Adrian started playing the piano when he was just over four years old. Living with his family in Peachtree City near Atlanta, Georgia, he takes his piano classes from his own mother, Olga Romoff, (although he’s probably surpassed her by this point).
Howard Stern was so shocked at the conclusion of the 34-second piece that he jokingly hinted that a soundtrack was playing in the background somewhere.
With a shrug, Adrian then launched into an encore performance, Chopin’s “Grande Valse Brillante” in E-flat major, his little fingers flying across the keyboard like they had a mind of their own.
“You are the future. You are absolutely brilliant, the way you play, you live that music, I see it coming through your body,” Howie exclaimed.
“You are so far beyond your years. You know what, England has Harry Potter, we have you!”
Eventually, this little prodigy got four yeses and reached the quarterfinals before he was eliminated. But his accomplishments in the three years since are many: He’s now a sophomore at Bard’s College at Simon’s Rock in Massachusetts, where he’s studying pre-engineering and computer science.