Youngest bandoneon player

Enzo Perino (L) plays the bandoneon as his sister Anahi plays the piano at home in the city of Rio Plata, some 65 kilometers south of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 23, 2009. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Enzo Perino plays the video game at home in the city of Rio Plata, some 65 kilometers south of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 23, 2009. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Enzo Perino plays basketball in the city of Rio Plata, some 65 kilometers south of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 23, 2009. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Enzo Perino plays the bandoneon at home in the city of Rio Plata, some 65 kilometers south of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 23, 2009. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Enzo Perino prepares dishes for lunch at home in the city of Rio Plata, some 65 kilometers south of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 23, 2009. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

When 12-year-old Enzo Perino plays the bandoneon, he stuns his listeners and surprises his family.

The bandoneon, an oversized accordion invented in Germany in 1835 but now a tango mainstay, is steadily disappearing due to a lack of repairers and because foreign tourists buy up the instrument as souvenirs.

However, Enzo Perino is already a skilled player of the bandoneon, looking just like his grandfather, who had played the instrument for more than half a century and was part of tango band Los Galenos (The Medics).

Enzo, who has been studying for less than two years, diligently plays close to an hour a day, as well as his weekly class, because his attraction for the bandoneon beats all other interests. "It's like something he carries in his genes," said Enzo's father Walter Perino.

As the youngest bandoneon player in Argentina, Enzo is dreaming of being a professional someday.