While their sound may be synonymous with summer in Fort Collins, the outdoor pianos that are part of the city’s Pianos About Town program actually got its start in the middle of winter.
Eight years ago, it was created as way to engage people in a little spontaneous art and music, said Mary Timby, communications manager for the program’s co-sponsor Bohemian Foundation.
The upright pianos were an instant hit, Timby said.
Fort Collins wasn’t the first to put pianos outside. The original inspiration came from British artist Luke Jerram, she said. In 2008, Jerram created a 60-piano touring installation called Play Me, I’m Yours. That project inspired a similar one on Denver’s 16th Street Mall, Your Keys to the City.
“The Downtown Denver Partnership shared what they learned with their installation to use as a basic blueprint for the design of Fort Collins’ Pianos About Town program,” Timby said.
The pianos have almost become part of the city’s identity, Fort Collins Visual Arts Coordinator Liz Good said as she helped move new pianos into Old Town Square. She said the community really feels like these pianos belong to them.
“We have people who have taught themselves how to play piano,” Good said. “We’ve had piano teachers who are interested in teaching on the pianos for free in their retirement. There’s just a really broad range, and I think a lot of people that grew up with pianos and don’t have them in their homes anymore definitely appreciate having access to them.”
Since pianos weren’t necessarily meant to be outside though, the weather can be a little harsh on the instruments, although they maintain their sound surprisingly well, she said. That’s particularly true for the roughly half-dozen pianos that stay outside year-round in the rain and snow.
“We’ve got business partners in all the locations that we have the pianos that keep an eye on them so when the weather comes in, we have tarps attached to the back (to cover them with),” Good said. “We also really appreciate when community members cover the pianos, too.”
When they do need some TLC, Bob Otterman is on the case.
Otterman is the program’s official piano tuner. Every few weeks, he checks out the pianos, fixes anything that’s broken and makes sure the pianos still sound good.
“Regretfully we’ve had a couple that got so wet from rain overnight in particular because they weren’t covered,” he said in an interview last year. “One of them was newly painted, newly decorated, and within a week it was unusable. Because the strings rust if they get wet and the keys swell, and the glues just aren’t made to withstand any kind of moisture. Things just start falling apart.”
Typically, the pianos -- all of which are donated from the community -- have an outdoor life of about two years before they’re retired. From there, they are recycled for parts to fix other pianos still in the program, Good said. About 12 pianos are rotated in each year to replace those being decommissioned.
“Most of the instruments aren’t being used any longer, and they would very likely end up in the dump somewhere,” Otterman said. “And I feel like they’re getting one more shot at being enjoyed. Getting all spiffed up and being in the public for a while, for one, big last hurrah.”
Before heading out on the town, the pianos are given the royal treatment. From May through October, each one is painted by a local artist in Old Town Square's Art in Action tent, so people can watch the transformation.
“That way the community can meet the artists and learn about their process, too,” Good said. “So, they’re enjoyed musically and aesthetically.”
Pianos About Town will celebrate a special unveiling of its 100th painted piano on Aug. 2, 2018 during the Bohemian Nights Presents Thursday Night Live concert in Fort Collins’ Old Town Square.
