Two strangers came together over the theme song from an 80s film starring David Bowie.

For all the amazing Final Fantasy concerts and anime-themed orchestral performances we’ve seen in Japan in recent years, sometimes it’s the quieter, more intimate acts that have the power to stop people in their tracks and create a lasting impression.

That’s what happened at an outlet of Japanese electronics retail chain Yodobashi Camera in Kyoto recently, as the music section of the store came to life with the sound of not one, but two pianos being played in glorious unison. According to Twitter user @Romakome1029, who captured the moment on video, a middle-aged man was playing the theme song to the 80s British-Japan film Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence on a piano when another man suddenly decided to join in on a different piano, playing a heartfelt melody over the top of the main chords.

Check out the performance below:

https://twitter.com/Romakome1029/status/854709525588262916

It turns out that the pianist in the foreground of the video is actually a visiting musician from Germany called Joe Löhrmann, who is currently travelling around the world with his piano.

https://twitter.com/Romakome1029/status/854717603805134849

Löhrmann even added a Tweet to the original thread, thanking everyone for the retweets and sharing an original piece he wrote for his grandfather.

Löhrmann seems to be drawing crowds wherever he travels, with this short clip showing the musician performing “All of me” by John Legend to a crowd at Osaka yesterday.

Since @Romakome1029 posted the video online, it’s received over 140,000 likes, with people commenting on the beauty of the performance. The power of music to cross language barriers and bring people together truly is a beautiful thing.

Source, images: Twitter/@Romakome1029