you give to any budding pianists?
Well, I’ve only experienced about three years of music! But because I didn't have confidence when I was starting out, what I would say is, confidence comes with time. Even if you don't think you're strong enough to be able to do music, practising and putting yourself out there will make you a better musician.

What do you hope is next for you or what is next for you?
It’s been such a crazy few years already and there’s been loads of stuff that I just never expected to do. Being involved in The Piano Christmas Special has made me change what I want to study. I never thought I was good enough to do music as a career or to study music but doing the show has changed my mind. What Mika has said about me and what he sees in me has given me the courage to want to take on the challenge of the music industry.