11-year-old prodigy with autism receives $15,000 grand piano as gift from stranger

Friday, January 13, 2023
An 11-year-old piano prodigy with autism received a $15,000 grand piano as a gift from a stranger who compared the boy's talent to "Mozart-level."

Jude Kofie, of Colorado, initially went viral after he discovered an old keyboard in his home and began playing fluently -- without any lessons.
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Bill Magnusson, a piano tuner-technician, heard about Jude's story and was so moved that he used part of his inheritance from his father to gift Jude a brand-new grand piano.

"My first reaction was, 'This kid is Mozart-level,'" Magnusson said. Asked what it was about Jude's music that spoke to him, Magnusson replied emotionally: "It's like looking at the face of God -- it really is."
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Magnusson also and found a new piano teacher for Jude, so that the child prodigy can receive the formal training and support he needs to grow as a pianist.
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And in one final gesture of goodwill, Magnusson promised that he would tune the piano once a month for the rest of his life.
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