This is truly an inspirational, amazing, one of a kind (true) story.
A million thanks for sharing! Such a remarkable heavenly talent as well as devoted, consciencious, forbearing, God-fearing mother! She's the best Mother I have ever heard in this world!
No one can beat her goodness...her forbearance...her faith in God...her strength...her affection...her heavenly character...
Luckily her husband is such an ideal partner, a good chemestry...
What a saviour ! What a God we serve!!! This is a testimony of His love,care and healing power!! Joe and May had faith in Jesus and He was faithful to do this amazing miracle. Praise The Name of Jesus!!!
Some comments on her are repulsive ppl who don't believe in things like this happening as a true gift from God and how they think is fake needs God in there life I will pray for u!
lol there is a savant in my school he is the best in math just last year in 5th grade he remembered 300 digits of pi and made his own songs for each holiday
@LTYUKON Why such a synic? Can't you see this is real? Watch May's Miracle 1 thru 3... I seen Leslie perform in the late 80's live. It's nething but fake!!! He's a true Miracle. That's what Gods Love Is..... :)
@booly5 And notice the words he's singing are not meaningless do wop. He must know what they mean.
But even those mentally disabled with this kind of gift have something special about them. If you ever spent any time with them you'd know they have a sweet innocence about them. Most especially those on the level of babies and small children. He can be thirty. He can be disfigured. But you can see a sweet four year old behind the smile and those features can look just as adorable as a toddler.
I think that your making reference to his mother May that died of Alzheimer's back in 1993. I assure you that as of 4/15/11 Leslie is alive and well and still working his magic.
I'll tell you one thing...thirty years later Leslie's lost nothing off of his fastball. We all had a great time at the sold out performance at the Stayer Center Auditorium. Everyone couldn't have been nicer at Marian University. I actually got a chance to meet Leslie and his sister before the show. It really was something else. His sister Mary is such a wonderful person, she even invited me to their room after she found out we were both staying at the Ramada Inn. I hear there's a DVD coming out
I'm sitting here in Pittsburgh, I just flew in from New York. Next on the agenda is a plane to Chicago, then Green Bay, and an hour and a half drive to Marian University in Fond Du Lac Wisconsin. It's all worth it though...because tonight, April 15, 2011, I get to see the one and only Leslie Lemke live in concert. Who'd a thought that 30 years later, after watching this one and the same segment, that I'd actually get to see the man perform. That's Incredible!
He is a living testament to God's love of all people, especially the disabled. Just Incredible! I can't believe that many people would choose to end their pregnancy if they were going to have a baby like Leslie. He's miraculous.
@JJEBray011 It's Tschaikovky's Piano Concerto Number 1 in B Flat Minor. An extremely beautiful piece, if you get a chance to listen to it, I highly suggest it.
@Frequent2001 Ever heard of Savant Syndrome? His talent is a beautiful gift. May is an incredible person who was not only overwhelmed with happiness that Leslie could move on his own, but that he could sing and play the piano, too. May wasn't acting and nothing was beaten into Leslie. He's a miracle that May helped keep alive.
@Frequent2001 Just like the overeducated idiot who narrated the documentary on Leslie called "May's Miracle" for the Canadian program "Man Alive", Frequent2001 cannot admit the possibility of a miracle or of truly good people. That would mean that God would have to exist...something that these people must never admit.
@ch1mer1c Over-educated idiot...Isn't that an oxymoron? And what does a god have to do with truly good people? Are you implying that people can't be good without a belief in invisible animals? I would hate to think that we are truly this simple minded in this century...
I worked on this segment on That's Incredible. Sharron Miller directed and edited it. The original TI segment was 13 minutes long. She later went on to produce and direct an ABC Afterschool Special, Woman Who Willed a Miracle, on Leslie and May, starring Cloris Leachman. Sharron won 4 Emmys for it, including awards for Best Director and Best Children's Programming.
@rod619 Whom ever felt it necessary 2 thumbs down must feel like God slighted them somehow. That no "Miracles" "that they kno of " have come their way! How sad 4 them. I hope they get the chance to kno Gods' love.
this lady is as tough as they come... but she was right on not letting Leslie just be the way he was, she cared but didnt pity him to the point of infantilzing him
I remember seeing this show 29 years ago, I'm legally bind, and this stuck out in my mind, as last year, I started taking piano lessons, at age 44. Never too late , I guess huh? Amazing how this turned up now.
“He was playing with his elbows, fists and his nose,” recalls Prof Ockelford. “At first I thought he was a bit mad, but as he played and I recognised what he was playing, I realised he was unlike anyone I had seen before."
Aged two, Derek first encountered a musical instrument – a toy organ. “He would play back nursery rhymes and songs he had heard on programmes,”
Nursery rhymes not fucking concerti.
At the age of NINE, Derek played his first major concert, at the Barbican in London.
There are many scientific ideas about Savantism, some are as factual as any other theory. Certainly it is a scientific fact the motor skills require learning, there are no exceptions, not with savants or anyone else.
'Autism and pitch processing: a precursor for savant musical ability?' - P. Heaton, B. Hermelin, L. Pring discusses its primary impact on musical perception.
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What bullshit! you notice she says that he played the piano but couldn't talk to them However he sure can tell em that he is crying? WTF is that shit? bullshit!
sad thing is, everyone is capable of playing like this, why handicapped people are the only ones capable of reaching that part of their brain no one will no.
