TAMPA, Fla. — Matthew Weihmuller has been blind since birth, but when he plays the saxophone, he says he feels free.
“Being visually impaired sometimes it’s hard to navigate places so when I play music there’s no barriers for me,” said Weihmuller.
He said at 15, he was inspired by another visually impaired musician, Marcus Roberts, who he got to meet and who became a mentor. Matthew went on to excel at music at Blake High School and Florida State.
Now, he teaches others at the Straz Center. Some of his students have disabilities, and others do not.
“I try to share my experiences with them and tell them what I’ve been dealing with and make things that much easier coming up,” he said.
“Well, for me, the first thing is just always being in awe of how talented Matt is in general, regardless of any disability that may exist," said Alice Santana, Vice President of Education and Community Engagement at the Straz Center. "He is a wonderful educator. A wonderful performer. And an all-around wonderful spirit to be with."
Matthew and many other performers will participate in a celebration Friday at the Straz commemorating the anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act. Among other things, the ADA helps children with disabilities have equal educational opportunities.
The Pyramid Players are on the bill too. Pyramid is a center in Tampa for adults with disabilities that focuses on the performing arts.
As for Matthew, he’ll be doing what he does best.
“There’s still a lot of barriers today. I’ve gotten better of course at figuring those things out and how to deal with them. But there’s always something new. It’s just like music. It’s sort of a lifelong journey and you have to continuously have to work at it,” said Weihmuller.
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