We've been searching for more on Scott MacIntyre, the visually-impaired Scottsdale singer who stole the show on American Idol tonight and are turning up lots of interesting stuff on him.
Though The Arizona Republic has set up an "Idol Central" they don't really have anything Phoenix-oriented, and, in fact, haven't even made their previous MacIntyre stories available outside their paid archive. Since we know people out there are looking for the information, here's what we learned by giving the Republic $2.50 to read a story that came out last May.
We assure you it's only slightly less artful than what the Republic's reporter came up with herself.
Some facts:
Scott MacIntyre learned to play piano at age 3 using a piano inherited from his great grandmother.
Scott and his siblings were home schooled.
Scott once said his family's group, The MacIntyre family singers sounded like "Manhattan Transfer meets Josh Groban."
Scott and his sister both were born with a disease called Leber's congenital amaurosis, which is what limits his vision.
Even after Idol, Scott will probably want to sing with his family. "I hope we have the MacIntyre Family Singers going forever," Scott said. "It's amazing to do that as a family."
Scott and his brother Todd learned piano through the Suzuki Method, developed by Japanese violinist Shinichi Suzuki. The method trains children to play music by ear before learning to read the notes.
Scott had already written and released five full-length albums by last year, using music to communicate his feelings. "A lot of times you can say things in a song that you can't say in speech," he said. "It's a very transparent medium that allows people to see your inner thoughts."
Scott studied under ASU piano Professor Walter Cosand, who thought he was too young to teach before hearing him. "He's always been able to do what everyone else could do and many things no one else could do," he said. "A lot of things he does are very remarkable, even for someone without a disability."
Scott is a big believer in positive thinking: "If you believe you'll fail, you'll fail," Scott said. "People with disabilities can accomplish things like this -- if you set your mind to it."