Cloris Leachman starred in a movie in the 70's-early 80's which was surprisingly accurate to her account. I don't recall this episode of "That's Incredible". I once had a client who was blind and mentally disabled and he picked up the piano rather well. I think the fetters of everyday life keep people from musical expression. The fact that we place fewer expectations on the handicapped, typically, allows their intellect to grow as it will, in spite of the "norm". They are often very creative!
Maye has quite a knack for telling her tale! She really pulled me into this whole story, very dramatic and poetic! Very nice, Miss Maye. Leslie is a beautiful person and I LOVE his talent and passion. Savants like Leslie are complicated individuals...we often wonder about them...how they work...what they think...well, want to hear his soul? He lets us see and hear it through his music and I think it is beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
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This is a lovely video and I do truly appreciate the beauty of this. However, it does seem that the narrator, along with the music, twists the story into him going downstairs and simply playing Tchaikovsky's piano concerto without ever touching a keyboard. I sincerely doubt that is true. It is not just incredible, it is a lie. Still I wish him all the best, if he is still with us.
The story is true, I don't doubt that for a moment, but this twists the truth. Have you noticed that on Youtube there are no citations? That means they have just seen this documentary. Look, the reason it is not possible is that the muscles in your hands need to adjust to playing the piano. You can't just sit down at a piano and play flight of the bumblebee without practice even if you know all the notes, because your muscles aren't physically strong enough.
A savant usually has the gift of perfect pitch, meaning they can identify any note or group of notes on the keyboard and repeat them. But it is not magic, they have to learn where the notes are on the keyboard first. They don't just know where the notes are without having ever having touched a keyboard, they aren't psychics.
Once a savant has trained his/her hands, built up their muscle, and learnt where all the keys are and the proper technique to get to them - then they are able to play almost any tune you play to them. If he did play that concerto he must have played a seriously stripped down version, probably just a couple of notes to each chord. Or he was playing it extremely slowly, or something. It is possible as long as he wasn't doing anything that the normal hand couldn't achieve.
There is no evidence for this, I am a follower of Derek Paravicini, I am awe inspired by savants. However do you not understand that the muscles need to be trained. Savants can have fantastic musical minds, but their muscles still have to develop. For instance, Derek was playing with his elbows when he first started playing. They still need to be taught the necessary technique.
curzmg - A person with normal hand strength can physically play piano at a high level without training. Pianists use their finger muscles mainly to adjust finger position. Most of the power to depress the keys comes from the shoulders and arms. The fingers act as levers to transmit that power. That's exactly what Leslie does in the video. If you'd like to know exactly how this works as a matter of piano technique, please read the writings of the famous piano teacher Abby Whiteside.
That is a load of rubbish. Find a single person that can play me Rachmaninoff's preludes who has never before touched a piano... without spraining their fucking wrists.
Anyone who plays piano will tell you that it is the wrists that are damaged and beaten, your arms can take it. 'A person with normal hand strength can physically play piano at a high level without training' - How could you possibly know that? It would be absoloutely impossible to prove. There is not a single person under the Sun who has ever played the piano at a high level without training, I would say because it is impossible to do so, you think not.
curzmg - At age 3, Arthur Rubinstein and Wilhelm Kempff played piano at an extremely high level without any prior training. Efficient piano playing puts no strain on wrist or fingers. They don't exert power, they transmit it. The power of Vladimir Horowitz has nothing to do with finger or wrist strength. It stems from his efficient use of fingers and arms as levers to transmit power from the shoulders. This power is available without muscle training. I recommend you read Whiteside's work.
'Efficient piano playing' - efficient at what? If power is utterly irrelevant then where is the efficiency? Surely one need not be efficient if power is irrelevant. Your hands need to be trained, you are directing me towards a one sided argument about strength = power. There are many different applications of muscle strength, they can be toned or powerful or dexterous. If they are none of these things then you will not play the piano.
curzmg - Power is extremely relevant to piano playing. The question is where it comes from. A common erroneous view holds that pianistic power lies in strong fingers and wrist. That is false. Piano power originates in the large muscles of torso, shoulders, and upper arms. The finger, hand and wrist muscles - which are much too weak to create a strong sound - are mainly used to position fingers and hand for efficient transmission of body, shoulder, and upper arm power to the keys.
I agree with that entirely. What I don't agree with is that the body will simply know how to do this without training. It is different for every piece of music, you train your muscles on what to do and then you recite this mechanical process. It is impossible to do this without training. Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto is a piece that requires a remarkable amount of this mechanical memory, thus a lot of training. It is simply not possible to play it without this.
This is the most ridiculous hypothetical argument. You must train your hands to play piano. Rubenstein did train as did Kempff, you think he just started by playing Chopin etudes?
if u research it you will realize that may taught her to lay the same way she taught her to walk , and one day he just figured out how to turn what he heard into the instrument
So she did actually teach him how to play the piano? Or did she literally just tell him to run his fingers down the keyboard? Look, I can't see how this guy just sat down at the keyboard and knocked out concertos whilst all other savants still have to learn to play. It seems like hyperbole, probably to garner interest in the documentary.
@jonny3692 No Jonny this is a misconception. Derek, if you read about him, was playing with his elbows literally when a teacher came across him. The teacher had to teach him the correct techniques and then he was soaring. Pianism requires muscle memory, muscle memory requires repitition - it is scientific fact. There are no exceptions. There may be people who can learn faster but not instantly. Your fingers have to learn how far apart the keys are etc, a savant isn't preprogrammed with that.
