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Man's through-the-wall piano duet with a mystery neighbor became a beautiful love story

At first, it seemed like the perfect romantic meet-cute, but turned out to be something far more meaningful.

Photo by Bora Sözüer on Unsplash
person playing piano

Sometimes the right two people come along at the right time in each other's lives, and a story for the ages is born. But it's rare that we get to see such stories captured in real-time. This time we're lucky. In a silent saga befitting a Pixar short film—complete with soundtrack—a TikToker and his mystery neighbor have taken us all on a beautiful journey of music, love, longing, and loss.

Giorgio Lo Porto is an Italian living in London, and on February 6, he shared a video of his new neighbor playing piano. The music is muffled behind their shared wall, but clear enough to hear. Lo Porto wrote that he left a note for the mystery neighbor, telling them he loved their music and asking if they could play "My Heart Will Go On." And so they did.

Lo Porto left another note suggesting that they play something together, each in their own apartments. A call-and-response duet of sorts. He didn't know if they'd do it, or if they'd forget when the time came. He also said he himself hadn't played in months. But he started playing at 2pm, and as soon as he stopped, the neighbor began.

Their duets became a weekend "meet up," playing back and forth through their shared wall.

You can watch a compilation of the performance below but keep reading because there is so much more to this beautiful story:


Two neighbours playing piano between a wall - Giorgio and Emilwww.youtube.com



Seems like a perfect meet-cute in a romantic comedy, doesn't it?

On Valentine's Day, they played a duet and Lo Porto wrote "It's Valentine's Day. We're in lockdown. This was our way of saying, I don't know who you are but I'm here. You're not alone."

Then it came time for them to meet.

"Well, today I have met my neighbor," Lo Porto wrote in a video shared on February 21. "It was better than expected."

"His name is Emil..."

@giorgio_lp_ I wasn't surprised - I knew there was a special soul behind that wall ##fyp ##foryou ##music ##neighbour ##love ##piano ##foryoupage
♬ original sound - Giorgio Lo Porto

"He is 78 years old, originally from Poland. This is his temporary accommodation while he waits for his house to be sold."

"He lost his wife in December due to COVID," Lo Porto shared. "And all he has left is the piano. And the reason why he plays at 2pm every weekend is because his wife loved it."

"He thanked me for keeping him motivated and less lonely. And I promised that I'll play with him until he moves out."

"He is camera shy," he added. "But I'll try again when he's ready."

Lo Porto shared that Emil is "a special soul" and that "he is fine now, healing." And his piano playing is just gorgeous.

Playing with Emil inspired Lo Porto to write his own song. "I woke up with 3 notes in my head," he wrote on February 27.

He added some string orchestration to it and called it "Dear Emil." It's the first song he's ever written.

"When I wrote this piece I started picturing Emil's life," he wrote. "A 78 y.o. widower who lost his wife due to this stupid virus. Spending days at home alone due to lockdown. Looking forward to play her favourite piano songs at 2pm every weekend, until a note appeared on his door. A letter showing he was heard and not alone. And a new friendship started. Two pianos between a wall, not knowing who was playing. But it didn't matter."

"You can be the light of somebody else's darkness. So keep shining."

On February 26, Lo Porto announced that Emil was moving out the following week, and shared their last weekend duet—the much requested "Moonlight Sonata."

He said Emil still didn't want to be on camera, but said he was much happier and thanked everyone who had been watching their duets. Lo Porto promised he would keep playing for him on the weekends.

It would be lovely if the story ended there, but it doesn't. (May need a tissue now if you haven't already grabbed one.)

Lo Porto shared on March 14th that he'd received word that Emil had passed away in his sleep: "And now he is reunited with his wife."

"Dear Emil," he wrote. "I knew very little about you, but you changed my life. You gave me back my passion, and we shared that with the world. You'll be in my heart. I'll keep playing, thinking of how powerful music can be. You said I was your light, but you've been mine too. Bye, Emil."

