'A big, wild experiment': Saskatoon sidewalk piano strikes a chord
A piano outside Broadway Avenue store is striking a chord by giving anyone a chance to share their joy of music.
“Mostly they’re just happy,” said Corey Neufeld.
He’s owned The Better Good for 13 years. It specializes in sustainable products, so when a friend gave him a used piano, he wanted to get as many hands on it as possible.
Since pianos can be expensive and guarded instruments, having it accessible to anyone attracts a wide audience. He sees between 10 to 20 people a day sit down to play.
“The kids love to tinker around. Many have never played so that’s fun to see. Lots of people just want to hammer out a couple bars of chopsticks,” he said.
But the effect this piano is having out on the street goes far beyond the music for Neufeld — who doesn’t play any instrument.
“There’s definitely something bigger. We’re trying to bring the street to life. We’re trying to get people talking and out of their regular thought patterns, engaged and this is how you do it. Someone starts playing and you have a conversation,” he said.
Finn Day-Wiggins, stops by regularly to play.
“For me it’s meditative and just to let all the ideas out, it feels good,” he told CTV News.
Day-Wiggins used to be a professional keyboard player, playing with bands around the city, but gave it up about four years ago. He appreciates the opportunity to play.
“It’s great to have more music on the streets any old time. Saskatoon can be dry from time to time so it’s nice to have something cool going on,” he says.
The piano has been out for about a month according to Neufeld.
“People have been thrilled, they are stopping on the street, and now that it’s been painted, they want to just look at it and take pictures and of course, people want to play it,” he said.
The painting was done by another Broadway business, Alt Haus. Staff there wanted to get in on the positive vibes and pitched in to add colour to the piano.
Some who play are just passing by, while others work in the area and frequent the ivories.
Neufeld even gets skilled musicians who play with the symphony to hammer out a tune.
Future plans for the piano will be taken one note at a time.
“It just sits out here until it starts getting cold and then we’ll give it away. Why not. We’ll see. It’s just a big wild experiment.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Still so much love between us,' Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
What to know about avian influenza in dairy cows and the risk to humans
Why is H5N1, or bird flu, a concern, how does it spread, and is there a vaccine? Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions about avian influenza.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
opinion The special relationship between King Charles and the Princess of Wales
Royal commentator Afua Hagan writes that when King Charles recently admitted Catherine to the Order of the Companions of Honour, it not only made history, but it reinforced the strong bond between the King and his beloved daughter-in-law.
Pro-plastic lobbyist presence at UN talks is 'troubling,' say advocates
Environmentalist groups are sounding the alarm about a steep increase in the number of pro-plastic lobbyists at the UN pollution talks taking place this week.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
$70M Lotto Max winners kept prize a secret from family for 2 months
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Trump's lawyers grill ex-tabloid publisher as 1st week of hush money trial testimony nears a close
After prosecutors' lead witness painted a tawdry portrait of “catch-and-kill” tabloid schemes, defence lawyers in Donald Trump's criminal trial on Friday sought to dig into an account of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election.