Quote of Derek's biography by his mentor: "Miraculously,.. Derek taught himself to play..he’d never had a lesson, yet he produced this original version of ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’, with hundreds of notes ".
He THEN had lessons to become a virtuos, but he could play before, and noone knows why, that's what seperates savants from others, that's the point.
Saying something was scientific fact isn't fact.
There is no relevant science facts on savants yet so you disqualified urself rly.
@jonny3692 “He used his elbows, he even used his nose,” says Nicolas. “He didn’t know you were supposed to use only your fingers, but he would play the most extraordinary music. " that's his father speaking.
@jonny3692 what the fuck, you literally just proved yourself wrong then ignored yourself. 'Miraculously,.. Derek taught himself to play' oh so I see what you're saying actually, you mean he didn't learn to play... ah yes I see what you are saying..? This is so ridiculous. So what you're all saying is as soon as a savant comes out of the womb they can just bust out Rachmaninoff's Concerti. Seriously if you want to believe that you're an idiot.
I am not debating which muscle groups are the most effective. If you spent one minute with your head out of a book then you would realise that everyone obviously uses different muscle groups. Regardless of which muscles are needed these muscles need to be trained; be those fingers, hands, legs, ears or lips - it really does not matter but precision requires practice. Sorry but nothing comes for free in this world, including pianism.
i cried i just cant believe how he did it but he did and his piano playing is beautiful his singing is wonderful it is such a blessing if only people were that nice and caring may the lemkes live on and may leslie play on : ' D
That couple who chose to take care of Leslie Lemke must have had great caring hearts.
Guys when you feel sad or whatever, remember that there will always be someone who is more unfortunate than you. This is a clear example here. I respect Leslie for being able to make it this far in life with happiness.
But the reason why I'm atheist is I don't understand why God would make someone's life this miserable. It saddens me when i think of how many ppl are suffering right now.
There certainly is lots of misery in the world, tubegangsta, but misery is only a perspective. It's not God that creates misery, but that God gives us all this stuff. Some people the stuff as misery and others take it as blessing. This guy is blind and autistic. One person may suppose he's miserable when he himself may have felt happy. It's really one's own interpretation. The misery we cause others, though, is cause mankind is sinful. That's why God's there. To make things right with us.
what is the name of the song it was playing while his mother was explaining about when she heard wonderful music playing and was gonna turn the tv off and stuff?
Amazing. Truly. This is the sort of thing that brings a tear to my eye, when the impossible SOMEHOW happens. I can't even fathom the amazement his foster mom must have felt when she woke up to him playing that. It's completely insane.
I don't know whats going on (I didn't really want to read through pages of name calling) but I do know things have gotten way off track. Lets all just enjoy this great movie and move on ok?
Gentlemen! Gentlemen, lets be nice here to each other! Some people are so weak and lost that they need to believe in mythology to give them some self worth in life. It is a fabulous growth industry that is all tax free! Every four years the political candidates can stir up the emotions of the religious folks and skirt all the real issues of our time. Just talk about Sarah Palin's qualifications as President because she chose to bring a handicapped kid into the world rather than abort it.
i know, you are probably right. i just don't know why people need to believe the mythology that obama is the chosen one. wow, even democrats in congress compared him to Jesus Christ, and i thought these people want to have nothing to do with the Bible. wow, didn't know palin is running for vice-president just because she chose to brong into this world a baby with down syndome.
Total Loser In Christ 77-you are one stupid piece of shit. And Palin-I think her only qualification for Vice-President in McCain's eyes is that she DIDN'T abort a retard. Go back to your Phillippines hovel, stay out of American politics, and fuck yourself with a Bible and die, you worthless piece of shit. You have no excuse to live and your parents should be killed for bringing you into the world-if your mom and dad haven't killed themselves already for making that mistake!
And NO ONE believes Obama is the Messiah, you fucking retard! That crap only exists on FOX news to stir up gullible and brainwashed fucking morons like you. You are nothing more than a typicle, right wing, Christian brain-washed piece of shit, Total Loser In Christ 77. Do the world a favor and KILL YOURSELF! We'll just consider it a late-term abortion.
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do your research first before you make any comments. obama would have a baby born alive from a botched abortion get killed. and bush's hopeless war? last time i checked, most republicans and democrats approved of the war.
Beautiful.
jinwo0 1 day ago
Wow...she is an incredible woman. Read the Wiki on this guy.
jennangel122397 1 week ago
wow
MrAlexftw 1 month ago
"And I said oh thank you, dear God. That you've remembered to do something for Leslie." That's beautiful.
alang814 1 month ago 3
What an incredible Woman!!!!
TheLiquidBeats 1 month ago 2
I love him he is amazing, so is Mrs. Lemke she is an insperstion.
GO LESLIE!!!!!!!
monsterfreaks100 1 month ago
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This is truly an inspirational, amazing, one of a kind (true) story.
A million thanks for sharing! Such a remarkable heavenly talent as well as devoted, consciencious, forbearing, God-fearing mother! She's the best Mother I have ever heard in this world!
No one can beat her goodness...her forbearance...her faith in God...her strength...her affection...her heavenly character...
Luckily her husband is such an ideal partner, a good chemestry...