If you needed a good cry today, hope that helped. And if you needed a reminder that humans can be wonderful and life can connect us in beautiful and mysterious ways, now you've got one.

Lo Porto says he will have a full version of "Dear Emil" up on YouTube soon. You can listen to it on Spotify as well.


This article originally appeared four years ago.

Popular

Guy starts singing a Sam Cooke song at the barbershop and blows everyone away

With 7 million views on TikTok alone, Shawn Louisiana's incredible viral video is a must-see.

Sometimes a person opens their mouth to sing, and magic happens. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what qualities make a voice transcend the average and transfix an audience, but we know it when we hear it. Enter Shawn Louisiana.

A video of him singing in a barbershop has gone viral and it's definitely worth a watch. He wrote on YouTube, "The older guy didn't think I could pull off a Sam Cooke song," but when he started singing "A Change is Gonna Come," he definitely proved that he could. Really well. Like, whoa.

Watch:

The older guy didn't think I could pull off a Sam Cooke song #achangegonnacomewww.youtube.com

There's a reason that video has gotten nearly 7 million views on TikTok alone.

Louisiana frequently shares videos of himself just singing casually for the camera, and I don't understand why this man's talent is not more well known yet.

I mean, just listen to this "Stand By Me" cover. Like butter. Sing me to sleep, sir.

Stand By Me - Ben E. King cover #tiktokwww.youtube.com

His Instagram account says he's available to book for weddings. That's nice, but someone please get this man a record deal so we can listen to him croon all day.

For more from Shawn Louisiana, follow him on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.


This article originally appeared four years ago.

Pop Culture

Ever seen two cellists rocking out to an AC/DC song? It's amazing how well it works.

2Cello's genre-smashing "Thunderstruck" performance has been watched 260 million times.

2Cellos rocks the house with "Thunderstruck."

If someone said, "Name two genres of music on the opposite ends of the spectrum," heavy metal and classical music would be a logical answer. So when you hear that an AC/DC song being played on classical instruments, it can challenge the brain a bit.

(Some folks may ask, "Is AC/DC really considered heavy metal?" By today's standards, no. Compared to thrash, black and death metal, definitely not. But AC/DC has been lumped into the heavy metal genre by everyone from MTV to Encyclopedia Britannica, despite co-founder Angus Young saying they were just a rock band. At the very least, they were metal-adjacent, so let's roll with it.)

"Thunderstruck" is one of those songs people of all ages know at least part of, thanks to its frequent use in movies and television shows. In fact, it's so ubiquitous that when two cellists transition into it from a classical piece, it's instantly recognizable.

Of course, the way they headbang and literally shred their cello bows while playing it also helps.

The cellists dressing in period garb and playing for what looks like an audience of Mozart's creates a delightful contrast in addition to it being in impressive musical performance. There's a reason the 2Cellos "Thunderstruck" video has been viewed a whopping 260 million times on YouTube.

Watch and enjoy:

People's reactions since the video debuted in 2014 have ranged from humor to incredulity to admiration for the duo's mad cello skills:

"I used to be a fan, but after hearing this masterpiece 1000 times, I'm an air conditioner now."

"When you're into rock but your parents buy you a cello."

"Can’t believe AC/DC made a cover of a song from the 1700s."

"These guys are like the ultimate form of being classically trained but the teachers never let them have any fun."

"As a fellow cellist, the skill you're witnessing is incredible."

"As a bass player, it's incredible how they can play that with so much precision. It is truly incredible, love the music."

Many people in the comments have shared that they keep coming back to watch this again and again, even years later.

Luka and Hauser, the famous Croatian cellists responsible for this genre-smashing masterpiece, just ended their musical career together in May of 2023. As Total Croatia News reported, "Luka is more of a family man now, with three children and a wife, and Hauser continues to be ambitious, full of ideas and eager to keep going, conquering the world and playing his music everywhere. Having different approaches to life, they thought it was best to take separate paths but will still remain great friends."

