1 week ago
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When James was a child, he loved playing songs over and over. I Am the Walrus, by the Beatles. Autobahn, by Kraftwerk.
“He hears emotion in music. I know that for a fact,” James’s father the Guardian journalist John Harris tells Helen Pidd.
After James’s autism diagnosis, John found that music was a great way for them to connect, which he explores in his new book, Maybe I’m Amazed: A Story of Love and Connection in Ten Songs.
Helen speaks to John about what he’s learned about the way autistic people experience music, and the challenges and stereotypes autistic people still face. She also visits the music class, Sound Lab, where James plays instruments with other autistic and learning-disabled young people.
In the podcast, John reflects on taking James to see Kraftwerk headline at Bluedot festival.
“Ginny, my partner, put her hand on James’s chest, and his heart was beating so fast and kind of flapping his hands, getting really, really excited. And then when they played Autobahn, which I think was about two-thirds of the way through, with these visuals of an animated VW Beetle driving down a German road, he was having this sort of mystical experience. But we all were. It was amazing, absolutely amazing.”
“And I remember driving back through the Cheshire countryside, thinking that’s the best gig I’ll ever see.”
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