May God's Grace and Mercy be with us always.
kammiechastyloverne 3 months ago
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What a saviour ! What a God we serve!!! This is a testimony of His love,care and healing power!! Joe and May had faith in Jesus and He was faithful to do this amazing miracle. Praise The Name of Jesus!!!
kammiechastyloverne 3 months ago
I pity the fool that dislikes
Stavrinho10 3 months ago
you have to see this is real unless you blind - some probably jealous as he has something they don't
buttsyrc8 3 months ago
Some comments on her are repulsive ppl who don't believe in things like this happening as a true gift from God and how they think is fake needs God in there life I will pray for u!
bigmama557 4 months ago
Amazing talent God has blessed him and the family with his gift!!!!
bigmama557 4 months ago 3
lol there is a savant in my school he is the best in math just last year in 5th grade he remembered 300 digits of pi and made his own songs for each holiday
crippledkangaroo15k 4 months ago 2
He's just like Tony Deblois!
72U11 5 months ago
i remember that episode when it aired way back
CanadianRockerGuy 6 months ago
What bullshit !!!
LTYUKON 6 months ago
@LTYUKON Why such a synic? Can't you see this is real? Watch May's Miracle 1 thru 3... I seen Leslie perform in the late 80's live. It's nething but fake!!! He's a true Miracle. That's what Gods Love Is..... :)
cyndidalynn 5 months ago
@cyndidalynn Still BULLSHIT!! The only miracle is that stupid show even made it on TV.
LTYUKON 5 months ago
they are not idiots they are gifted in different ways
booly5 6 months ago
@booly5 And notice the words he's singing are not meaningless do wop. He must know what they mean.
But even those mentally disabled with this kind of gift have something special about them. If you ever spent any time with them you'd know they have a sweet innocence about them. Most especially those on the level of babies and small children. He can be thirty. He can be disfigured. But you can see a sweet four year old behind the smile and those features can look just as adorable as a toddler.
Miracle490d 4 months ago
Music from a kind soul
bjo0404 7 months ago 2
white Ray Charles
Wieprzow 7 months ago
An other example of Cargo Cult science.
Albertolo1928 7 months ago
God works in mysterious ways, there is no doubt that this is the Lords work. Amen
Metalmanmania357 7 months ago
Amen for you son, amen
downyourtube 8 months ago
I think that your making reference to his mother May that died of Alzheimer's back in 1993. I assure you that as of 4/15/11 Leslie is alive and well and still working his magic.
roddynibbler 9 months ago
I'll tell you one thing...thirty years later Leslie's lost nothing off of his fastball. We all had a great time at the sold out performance at the Stayer Center Auditorium. Everyone couldn't have been nicer at Marian University. I actually got a chance to meet Leslie and his sister before the show. It really was something else. His sister Mary is such a wonderful person, she even invited me to their room after she found out we were both staying at the Ramada Inn. I hear there's a DVD coming out
roddynibbler 9 months ago 4
I'm sitting here in Pittsburgh, I just flew in from New York. Next on the agenda is a plane to Chicago, then Green Bay, and an hour and a half drive to Marian University in Fond Du Lac Wisconsin. It's all worth it though...because tonight, April 15, 2011, I get to see the one and only Leslie Lemke live in concert. Who'd a thought that 30 years later, after watching this one and the same segment, that I'd actually get to see the man perform. That's Incredible!
roddynibbler 9 months ago
@roddynibbler - How was the show?
mwittkopp89 9 months ago
@roddynibbler According to Wikipedia Leslie's dead of alzheimer's. I guess that's wrong?
GuitarWhisperer 9 months ago
I never forgot this episode! Amazing!
suddendee 9 months ago
He is a living testament to God's love of all people, especially the disabled. Just Incredible! I can't believe that many people would choose to end their pregnancy if they were going to have a baby like Leslie. He's miraculous.
carebearnmbr46 9 months ago 2
this is INSANE!!!!! crazy what the mind can do!
ItsMeRuffles 10 months ago 23
Is this real?
carpediem51392 10 months ago 2
What an amazing woman and an amazing story.
sail1948 10 months ago 7
Bless that women.
HellsHighwayTrooper 11 months ago 6
Saw this in my Ap Psychology book...even more amazing then what i thought it would be <3
xXstephy109Xx 11 months ago 6
Impossible to watch this without crying.
NewsDenizen 1 year ago 3
Hmmm. wierd He was born on january 31, Just like Daniel Tammet was.
straightupmenace 1 year ago 2
what was the song he was playing at around 2:08?
JJEBray011 1 year ago
@JJEBray011 It's Tschaikovky's Piano Concerto Number 1 in B Flat Minor. An extremely beautiful piece, if you get a chance to listen to it, I highly suggest it.
bloodshye1 1 year ago 2
This comment has received too many negative votes show
do you know you can train retards to have sex and they can be HOT
SWEJEHTKCUF 1 year ago
such a nice story. I can't believe the capabilities of the human brain
murphy341 1 year ago 4
This is a beautiful and holy woman; May and Joe are both the gifts from the Creator to our world.
ducminhbui 1 year ago 3
that woman is quite the actress, she probably beat the piano lessons into this kid
Frequent2001 1 year ago
@Frequent2001 Ever heard of Savant Syndrome? His talent is a beautiful gift. May is an incredible person who was not only overwhelmed with happiness that Leslie could move on his own, but that he could sing and play the piano, too. May wasn't acting and nothing was beaten into Leslie. He's a miracle that May helped keep alive.
pipespianosaxophone 1 year ago
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ch1mer1c 1 year ago
@Frequent2001 Just like the overeducated idiot who narrated the documentary on Leslie called "May's Miracle" for the Canadian program "Man Alive", Frequent2001 cannot admit the possibility of a miracle or of truly good people. That would mean that God would have to exist...something that these people must never admit.
ch1mer1c 1 year ago
@ch1mer1c Over-educated idiot...Isn't that an oxymoron? And what does a god have to do with truly good people? Are you implying that people can't be good without a belief in invisible animals? I would hate to think that we are truly this simple minded in this century...
thelordmemnoch 1 year ago
@Frequent2001 yeah
most acts from the conscious could be called "acting"
ZRadach 10 months ago
God bless!!!
