Man with Alzheimer's entranced by girl playing his piano, doesn't realize it's his granddaughter

There's an increasing call for music to be used as a form of therapy to help those suffering from Alzheimer's. A 93-year-old grandpa showed exactly why as he enjoyed a piano session held by his granddaughter. He didn't know she was his granddaughter but he could recognize good music and sat down to watch her play. The video was posted on TikTok by the man's granddaughter who goes by @sheelaawe. The video shows her playing the piano and her grandfather walking into the room, curious to see who's playing the piano. He's terribly confused as he doesn't remember her. "Every ten minutes, he asks who I'm and where I'm from," she wrote.

As she continues playing, she plays out his grandfather's thoughts as on-screen text. It reads: "He's thinking, 'Who's this strange lady playing my piano.'" The 93-year-old can be seen lingering by the door watching her with interest as she plays the piano beautifully. He walks a little closer but still not directly engaging with her. "Seems to be enjoying it," she writes on screen. He then confirms it by holding a thumbs up and she starts laughing. She continues playing and he takes a seat in the room, a front-row seat to watch his granddaughter play, unaware that it's his granddaughter. 

He dozes off for a bit but then continues to relish watching her play the piano. She's moved to see that he still connects with music and writes that it's the small moments like these that give her immense joy. "Cherish your loved ones and make each moment count. Time is precious," reads the on-screen text. She captioned the post: My grandpa is 93 and has Alzheimer’s. He doesn’t know my name, where I live, or who I am. This is us, sharing a moment of happiness, where memory doesn’t have to play a part in the experience. Life is too short y’all. Make space for love & cherish the present moment with your loved ones." The post struck a chord with many, especially those who knew loved ones suffering from memory loss. "This is just beautiful all around," wrote one person.

As we reported recently, 81-year-old Paul Harvey, an old music teacher suffering from dementia, could still play music. In a heartwarming video, Harvey improvises a two-minute piece from four notes — F natural, A, D, and B natural. After the video went viral, he was invited to play live on TV from his home. A year after his performance on Breakfast TV, he was invited to conduct the BBC Philharmonic orchestra playing two of his compositions at the studio in Salford. Harvey achieved a personal dream of his by conducting the orchestra on his own composition. His son played the piano during the performance. The performance was recorded by the BBC Philharmonic orchestra as a single, with all proceeds going to the Alzheimer’s Society and Music for Dementia, which campaigns for people with the condition to have free access to music as part of their care. 

“It was magical, it was very, very special to work with such wonderful musicians. It made me feel alive, I couldn’t believe that an orchestra was playing my music and I was standing in front of it conducting them. I hadn’t conducted in such a long time before this, it was a real thrill,” said Paul, who had been moved into sheltered accommodation as part of his dementia care nearly five years earlier. Paul studied piano at the Guildhall School of Music and became a composer and expert pianist.

His son, Nick had seen his Dad come alive when at the piano but to watch him conduct an orchestra was a whole different experience altogether. “It moved dad and me and my two brothers beyond compare. It was a dream come true for dad to conduct and play with an orchestra of that caliber as an 81-year-old. It’s what dreams are made of. It was like an out-of-body experience," he said.