Pianos and public art
They are trying a fascinating new public art project in London, England -- a combination of music and performance art. What they are doing is installing 31 pianos at public locations throughout the city. It is supposed to promote interaction between strangers -- a pianist could perform for passers-by, or lead an impromptu singalong. It is also supposed to encourage trust. You trust other people not to wreck the pianos or steal the laminated songbooks.
An American blog has examined the concept here.
And you can read about it in the London Times here. I love their lead: "We can all be Elton John now."
What a nice idea! As well as a nice opportunity to try out my Schubert on random listeners. Too bad it would never work in Buffalo.
In Buffalo, our idea of public art is to wreck pianos. Remember last year, when they destroyed a couple of pianos at the Albright-Knox? Here is one reference to it on this blog, in case you need to refresh your memory.
How is that for a tale of two cities?
I am just saying.
-- Mary Kunz Goldman
