The world’s first orphan pianist
Alexey Romanov is an abandoned Russian teenager who has no palms and has only one leg and grew up in an orphanage.
 
He was born without palms and had only one leg. No one ever thought he could play the piano.

From self-taught until being discovered and trained by teachers, he can play on stage with the chamber orchestra in just two years. Romanov not only shot to fame overnight but also touched countless people in the world and has become the world’s first orphan pianist.

His performance has even let the orchestra conductor La Primavera admires: “He seems to have versatile hands as the ordinary people. The audiences couldn’t believe their eyes to witness such a perfect performance in the theater.”

Romanov was deeply fascinated with music from an early age. Whenever he heard the piano music, he could not help but want to play. He started studying piano on his own in 2014 and learned to listen to chords. He was fortunate to get help from friends and teachers, allowing his skills to get increasingly sophisticated.

Incredible talented pianist receives countless awards
Lucks came to Romanov one after another when he was 12, being adopted by a loving couple.

His foster parents, Vladimir and Luisa Levachkovye, encouraged Romanov to pursue his musical interest and suggested that he go to piano classes. They let him continue to practice the piano and bought him a synthesizer.

Romanov did not stop practicing. In less than two years, he has been able to use his arms and play the piano skillfully.

Romanov said: “I’ve always had a passion for classical music. At first, I played the simplest things such as the Christmas songs, but now I can learn some more serious works.”

Despite the innate disabilities, Romanov did not set limits on his life, did not give up the dream of pursuing music, and gradually embarked himself on the official competition arena and took back international trophies one after another.

Attracts more than 130 million fans
With the ability to play incredibly beautiful piano music and touch the people’s hearts, Romanov’s spiritual perseverance is regarded as a hero by the Russians. He has also been invited to perform in TED and shared his own story to become a model for people with brave dreams.

Romanov asked his mother to record his playing process and uploaded it to the Internet. So far, more than 130 million people have clicked to appreciate it. He wants to tell people in the world that “innate disabilities can never hinder your progress on the road of pursuing dreams.”

Giving 99% of his efforts
Whereby, the fingerless Alexey Romanov plays magical piano music and walks all over the world single-footed, thus witnessing that “with persistence, an iron pestle can be ground down to a needle.” The most valuable thing is that he is humble, giving 1% credit to the sensation of tone, and 99% to efforts. He has since then brought home international trophies one after another, walked single-footed from one country to another to offer charity performances, spreading the love of life to the world. He deserves to be praised as the “Fingerless Piano Warrior,” and stood out among 2,723 recommended candidates from all over the world and earned him the “22nd Fervent Global Love of Lives Award 2019” from Taiwan’s Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation.

The Foundation welcomes all walks of life around the world at any time to recommend candidates of life warriors who possess the contexts of endeavors, love, braveness, and achievement.
 
The Fervent Global Love of Lives Medal - Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation, Taiwan
Recommended hotline: 886-2-29178770 Fax: 886-2-29178768
Address: 3F, No. 52, Mingde Road, Xindien District, New Taipei City 231, Taiwan
Website: http://www.ta.org.tw
Email: ta88ms17@gmail.com

Plays ancient and modern famous songs
When Romanov was only 16 years old, he shot one piano playing video. You can see his fingerless hands constantly striking the keys and smoothly playing the “River Flows in You,” the famous work of South Korean composer Yiruma, and other ancient and modern famous songs. After the video was uploaded to the Internet, it has attracted more than 100 million viewers in just two weeks. His musical talents and outstanding performance have caught the attention of the Conductor of Kazan City Chamber Orchestra and invited him to perform with the orchestra.

“With persistence, an iron pestle can be ground down to a needle.” Although this sentence is a cliché, it’s the most pertinent compliment to those who work hard. Romanov, regarded by the Russians as a hero, was born with no palms and had only one leg, but they did not hinder him from pursuing his dreams. He taught himself piano and has successfully played touching melodies.

Romanov said that he loves music and likes classical music. He decided to learn to play piano two and a half years ago but did not have a musical foundation. To play the piano practically, he relied on listening to the music and then groping his notes.

He revealed that he could only play a few simple songs at the beginning and only officially got in touch with the knowledge of music theory three weeks ago. Besides playing the piano, Romanov also often paints personally to display his creative talents.

Fingerless young pianist pursues his dreams bravely
The 16-year-old Romanov grew up in an orphanage and was adopted at the age of 12. Due to his physical disabilities, he did not set limits on himself, and no one has ever thought he could play the piano. However, Romanov has never given up since childhood. He has a particular liking for music. Whenever he heard the piano music, he could not help but want to play.

In 2014, Romanov began to learn piano by himself, and with the help of friends and teachers, he practiced every day, and his skills became more and more sophisticated. Romanov’s foster parents also supported his musical interest, encouraged him to go to piano lessons to improve his skills and bought a synthesizer for him.

Romanov did not stop playing the piano. In less than two years, he was able to use his arms and play the piano skillfully. He said: “I’ve always had a special liking for classical music. At first, I played the simplest things (such as the Christmas song”, but now I can learn some more serious works.”

Romanov said: “Arthur Rubinstein, Wilhelm Walter Friedrich Kempf, Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz, Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter, Emil Gilels, Alfred Brendel, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Martha Argerich, and Maurizio Pollini are all my self-taught enlightened teachers. For others, like Mozart, Beethoven, Frederic Chopin, Liszt, Tchaikovsky, etc., are also my eternal piano masters.

Most notably, Romanov has a notebook jotted with famous sayings of the pianist predecessors to encourage him, and he also likes to share with others.

Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy - Beethoven
Through the internal connection with the poem, music has gained new life - Liszt
The piano is pure and full of charm; it is the symbol of art at the highest level - Frederic Chopin

Music is indeed the most beautiful of all Heaven’s gifts to humanity; only music can explain quietness and tranquility - Tchaikovsky
 
The suffering of life does not collapse me, the joy of my heart is not my personal, I put the joy into music to make the world feel happy - Mozart

Music is not to leave any external force, refreshing the purest feelings of flame. It is from the inlet air, it is flowing in the blood vessels in the life of Hematology - Liszt

Although prosthetics can be used as an aid when playing the piano, Romanov does not like to use them. He believes that he can do many things with his fingerless hands. He also acts to show his determination and belief.

Despite the innate disabilities, Romanov did not set limits on his life. He did not give up his dream of pursuing music, and gradually embarked himself on the official arena and took back international trophies one after another.

Romanov was invited to play in the internationally renowned organization TED and share his own story, becoming a model for people who have brave dreams. He also asked his foster mother to record his playing process and uploaded it to the Internet. He hopes to use his own experience to convince people that “innate disabilities can never hinder your progress on the road of pursuing dreams.”
 

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