Wootton High School Student Strums to Viral Recognition While Breaking Barriers
Max Nguyen, a junior at Thomas S. Wootton High School, went viral for his performance of the song "Stick Season" after being featured in musician Noah Kahan’s Instagram story, which reached over 2 million followers.
Nguyen was recognized for his impromptu performance at the Junior National Hospital’s Sunflower Music Festival. He stepped in to perform his first one-hour gig when the scheduled band couldn’t make it. The hospital shared a video of the performance online, which caught Kahan’s attention.
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"This story's unreal," said Nguyen. "It's such a coincidence, but it's like a dream come true to me."
Born with cerebral palsy, Nguyen faced challenges with hand tension and mobility. His enthusiasm for music came about in first grade when his father encouraged learning piano as a form of physical therapy for his hands.
The turning point in Nguyen's musical journey came during ninth grade as a student at Seneca Valley High School. Christopher Mercado, a teacher there, introduced him to the guitar. Nguyen had attempted to learn the instrument twice but was led to believe it was too difficult due to his condition.
Mercado showed Nguyen how to play the guitar in an accessible way and proved that nothing is impossible.
Nguyen has continued to grow as a musician. Since interning as a teacher's assistant under Keith Schwartz, a music teacher at Wootton. Nguyen has helped develop a curriculum for guitar classes to make lessons relatable for beginners.
"I know, like what beginners struggle with and just being able to do that is really fulfilling to me, helping students experience what I experienced," said Nguyen.
Nguyen is interested in biomedical engineering and knows music will be an important part of his life. He envisions himself as an engineer by day and a musician by night, spending weekends performing gigs and writing songs.
"Music helps you heal. Music helps you socialize,” he said. “Music just makes life better."
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