Thanks God! Thanks God!!!
nguoinhaque01 1 year ago 2
Wow, thumb us for you May. You're such a wonderful lady. The world needs more people like you. This make me cry in happiness...
putranhoang 1 year ago 2
I really admire this lady .....
margaritajeziel 1 year ago 2
made me cry :[
MasterMcG 1 year ago 2
beautiful
craster9310 1 year ago 2
wow that was wonderful!
skittlessiera 1 year ago 2
I think the most incredible thing in this video is that woman! How motivational can you get? My best wishes to your family!
CHRISTMASBASTARD 1 year ago 4
Just goes to show what a little love and music can do for you.
emmagrace1996 1 year ago 2
I red Shirlee Monty's book about Lemke's family and Leslie and it was very ispirational...God is good! All the best for you Leslie!
postman133 1 year ago 2
I worked on this segment on That's Incredible. Sharron Miller directed and edited it. The original TI segment was 13 minutes long. She later went on to produce and direct an ABC Afterschool Special, Woman Who Willed a Miracle, on Leslie and May, starring Cloris Leachman. Sharron won 4 Emmys for it, including awards for Best Director and Best Children's Programming.
mierel28 1 year ago
wow really one dislike? what a dick
rod619 1 year ago 36
@rod619 - What you resist persists - Now there are 4.
BayviewFinch 5 months ago
@rod619 Whom ever felt it necessary 2 thumbs down must feel like God slighted them somehow. That no "Miracles" "that they kno of " have come their way! How sad 4 them. I hope they get the chance to kno Gods' love.
cyndidalynn 5 months ago
@rod619 make it 4 !!
indyfan22k 3 months ago
@rod619 You encourage me to invalidate your statement
JoshJamesification 2 months ago
this lady is as tough as they come... but she was right on not letting Leslie just be the way he was, she cared but didnt pity him to the point of infantilzing him
Dravenswraith 1 year ago
He has a beautiful voice :)
MarkusHomer 1 year ago
That lady reminds me of Betty Davis.
Leyenda1 1 year ago
I remember seeing this show 29 years ago, I'm legally bind, and this stuck out in my mind, as last year, I started taking piano lessons, at age 44. Never too late , I guess huh? Amazing how this turned up now.
Thanks for the memory!
minnescanada 1 year ago
“He was playing with his elbows, fists and his nose,” recalls Prof Ockelford. “At first I thought he was a bit mad, but as he played and I recognised what he was playing, I realised he was unlike anyone I had seen before."
Aged two, Derek first encountered a musical instrument – a toy organ. “He would play back nursery rhymes and songs he had heard on programmes,”
Nursery rhymes not fucking concerti.
At the age of NINE, Derek played his first major concert, at the Barbican in London.
7 years
curzmg 1 year ago
There are many scientific ideas about Savantism, some are as factual as any other theory. Certainly it is a scientific fact the motor skills require learning, there are no exceptions, not with savants or anyone else.
'Autism and pitch processing: a precursor for savant musical ability?' - P. Heaton, B. Hermelin, L. Pring discusses its primary impact on musical perception.
curzmg 1 year ago
I saw this when it first aired and have been searching for it for a long time. It still brings tears to my eyes.
DeSwiss 1 year ago
Good God, i almost cried.
FatChixx97 1 year ago
my name is Jonathan LEMKE!!!
Johnny1OO 1 year ago
this is remarkable...
elijahbalong 1 year ago
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What bullshit! you notice she says that he played the piano but couldn't talk to them However he sure can tell em that he is crying? WTF is that shit? bullshit!
memorysticky 1 year ago
sad thing is, everyone is capable of playing like this, why handicapped people are the only ones capable of reaching that part of their brain no one will no.
devich148 1 year ago 3
Simply amazing
wildthang4u 1 year ago
great story, great woman may lemke
holydoggy123 1 year ago
AN ANGEL SENT FROM ABOVE♥
iluvtorrencegreene 1 year ago 4
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Fake and Gay
PageUpDownLock 1 year ago
maybe if you actually studied psychology a little bit you would know that is not fake in anyway. What you saw in the video was 100% true.
Bopski84 1 year ago
i just learned about Mr. Lemke from my substitute Psychology professor and I must say this is an amazing story
speedfreak0920 1 year ago
Cloris Leachman starred in a movie in the 70's-early 80's which was surprisingly accurate to her account. I don't recall this episode of "That's Incredible". I once had a client who was blind and mentally disabled and he picked up the piano rather well. I think the fetters of everyday life keep people from musical expression. The fact that we place fewer expectations on the handicapped, typically, allows their intellect to grow as it will, in spite of the "norm". They are often very creative!
