This summer, music is happening in unconventional places in St. Paul.
All over the city, 20 colorfully painted pianos have been planted
outdoors. They're available for anyone to play through a program called
"Pianos on Parade."
The musical objets d'art have been on the streets since the beginning of June, where they'll stay until the end of this month.
Keys 4/4 Kids,
a St. Paul-based nonprofit organization that raises money from the sale
of used pianos for music education programs in the Twin Cities, Chicago,
and Kansas City, worked with the city to bring the program to fruition.
It's a take on an initiative that originated in the U.K. and debuted in New York last year, called, "
Play Me I'm Yours,"
according to Kelsey Shanesy, a coordinator for Keys 4/4 Kids. When the
New York City program took off, some people approached Keys 4/4 Kids
about doing something similar locally, she says.
Her
organization, which is well stocked with the instruments, was receptive
to the idea, and the city backed it. "That's how it was born," Shanesy
says.
Besides adding a unique element to the landscape,
"Pianos on Parade" aims to "create moments of community between people
who might not otherwise encounter each other," she says.
So far,
the response to the project has been positive. She's been getting
enthusiastic emails about how the pianos are stirring up fond memories
for people, along with comments about the experience of hearing the
music wafting down the street. Photos of players banging out tunes are
also coming in. "It's been a lot of fun and the city is wrapping its
arms around it," she says. "It's had some great moments."
More
broadly, the program seems attuned to a broader movement that's picking up all
over the U.S., wherein the piano, which used to be the center of home
entertainment, has migrated outside for all kinds of people to
enjoy, she says.
Source: Kelsey Shanesy, Keys 4/4 Kids
Writer: Anna Pratt