Hand in Hand Luncheon

Annual Luncheon Benefiting Helping Restore Ability - Friday, May 25, 2012 Sheraton Fort Worth Hotel & Spa, 10:30 Silent Auction, 12:00 Luncheon Guest Speaker - Rex and Cathleen Lewis Clack A mother, her blind and autistic child and the music that transformed their lives

Rex: A Mother, Her Autistic Child, and the Music That Transformed Their Lives
Rex Lewis-Clack has been labeled a prodigious musical savant, with an extremely rare combination of blindness, autism, and musical genius. Rex was born blind, with brain damage so severe it looked as though he would never walk or talk, and would certainly live a very limited life. Despite his physical and cognitive disabilities, Rex can play any musical composition after hearing it only once, and he’s even never even seen the keys on a piano. He can also instantly identify any note that is played for him; a talent attributed to only 1 in 10,000 people.
 

He was diagnosed with autism at 18 months, when he began to develop an acute sensitivity to sound and touch. Rex’s mother discovered that classical music helped calm him down, and when he was two years old, his father bought him a keyboard. His astounding musical talents then became apparent, and as his musical talents progressed, so did his development; he learned to walk, talk, and even ski. Rex hasn’t stopped expressing himself through music since then, and has gone on to perform concerts around the world. According to Cathleen, “The most incredible thing about him is the inner joy that lights up his personality. I always tell people who want to hear his music that they need to see the boy first because the music is only one part of the boy.”

Rex has been extremely busy since his last 60 Minutes profile aired in November of 2008. He has been featured an unprecedented three times on the show. Now in high school, he has seen his book Rex—A Mother, Her Autistic Child and the Music that Transformed their Lives translated into eight foreign languages. With that, he has travelled extensively to share his story around the country and world. He recently played in Oman in The Middle East, where he gave two performances and spent a morning playing piano at the only Early Intervention Center in Oman.

Recent media coverage also includes a 2009 profile of Rex on ABC’s Eyewitness News and a 2010 documentary profile on The Science Channel the beginning of a series called “Ingenious Minds.” During this profile Rex is seen working on musical composition and improvisation with world renowned concert pianist and classical improvisationist Gabriela Montero, demonstrating how Rex continues expanding his musical creativity.

On the home front in Los Angeles Rex is a frequent guest at The Classical Underground, where his piano playing has drawn acclaim and where he is featured alongside world class classical musicians. Classical Underground owner Alexey Steele says of Rex in Forth Magazine in 2010, “You are in the presence of a tangible miracle. It is an incredible example of art surpassing any limitations of body.”

You can find more information about Rex and Cathleen at http://gdaspotlight.com/bio.asp/Speaker/Cathleen_Lewis_and_Rex_Lewis-Clack

Click here for last years Hand-In-Hand Luncheon

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