Dream of a ‘Plaza Pianist’ Comes True: AD Reader Donates a Piano

“We’re moving,” says benefactor Marja Copier. “In our new home, there’s no space for our piano. When I read Farid’s story, I knew immediately: that piano would be perfect for him. He deserves it.”

Five years ago, Farid (23) came to the Netherlands from Iran, following his mother who had fled the country. For years, the only place he could play piano was at the Plaza shopping center near Rotterdam Central Station, where a grand piano stands among the shops. Buying one of his own was out of reach.

Now living in Capelle aan den IJssel, studying at university, and dreaming of one day performing at De Doelen, Farid had been surviving on barely twenty euros a week. “This is unbelievable. A real piano in my own home! We had one in Iran, we had everything there—but here, I had nothing. I never expected I would receive one now.”