It was a normal day in the London Underground when 9-year-old Olivier sat down at a public piano. Dressed in a nice shirt, tie and wearing his hair in a bowl cut, Olivier played what sounded like the first notes of a classical song. He picked at the piano for a moment or two, then launched into a raucous boogie-woogie song.

As people came around the corner where the piano was, it was clear they were shocked to see the source of the music: a little boy playing with energy.

It’s clear that Olivier loves to perform. He bounces as he plays, even closing his eyes and leaning back. You’d almost think he was striking a rock n’ roll pose with an air guitar — except, of course, his instrument was very real.

People audibly gasped as they spotted Olivier rocking out on the piano stool. Within moments, a crowd had gathered. People were filming on their phones. When he finished his impromptu performance with a bang, they burst into applause.

People online couldn’t get enough of the piano prodigy, either.

“How do you get to the London Underground Station?” wrote one YouTube commenter. “Practice, practice, practice!’

But believe it or not, this isn’t Olivier’s first time wowing the crowd at a train station.

When he was only 8, he played alongside legendary piano player Brendan Kavanagh at St. Pancras station.

Kavanagh, a well-known pianist, often goes into public in disguise to give impromptu concerts without revealing his identity. But before he started, he gave Olivier a quick run-down of what boogie-woogie was all about.

“It’s not just the notes, it’s the rhythm you play,” said Kavanagh.

“A lot of people think boogie-woogie, they think it’s just playing the right notes. But you’ve gotta get the beat and the rhythm. You’ve really gotta have it bounce.”

Olivier was clearly hanging on to every word.

He immediately demonstrated an understanding of the boogie-woogie “bounce.”

“He’s a natural!” said Kavanagh, grinning at the camera. “He’s a fast learner!”

When Olivier fumbled, Kavanagh took a moment to encourage him and tell him how boogie-woogie calls for the player to be relaxed. Getting tense, he said, is a recipe for rushing through the music — and that destroys the vital rhythm, the foundation of boogie-woogie music.

They tried a couple more times, and then Kavanagh told him to go home and practice just that boogie-woogie base rhythm for 10 minutes every day.

Clearly, Olivier has been practicing. A year later, it’s amazing to see how much he’s improved. And he’s mastering the rhythm and the relaxation of boogie-woogie.

Boogie-woogie rose to prominence during the 1920s. It was heavily influenced by the African-American genre on the music scene. Musicians such as Merle Haggard made boogie-woogie prevalent throughout much of the early-to-mid 20th century. Though its popularity in dance halls has now faded, musicians all over the world still love to rock out to its distinctive swinging rhythm — just like Olivier.

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By Cedric Jackson

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Cedric Jackson is a contributor at SBLY Media.