Commentarian1 1 year ago
123mortimer456 & curzmg - Arguing on the internet is like running in the Special Olympics - even if you win, you're still "special".
hoslaw 1 year ago
@hoslaw what a tedious outlook.
curzmg 1 year ago
Maye has quite a knack for telling her tale! She really pulled me into this whole story, very dramatic and poetic! Very nice, Miss Maye. Leslie is a beautiful person and I LOVE his talent and passion. Savants like Leslie are complicated individuals...we often wonder about them...how they work...what they think...well, want to hear his soul? He lets us see and hear it through his music and I think it is beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
weepingturtle73 1 year ago
cheers dude ^^ awesome, inspiring
arnonn 2 years ago
It's very touching when the lady said he cried for the very first time....
SambaScramble 2 years ago
Oh, amazing!! They'll inspire me forever!!
HadassaBereshit 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
This is a lovely video and I do truly appreciate the beauty of this. However, it does seem that the narrator, along with the music, twists the story into him going downstairs and simply playing Tchaikovsky's piano concerto without ever touching a keyboard. I sincerely doubt that is true. It is not just incredible, it is a lie. Still I wish him all the best, if he is still with us.
curzmg 2 years ago
This story is true.
Do a google search on "Leslie Lemke"
retro80stv 2 years ago
The story is true, I don't doubt that for a moment, but this twists the truth. Have you noticed that on Youtube there are no citations? That means they have just seen this documentary. Look, the reason it is not possible is that the muscles in your hands need to adjust to playing the piano. You can't just sit down at a piano and play flight of the bumblebee without practice even if you know all the notes, because your muscles aren't physically strong enough.
curzmg 2 years ago
A savant usually has the gift of perfect pitch, meaning they can identify any note or group of notes on the keyboard and repeat them. But it is not magic, they have to learn where the notes are on the keyboard first. They don't just know where the notes are without having ever having touched a keyboard, they aren't psychics.
curzmg 2 years ago
Once a savant has trained his/her hands, built up their muscle, and learnt where all the keys are and the proper technique to get to them - then they are able to play almost any tune you play to them. If he did play that concerto he must have played a seriously stripped down version, probably just a couple of notes to each chord. Or he was playing it extremely slowly, or something. It is possible as long as he wasn't doing anything that the normal hand couldn't achieve.
curzmg 2 years ago
@curzmg
What type of citation do you want? From the Show "That's Incredible" during the broadcast? The web page is "Wisconsin Medical Society" Dot Org
Check out my profile. I have a CBC documentary and the afterschool special on Leslie.
retro80stv 2 years ago
There is no evidence for this, I am a follower of Derek Paravicini, I am awe inspired by savants. However do you not understand that the muscles need to be trained. Savants can have fantastic musical minds, but their muscles still have to develop. For instance, Derek was playing with his elbows when he first started playing. They still need to be taught the necessary technique.
curzmg 2 years ago
@curzmg *laughs* I play piano and am aware of How I use my hands to play. You are preaching to the wrong person.
Read the medical articles on him, then you will understand.
retro80stv 2 years ago
Well would you care to direct me to them. I do not understand how muscles could spontaneously develop.
curzmg 2 years ago
Part 3 - The Woman Who Willed a Miracle shows how they developed his muscles
That is found under my profile.
As for the medical journals, I think google can help you out.
retro80stv 2 years ago
Yes but if they developed his muscles how is it that he played Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto without having trained his hands?
curzmg 2 years ago
curzmg - A person with normal hand strength can physically play piano at a high level without training. Pianists use their finger muscles mainly to adjust finger position. Most of the power to depress the keys comes from the shoulders and arms. The fingers act as levers to transmit that power. That's exactly what Leslie does in the video. If you'd like to know exactly how this works as a matter of piano technique, please read the writings of the famous piano teacher Abby Whiteside.
123mortimer456 1 year ago
That is a load of rubbish. Find a single person that can play me Rachmaninoff's preludes who has never before touched a piano... without spraining their fucking wrists.
curzmg 1 year ago
Anyone who plays piano will tell you that it is the wrists that are damaged and beaten, your arms can take it. 'A person with normal hand strength can physically play piano at a high level without training' - How could you possibly know that? It would be absoloutely impossible to prove. There is not a single person under the Sun who has ever played the piano at a high level without training, I would say because it is impossible to do so, you think not.
curzmg 1 year ago
curzmg - At age 3, Arthur Rubinstein and Wilhelm Kempff played piano at an extremely high level without any prior training. Efficient piano playing puts no strain on wrist or fingers. They don't exert power, they transmit it. The power of Vladimir Horowitz has nothing to do with finger or wrist strength. It stems from his efficient use of fingers and arms as levers to transmit power from the shoulders. This power is available without muscle training. I recommend you read Whiteside's work.
123mortimer456 1 year ago
'Efficient piano playing' - efficient at what? If power is utterly irrelevant then where is the efficiency? Surely one need not be efficient if power is irrelevant. Your hands need to be trained, you are directing me towards a one sided argument about strength = power. There are many different applications of muscle strength, they can be toned or powerful or dexterous. If they are none of these things then you will not play the piano.
curzmg 1 year ago
curzmg - Power is extremely relevant to piano playing. The question is where it comes from. A common erroneous view holds that pianistic power lies in strong fingers and wrist. That is false. Piano power originates in the large muscles of torso, shoulders, and upper arms. The finger, hand and wrist muscles - which are much too weak to create a strong sound - are mainly used to position fingers and hand for efficient transmission of body, shoulder, and upper arm power to the keys.
