Marcos Bocanegra will soon take a day off from working in the tire centre of his local Costco to jam with famed composer Hans Zimmer.
The 20-year-old was visibly emotional when he was surprised with an invitation to Zimmer’s Santa Monica studio during an episode of Ellen that aired Wednesday.
“I’m totally blown away by your playing,” Zimmer said, in a video clip, “and I hear you’re really into film score so why don’t you come down to my studio and hang out and we can jam and maybe come up with something cool.”
Moments earlier, Bocanegra told host Ellen DeGeneres that his ultimate goal is to score films. “I want to be the next Hans Zimmer,” he said, referring to the 61-year-old Oscar-winning composer who has scored dozens of films – including The Lion King and The Dark Knight.
Bocanegra has been sharing videos of his self-taught piano skills on his YouTube channel for the past two months. In addition to original compositions, he has showcased songs like “Shallow” by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper and “Hallelujah” by Canada’s Leonard Cohen.
In February, a clip of him performing in his Costco store appeared on Twitter. “They’re not always there,” he said of the keyboards. “Around Christmas time they’ll bring them in and that’s where I’m at. That’s where you’ll find me.”
I love playing on the pianos that come into costco pic.twitter.com/FQhRdRkV2C
— Marcos Bocanegra (@Marcosb62) February 3, 2019
On Ellen, Bocanegra performed part of Zimmer’s “Time” from the movie Inception.
In addition to the invitation to meet Zimmer, Bocanegra was surprised with a cheque for $3,896.92 U.S. – the balance owing on a baby grand piano his family purchased for him.
In an April 6 post on Instagram, Bocanegra shared: "im hoping i can travel the world and share my love for music with everyone."