However, you can still enjoy their past performances together on their YouTube channel here.


This article originally appeared two years ago.

Credit: Ben P L from Provo, USA

Pentatonix performing at the USANA Amphitheatre in 2018.

"The Star-Spangled Banner," better known as the American national anthem, is one of the most notoriously difficult songs to sing, and there's no shortage of not-stellar performances to prove it. One of the reasons it's so difficult is that it requires a wide vocal range, with high notes meant to be sung loudly as the song climaxes. Another reason is that it's almost always sung live in front of a large audience, usually at sporting events where the crowd is particularly amped up, which adds pressure to deliver a perfect performance.

A handful of anthem performances have gained legendary status (hello, Whitney Houston), and now an acapella version from Pentatonix is giving those iconic moments a run for their money. At the NFL game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Houston Texans on Christmas Day, the quintet of singers started with one solo voice, then added layer after layer of pitch-perfect harmonies. The effect is stunningly powerful. Absolutely the best kind of chills.

Watch:

People were completely bowled over by it, with comments like:

"I want this on the radio/spotify etc. asap! I’ve never heard a rendition of The Star Spangled Banner other than Whitney Houston, that I wanted to listen to over and over!!! Incredible!"

"The last 'wave!!!' Y'all this was fire. Favorite version ever."

"Best anthem ever! We rewinded bc it was too good to only hear once! 🤍"

"Pretty sure this is the best version of our national anthem that I have ever heard!!!"

"I'm Brazilian but I couldn't hold some tears after that 😍 AMAZING!!!"

"Crushed it! One of the all time best. Needs to be Super Bowl anthem every year!!! 🇺🇸👏🔥❤️"

Lots of people are vying for Pentatonix to sing the anthem at the Super Bowl in February, which is when most of the best-loved anthem performances have taken place. (Grammy award-winning singer Jon Batiste is already lined up to sing the anthem at the 2025 Super Bowl.)

And in case you hadn't noticed, Kirstin Maldonado, the lone female in the group, is pregnant with her second child, which means she belted out those high notes with a growing baby pushing on her diaphragm. Talk about next level skills.

Pentatonix actually started as a trio, with Kirstin Maldonado, Scott Hoying, and Mitch Grassi forming a singing group together in high school in Arlington, Texas. They added beatboxer Matt Olusola and bass singer Avi Kaplan to round out their sound, forming Pentatonix in 2011 and winning the show The Sing-Off that same year. After some internal drama, Kaplan left the group in 2017 and Matt Sallee came on in his place. The group has its own

What is it that makes their sound so satisfying? Part of it is that they are individually talented singers, from pitch to power. Putting five talented people into an acapella group isn't a guarantee of success, but their voices blend beautifully and they perform like a well-oiled machine. Having a skilled beatboxer gives the group a percussive element and a low bass makes for a rich sound. Mitch Grassi being a countertenor—a male singer who can sing in a full female vocal range in addition to a male range—adds a surprising element as sometimes it's hard to discern whether he or Kirstin are singing the high notes.

Our brains love musical harmony, but what makes certain combinations of tones pleasing or displeasing to our ears has long been a mystery. While we might assume that harmony is a universal thing, but it's not. Some research has shown that what we find harmonious is culturally relative and learned. As a 2019 study states, "Even though it is one of the most important components in music, and possibly the most widely studied, the definition of harmony differs vastly across time, genre, and individuals, reflecting how little is understood about it."

Our experiences with music may be different, but we know when we hear a harmony that hits just right. Music has a profound effect on our emotional states, which is why music therapy has gained traction as a field of study in recent decades. We may not have a study showing that the feelings evoked by the national anthem are heightened by perfect 5-part harmony, but that certainly seems to be the experience of countless people who watched Pentatonix totally nail it.