In June 2015, Vincent van Hessen got the treat of a lifetime.
As a professional musician, Vincent isn’t one for routine. He typically plays at venues such as clubs, festivals, or cruise ships, but his favorite place to play is on the street.
As a street performer, Vincent feels that an artist can have “direct contact with a crowd of people that willfully chooses to listen and watch a spectacle because the opportunity presents itself, and not because of a pre planned agreement such as attending a concert on any given occasion.”
The spontaneity of street performing allows Vincent to entertain crowds of up to 300 people at a time. He finds this “very pleasant” because “it creates an intimacy which manifests itself in a very subtle and unusual way.”
But street performing isn’t always so glamorous. There are times street performers have to deal with intoxicated or mentally ill individuals, or rude adolescents, or in Vincent’s case, “wannabes”, which he calls people inviting themselves to perform with him without his permission because they are such amazing performers themselves.
Vincent thought he might have been experiencing one of these “wannabes” when on Sunday, June 21st, 2015, a bearded man approached him. Vincent was performing a medley of “Sexual Healing/Ave Maria/Blowing in the Wind” by Marvin Gaye, J.S. Bach, and Bob Dylan respectively.
The man insisted on getting Vincent’s attention, and when Vincent finally finished, he stood close to him and said, “I have a young star here and she’d like to sing with you.”
Initially, Vincent was not interested. Hoping to get rid of the man, he answered, “Look man! I’m in a middle of a show here, let’s do it later.”
But the man insisted. “No mister, she’s awesome, you won’t regret. it’s a once in a life time chance, and she’d like to do the ‘Ave Maria’ with you, as you have performed it a minute ago.”
Vincent wondered to himself, “Why Ave Maria?” But after a few minutes of persistence, he finally relented and met the young “wannabe.”
The little girl was shy but polite, and when Vincent asked her what key she would like to perform “Ave Maria” in, she consulted with her father in Dutch. When her father answered, “Amira, best if you do it in G!”, it occurred to Vincent who his young guest performer was.
Amira Willighagen performed on Holland’s Got Talent two years before Vincent met her. As a classically trained guitarist, Vincent was blown away by her talent, and he began to feel a rush in what he described as a “do or die” moment for having the honor of performing with this very talented 11-year-old.
As Amira sang, Vincent struggled to focus on his guitar playing as he was so “awestruck” by her voice.
The two attracted a crowd of around 100 people on the streets of Brussel’s city center and a number of cameras as they filmed, what Vincent called, a “once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Indeed, listening to Amira’s voice will strike anyone with how talented she is, especially if you are an Opera lover.
Keep an eye out for her name, she is surely going to become famous.
Please SHARE this little girl’s amazing talent with your friends and family.
