They're much stronger than they look: blind musicians who have confidently ascended to musical Olympus

A lot of famous people, especially creativeand behind my shoulders. difficult fate... Some musicians lost their parents early on, others got involved with the wrong company at a young age and almost ended up behind bars (although there have been such cases). But there are also those artists who, contrary to popular belief, managed to climb the musical Olympus being unique in physical plan. History has seen many blind peopleToday we will tell you about the most famous and truly outstanding of them.

Ray Charles

American soul legend and rhythm and blues, Ray Charles lost his sight at a tender age. When he was just 5 yearshe witnessed a great tragedy: his brother George was literally swallowed up in a deep puddle... This event could not help but leave a mark on the mental health Ray, and soon the boy began to go blind... By the age of seven, all he could see was darkness.

However, blindness did not prevent Charles from becoming one of the most influential "truly American." musicians of the post-war era, and to sell out more 70 million of his gramophone records! There is a legend that in the 1980s Ray had a desire to partially restore his eyesight, and the musician even submitted an anonymous advert looking for a donor in one eye! The doctors, however, considered such an operation a great stupidityand therefore talked Charles out of it.

Geoff Healey

Geoff Healey remains one of the most unique, yet brilliant blues guitarists in history! As a baby he was committed but the boy was lucky to be adopted by a loving family. Jeff's affliction became known when he was not even a year old! The affliction was linked to a rare tumourand during his unjustly short life, the musician wore prosthetics instead of eyes... But he still saw nothing.

But even in such a sad state of affairs, Healy managed to find the strength to go out to the big stage! He went down in history as one of the most virtuoso of blues guitarists: Jeff would put his guitar on his lap and play a method tappingfor which he became famous! He also appeared in the film "Roadhouse." with Patrick Swayze, and managed to work with rockers such as Ian Gillan before passing away in 2008 from lung cancer.

Andrea Bocelli

An icon of the Italian stage, Andrea Bocelli was able to reach great heights and give this world a great legacy! But the artist's path began on a small farm near Pisa, where he studied musical instruments from an early age... Bocelli became blind at the age of 12. He had problems with his eyesight seriousand the boy even suffered about 30 surgeries on the eyes! But being hit on the head by a football was fatal.....

Nevertheless, Andrea Bocelli's life has turned out to be successfully! The musician has three children and two marriages under his belt.

Stevie Wonder

This man's equal no: despite his blindness, Stevie Wonder had a tremendous influence on the development of music 20th century! He is considered the founder of the modern soul и R'n'Band his music bank is literally bursting with awards! What is most offensive in his story is that he lost his sight as a child due to the negligence of doctors....

Mother shielded her blind son from the cruel streets, and to keep Stevie from being bored sitting at home, instilled in him the love to music. The boy learnt to play various instruments and even sang in the choir! That's worthy respects…

Arthur "Art" Tatum

Jazz pianist and composer, Arthur "Art" Tatum is widely recognised for his unique playing technique. But he also became one of the few blind musicians who managed to conquer the world... Blind Tatum was a from birthbut a series of surgeries helped him partially recuperate vision in one eye - the musician could distinguish contours.

Alas, The 21-year-old Arthur was assaulted, which provoked. deterioration The pianist lived a full and difficult life and passed away in 47 years old.

Diana Gurtskaya

Diana Gurtskaya blind from birth. The girl grew up in a large family and graduated from boarding school for blind and visually impaired children, after which she confidently began to make steps towards fame. Few people believed that the girl would be able to break into the music business, but Diana was adamant: already in the 10 years Gurtskaya sang a duet with Irma Sokhadze!

Today, the domestic public knows and loves Diana well for her touching song "You know, Mum."which has become a real jewel in her repertoire ...