麻豆社

Raul Mid贸n has been described by the New York Times as "a one-man band who turns a guitar into an orchestra and his voice into a chorus." He has collaborated with Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder, along with contributing to recordings by Jason Mraz, Queen Latifah and Snoop Dogg and the soundtrack to Spike Lee's She Hate Me. The New Mexico native, blind since birth, has released seven albums since 1999, including State of Mind, his break-through album

He tells Peter White about his determination to shatter stereotypes - including those encountered as a child when he was told that his blindness meant "you can't do this, you can't do that," He and his twin brother Marco are both blind - the result of damage caused after being placed in incubators following their premature birth. Their Mum, Sandra, was adamant from the outset that her sons should be given every opportunity to achieve and the boys eventually went on to college together.

Raul tells Peter of his shyness as a boy growing up in rural New Mexico and the wasted opportunities when it came to meeting girls, for example. But he embraces the life he has achieved and says that he would not take the chance to see if it was offered to him now: "My life has been set up around this and I would not want my life to be about figuring out how to deal with seeing - I want my life to be about what it's about right now."

Peter questions Raul about the benefits and disadvantages of having a twin brother who is also blind: "there was this knowledge that you weren't totally alone in the world as a blind person.".