123mortimer456 1 year ago
I agree with that entirely. What I don't agree with is that the body will simply know how to do this without training. It is different for every piece of music, you train your muscles on what to do and then you recite this mechanical process. It is impossible to do this without training. Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto is a piece that requires a remarkable amount of this mechanical memory, thus a lot of training. It is simply not possible to play it without this.
curzmg 1 year ago
This is the most ridiculous hypothetical argument. You must train your hands to play piano. Rubenstein did train as did Kempff, you think he just started by playing Chopin etudes?
curzmg 1 year ago
if u research it you will realize that may taught her to lay the same way she taught her to walk , and one day he just figured out how to turn what he heard into the instrument
infestedbigmac 1 year ago
if u research it you will realize that may taught her to lay the same way she taught her to walk - sorry I don't understand what that means?
curzmg 1 year ago
may taught him how to play by making his fingers run the keys when he was a child
infestedbigmac 1 year ago
So she did actually teach him how to play the piano? Or did she literally just tell him to run his fingers down the keyboard? Look, I can't see how this guy just sat down at the keyboard and knocked out concertos whilst all other savants still have to learn to play. It seems like hyperbole, probably to garner interest in the documentary.
curzmg 1 year ago
The problem is that the fact that you cant see it, doesnt mean anything.
It's untrue that all savants who play the piano had to learn it.
That's exactly the point about a savant, he doesnt have to learn that one thing he can do.
He is just doing it because he can.
Assume that if there is a piano he of course so her play it and he heard the notes.
I mean come on, it's not a big stretch, on the contrary it's obvious.
So one night he "just" sat down and replayed what he he heard.
That's savant.
jonny3692 1 year ago
@jonny3692 No Jonny this is a misconception. Derek, if you read about him, was playing with his elbows literally when a teacher came across him. The teacher had to teach him the correct techniques and then he was soaring. Pianism requires muscle memory, muscle memory requires repitition - it is scientific fact. There are no exceptions. There may be people who can learn faster but not instantly. Your fingers have to learn how far apart the keys are etc, a savant isn't preprogrammed with that.
curzmg 1 year ago
Quote of Derek's biography by his mentor: "Miraculously,.. Derek taught himself to play..he’d never had a lesson, yet he produced this original version of ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’, with hundreds of notes ".
He THEN had lessons to become a virtuos, but he could play before, and noone knows why, that's what seperates savants from others, that's the point.
Saying something was scientific fact isn't fact.
There is no relevant science facts on savants yet so you disqualified urself rly.
jonny3692 1 year ago
@jonny3692
Oh, and if it wasnt clear, discussion is over.
Everyone is free to get his or her own information on the web if you're too ignorant - not my problem.
jonny3692 1 year ago
@jonny3692 “He used his elbows, he even used his nose,” says Nicolas. “He didn’t know you were supposed to use only your fingers, but he would play the most extraordinary music. " that's his father speaking.
curzmg 1 year ago
@jonny3692 what the fuck, you literally just proved yourself wrong then ignored yourself. 'Miraculously,.. Derek taught himself to play' oh so I see what you're saying actually, you mean he didn't learn to play... ah yes I see what you are saying..? This is so ridiculous. So what you're all saying is as soon as a savant comes out of the womb they can just bust out Rachmaninoff's Concerti. Seriously if you want to believe that you're an idiot.
curzmg 1 year ago
I am not debating which muscle groups are the most effective. If you spent one minute with your head out of a book then you would realise that everyone obviously uses different muscle groups. Regardless of which muscles are needed these muscles need to be trained; be those fingers, hands, legs, ears or lips - it really does not matter but precision requires practice. Sorry but nothing comes for free in this world, including pianism.
curzmg 1 year ago
thank you for posting this
koolkittyboo 2 years ago
amazing.....his life make a great movie;)
lapafrent 2 years ago 2
It was an afterschool special in 1983
retro80stv 2 years ago
Wow! That is so inspiring!
taemaishoo 2 years ago 2
Did the soul of a dead musician just suddenly fly into his body?
Irishfreedom 2 years ago 2
Aw that dear woman...<3
LochNessCO 2 years ago 62
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If anybody would like more information about Leslie Lemke and watch some concert video's he's done check out this site:
WisconsinMedicalSocietyDOTorg/savant_syndrome/savant_profiles/leslie_lemke
RickyD1967 2 years ago
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RickyD1967 2 years ago
I remember this!
blurrybigfoot74 2 years ago 2
Incredible. . That old woman is a saint
dapeachesarefree12 2 years ago 54
@dapeachesarefree12: To bad, that she died :/
MarkusHomer 1 year ago
@dapeachesarefree12 she got the ticket for heaven for shure dude!
izayoichan 9 months ago 2
whoa i remeber watching this im old
cupofsoda 2 years ago 5
i remember watching. this. i cant believe 28 years flew by;
hamslice151 2 years ago 6
HA~ so do I!
pcmatt2000 2 years ago
A message to the whole world.
"The meek shall inherit the earth and the proud shall fall".
lstscout 2 years ago 9
is it meek to pass judgement on others?
fatmeteor 2 years ago
duuuuude~
sjg0546 2 years ago
There is more than a universe, thats true!!
tilerxy 2 years ago 9
aw may is so cute when she is retelling the story haha
axdcs1 2 years ago 6
Leslie Lemke's still alive, still gives concerts, I think.
LakeEri 2 years ago 4
the tears are rolling down my cheeks, I haven't seen this video since it first aired on 1981. The power of love makes miracles...
