Music's marvellous memory man is a human iPod

A blind autistic man with severe learning difficulties has earned the nickname the 'human iPod' because of his piano playing talent.

Derek Paravicini - now in his mid-twenties - started playing the piano as a two-year-old toddler and began performing at the age of four, when it became clear he had an extraordinary ability to hear, remember and play all the music he comes into contact with - instantly.

Mentor Adam Ockleford - who discovered Derek's talent when he was a music teacher at London's Linden Lodge School for the Blind - said: "Derek and I first met when he was little - he was about four and a half. He just broke away from his parents and pushed a little girl off the piano and played Don't Cry For Me Argentina."



The young Derek's technique was eccentric, involving "knuckles, fists, karate chops and even the occasional elbow."

Mr Ockleford said: "We think that because he can't see and doesn't understand a lot of what is going on, other parts of his brain have got used for making music - so he's got a sort of musical factory up there.

"For Derek music isn't just a hobby, it's a lifeline - it's his way of communicating with the world, of interrelating with other people and above all of making them happy. He likes to make people happy and he knows he can do that through his music."

See Derek in action here.