Watch Paul Harvey play the piano in the video below.
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A heartwarming video of an old musician with dementia remembering a song he composed decades ago is going viral on the internet.
Nick Harvey’s dad, Paul Harvey, was hospitalized for around a year, so he hadn’t got a chance to visit his son.
When Paul was invited to dinner by his son at his home in East Sussex, England. Upon reaching there, the old man directly headed towards the piano.
“It is like a magnet to him — he is MADE of music,” Nick said about his father in an interview with The Washington Post.
Paul, who had been a pianist and composer, started playing a classical tone on his son’s piano.
When Nick, who is also a music composer and works with British television shows, saw his father playing piano, he captured the adorable moment on camera.
“I didn’t know how many more chances I’d get to capture him playing like that,” he said.
After he was done with the classical piece, Nick asked him to play “Where’s the Sunshine,” a song the old man composed more than three decades ago as the music director of a British school.
At first, Nick was uncertain if his dad could recall the music note from the 1980’s. The old man was also hesitant (as can be seen in the now-viral video) but as soon as he began, no one could believe their senses.
The 79-year-old fluently and confidently played the music he composed several years ago.
Nick shared the footage on Twitter where it received more than three million views, as well as praise and admiration from across the globe.
Celebrities such as James Corden and Emeli Sandé even retweeted the beautiful moment.
Sharing the video, Nick wrote with it: “Dad has dementia. Sometimes he drifts into another world and I feel like I’m losing him.
“He is never more present, however, than when he plays the piano. He came to mine today and I asked him to play one of his compositions. He thought he wouldn’t be able to remember it.”
Many users said that the beautiful composition had moved them. Some people wrote that they remembered Paul and haven’t yet forgotten the music pieces he had composed in the past.
“What an utterly beautiful piece of music, made even more poignant by the sight of the ‘like’ counter rolling up as I listened, testifying to hundreds of others feeling as I did,” one Twitter user wrote.
“Oh, doll. That is so very lovely. Bless your dad. The next few years will be so hard but hopefully he will have moments like this to remind you all that he’s still here. Love to you all xx,” another person commented.
Nick was both surprised and overjoyed at his father’s popularity. Thanking the people on behalf of his father, he wrote that he was “absolutely over the moon.”
He also revealed to his father’s new fans that the old man was a “musical idol” for him as well.
“He deserves wider recognition,” Nick exclaimed. “He has more talent in his little finger than most people have in their whole body.”
Nick has also discovered the original sheet containing notes of his dad’s now-viral song. From the day Nick recorded the footage, he and his family have been through an emotional journey.
“Behind my phone, I was choking back tears. I knew it would be an incredible keepsake for the whole family,” Nick said.
Paul was also happy after getting recognized for his talent, even though it came so late in life.
Speaking to the Press Association, he said: “I am very pleased that something I’ve written has had such an effect. It’s come so late in life, it shows that it can happen at any time.”