Mystery Violinist Stuns Walmart Shoppers in Parking Lot with Passionate Music Playing
Imagine yourself walking out of a Walmart at the end of a grocery trip and heading to your car, when suddenly you hear a hauntingly beautiful melody hit your ears. You’re not sure where it’s coming from at first, but you soon notice a man skillfully playing the violin next to a woman who is pregnant.
Of course, you stop because the music is drawing you in, but even more than that, you want to read the sign next to him. You want to know his story.
This isn’t some hypothetical scenario. In 2017, shoppers in Bartow, Florida, were surprised by this anonymous violinist.
He was playing the song “All of Me” by John Legend. The sign beside him said that he had a wife and two children, but was unable to work. It sat beside his open violin case.
“Who knows where his life has taken him that he has to do this to try and make a living to support his family,” said Eddie Ramirez, the man who posted a video of the mystery violinist to Facebook.
He had apparently been seen all over Polk County, Florida, playing music trying to make ends meet. “He is super talented on that violin,” Ramirez typed.
Dr. Kira Omelchenko, who is an assistant professor in the Music Department at Florida Southern College, listened to the recording of the man and agreed.
“It is apparent that he has a really good ear and that he has a passion for playing the violin,” she said. “Anyone who has that kind of ability and that big of a heart to share their music, they’re an artist.”
While the violinist was never identified, this isn’t Florida’s first mystery musician. In 2015, a homeless man was spotted playing the one of the many public pianos in downtown Sarasota.
A video of his musical talent was posted on Facebook and went viral, reaching over 1.5 million views overnight! The man, later identified as Daniel Gould, told Fox 13 that he had grown up playing the piano.
“Ever since I was a kid there was a piano in the house. I would always bang on it,” he said. He played through his service in the Marines and in college, but eventually drugs and alcohol consumed his life until he ended up homeless.
He decided to play on one of the pianos that were installed as a public art project to pass time during the day. And since his viral video, Gould was able to release an album, play at a NFL game, and buy a house.
“I say, ‘Wow! Is this really happening?’ It gives me a feeling of gratitude and pride,” he told Fox 13.
After blessing the Polk County community with his talent, hopefully the mystery violinist is able to find a happy ending of his own.
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