Synergy90210 2 years ago 9
R.I.P Leslie Lemke - 1952- 1993
FlickerFilmPictures 2 years ago
It was May who died in 1993, I think. Leslie was still giving concerts a couple years ago.
thefogster61 2 years ago 5
i cried i just cant believe how he did it but he did and his piano playing is beautiful his singing is wonderful it is such a blessing if only people were that nice and caring may the lemkes live on and may leslie play on : ' D
Dayplex4 2 years ago 5
so did I
backspace221 2 years ago
i got goose bumps listening
jacobfritzo 2 years ago 5
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Oh thats just Billy Bob Thorton in Sling Blade.
"French fried taters mmmm-hmmm!"
GomerDose 2 years ago
The couple that raised Leslie are great people...
They are really saints...
Good job playing Leslie
pacster1234 3 years ago 7
That couple who chose to take care of Leslie Lemke must have had great caring hearts.
Guys when you feel sad or whatever, remember that there will always be someone who is more unfortunate than you. This is a clear example here. I respect Leslie for being able to make it this far in life with happiness.
But the reason why I'm atheist is I don't understand why God would make someone's life this miserable. It saddens me when i think of how many ppl are suffering right now.
tubegangsta 3 years ago
There certainly is lots of misery in the world, tubegangsta, but misery is only a perspective. It's not God that creates misery, but that God gives us all this stuff. Some people the stuff as misery and others take it as blessing. This guy is blind and autistic. One person may suppose he's miserable when he himself may have felt happy. It's really one's own interpretation. The misery we cause others, though, is cause mankind is sinful. That's why God's there. To make things right with us.
Slashtap3 2 years ago 3
What a beautiful experience that must have been, that was a blessing,I'm also grateful to God.
meekman2008 3 years ago
That woman is a saint. If he didn't have such good support who know what would have become of him?
Leticiafregoso 3 years ago 8
I agree. That woman is indeed a saint, to have cared and given and discovered as she did.
cstarsoft2000 3 years ago 9
what is the name of the song it was playing while his mother was explaining about when she heard wonderful music playing and was gonna turn the tv off and stuff?
adhuxley 3 years ago
It's not a song.
It's from Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto.
McRat1968 3 years ago
do u mind telling me the name of the "piece"?
adhuxley 3 years ago 2
It's Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 and the first part if i remember correctly.
Janottaa 2 years ago
Wow what a beautiful story
Holly005 3 years ago
this is proof: music is the great healer.
iHeartEmmett 3 years ago 2
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good for him for playing piano like that. he probably got some ass out of the deal!
meanmoon75 3 years ago
HE is just AMAZING! his singing if WONDERFUL! I started crying! ^^, he is just great!
Dayplex4 3 years ago 8
Amazing. Truly. This is the sort of thing that brings a tear to my eye, when the impossible SOMEHOW happens. I can't even fathom the amazement his foster mom must have felt when she woke up to him playing that. It's completely insane.
Zyphet 3 years ago 11
INCREDIBLE*:D
AhalleyL 3 years ago 8
uncredible:D
AhalleyL 3 years ago
So if we can figure out how this happens, we can unlock the power of the brain?
netspectre101 3 years ago 6
I don't know whats going on (I didn't really want to read through pages of name calling) but I do know things have gotten way off track. Lets all just enjoy this great movie and move on ok?
ttyler777jackson 3 years ago 5
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Gentlemen! Gentlemen, lets be nice here to each other! Some people are so weak and lost that they need to believe in mythology to give them some self worth in life. It is a fabulous growth industry that is all tax free! Every four years the political candidates can stir up the emotions of the religious folks and skirt all the real issues of our time. Just talk about Sarah Palin's qualifications as President because she chose to bring a handicapped kid into the world rather than abort it.
lumster 3 years ago
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i know, you are probably right. i just don't know why people need to believe the mythology that obama is the chosen one. wow, even democrats in congress compared him to Jesus Christ, and i thought these people want to have nothing to do with the Bible. wow, didn't know palin is running for vice-president just because she chose to brong into this world a baby with down syndome.
tlic77 3 years ago
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Total Loser In Christ 77-you are one stupid piece of shit. And Palin-I think her only qualification for Vice-President in McCain's eyes is that she DIDN'T abort a retard. Go back to your Phillippines hovel, stay out of American politics, and fuck yourself with a Bible and die, you worthless piece of shit. You have no excuse to live and your parents should be killed for bringing you into the world-if your mom and dad haven't killed themselves already for making that mistake!
blimeymate69 3 years ago
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And NO ONE believes Obama is the Messiah, you fucking retard! That crap only exists on FOX news to stir up gullible and brainwashed fucking morons like you. You are nothing more than a typicle, right wing, Christian brain-washed piece of shit, Total Loser In Christ 77. Do the world a favor and KILL YOURSELF! We'll just consider it a late-term abortion.
blimeymate69 3 years ago
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So inspiring. Sad to think Obama and his ilk would just let him die therefore disallowing us to be inspired by God's gift
kjmalone17 3 years ago
well, only as a fetus would he be allowed to die. let's all thank god that he wasn't sent to die in Bush's hopeless war. No child left behind, right?
vaginaLRabies 3 years ago
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do your research first before you make any comments. obama would have a baby born alive from a botched abortion get killed. and bush's hopeless war? last time i checked, most republicans and democrats approved of the war.
tlic77 3 years ago