‘AGT’ judges thought this contestant was just another boring pianist — then he showed another side
Patrizio Ratto appeared on 'America's Got Talent' in 2019 for Season 14, where the Italian pianist made a jaw-dropping impact on the judges and also the audience! The act, in the beginning, was a classical piano performance, however, Ratto quickly broke character and turned it into a fun hip-hop dance. While the audience and judges, including Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Julianne Hough, and Gabrielle Union, stared at him in total disbelief, Ratto continued to give an electrifying dance performance. His act guaranteed his way to the second round of Season 14. Terry Crews, the host, also looked and marveled at the moment. "What is going on?!" he exclaimed.
Hough told Ratto after the performance ended, "It was like just wow. It was incredible." She even turned towards the audience and asked, "Do you like it?" They answered back unanimously with a big roar, "YESSS!" Mandel also added, "Let me tell you, we haven't seen anything like that." He continued, "What a great mixture of two art forms that don't really go together, but you made it seamless to our feet." Union couldn't hold back from praising Ratto either, "That was unbelievable!" she told the Italian musician.
Union then continued, "It was like you were Bruce Banner and... and then you became like the Incredible Hulk!" Jokingly continuing the banter, Union also told Ratto that he is very "sexy." "Are you single?" She asked before adding, "You gotta tell the people." Cowell was the last one to comment on Ratto's performance, however, he nailed it when he said, "You made me so happy. It was incredible. I will always remember this moment."
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Even as the judges praised Ratto's performance, fans weren't happy about their initial reactions. One fan wrote on YouTube, "It kinda bothers me how disrespectful they were in the first part. like, coming from a pianist, I can tell you that song is fairly complex and he played it beautifully and it was annoying how rude they were towards him." Another echoed the sentiment, saying, "Even if he just played a classic song on the piano, I would’ve enjoyed every second of it, and you can tell that he plays the piano so beautifully. People don’t appreciate great music anymore.." Perhaps the most poetic reaction came from a viewer who appreciated Ratto’s composure: "I just loved how he went back to playing the piano so calmly in the end, like he did not just shock the heck out of us awhile ago." His act struck a chord—both musically and emotionally.
Per NBC, Ratto didn't pass the Judge cuts 3 and make it to the finals, however, his act remains one the most stunning acts on AGT. Backstage, the classical pianist replied, "As a child, I was very quiet and shy, so my mother put me in piano class, and I fell in love with it." He also revealed he's inspired by classical composers and that one of his biggest inspirations is Beethoven." He explained, "Whenever I hear him, I feel so many emotions. You can be angry, you can be happy...you can be quiet.. You can be strong. It's everything for me."