HOW TO CELEBRATE THE 88th DAY OF THE YEAR
“The piano as a medium for expression is a whole world by itself. No other instrument can fill or replace its own say in the world of emotion, sentiment, poetry, imagery and fancy”
– Leopold Godowsky
If you haven’t guessed already, the 88th day of each year is Piano Day! This year (2022) the 88th day occurs on Tuesday, March 29th. There are countless ways to celebrate the piano and share your excitement with others. Special projects, music education, music services, entertainment and piano giveaways are just a handful of examples of ways to celebrate this amazing musical instrument. This special day is supported by pianists, musicians, composers, piano builders, technicians and other supporters who donate money, time, instruments and other musical skills and expertise. In this writing I will mention some basic historical facts about the invention of the piano, a description of how piano day got started, highlights of how Piano Day has been celebrated since its inception in 2015, and suggestions for things you or your music students can to do to to celebrate this historical instrument on piano day.
PIANO FACTS
The piano was invented in Italy around the year 1700 by instrument maker Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655-1731). The instrument was first called “clavicembalo col piano e forte” which means “a harpsichord that can play both soft and loud.” The piano’s predecessors; harpsichord, clavichord and dulcimer were monochord instruments with only one level of volume. Cristofori combined features of the harpsichord and clavichord. He also studied and adapted the concept of a small hammer hitting strings in the dulcimer when he invented the piano. The result was his invention of the first keyboard instrument that could play both soft and loud controlled by the amount of pressure on the keys. Over time the original name of the instrument was shortened to “piano”. The first piano had only 54 keys. The modern day standard acoustic piano now has 88 keys.
HOW PIANO DAY STARTED
On March 19th, 2015, Nils Frahm (September 20, 1982 – ) a German classical and electronic musician, composer and producer founded Piano Day. With help from other music/musician supporters he wanted to encourage piano lovers as well as professional pianists and musicians to celebrate the piano through various events around the world. More than twenty-one million people play the piano, and there are many others who want to learn to play the piano or love to listen to piano music.
The celebration takes place on the 88th day of each year because of the 88 keys on the standard acoustic piano. The day of celebration is designed to educate, entertain, enlighten, enrich and empower people of all ages all over the world. Read on to find out what has been done and what you can do to make piano day even better!
PIANO DAY CELEBRATION EVENT HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2015-2021
2015 – World’s Largest Upright Piano
On the very first Piano Day in 2015 the KlavinsM450, a vertical grand piano built by Hungarian piano maker David Klavins (July 5, 1954 – ) was a huge highlight of the day. This piano took 3 years to build, is over 14 feet tall, stretches over two floors and has very long strings and a solid spruce soundboard to produce an extraordinarily clear sound. It is the world’s largest upright piano.
2016 – Tribute Letter
Lubomyr Melnyk, Ukranian pianist/composer and pioneer of continuous music, wrote an open letter to address concern regarding the large number of pianos that were literally going to waste. In the letter, Melnyk emphasized the abundance of knowledge, skills and energy it takes to build a piano and the fact that pianos can benefit many people in a positive way. Melnyk, who refers to the piano as a “divine gift to humanity” made a plea via his letter to encourage people living in cultures that don’t recognize the value of the piano to consider giving the pianos to people that would make good use of them instead of continuing the practice of throwing them away or burning them.
2017 – Simultaneous Bach Performance
Portland Piano International suggested that pianists all over the world commit to playing the first prelude from J. S. Bach’s Book I of the Well-Tempered Clavier at exactly 3 P.M. on Piano Day with windows open for all to hear!
2018 – Christian Henson created the “Pianobook” website and YouTube Channel
Pianobook was created with the purpose of creating sampled instruments and sharing them for free.
2019 Swedish and Canadian pianists performed at Dramatenbaren, a piano and coffee restaurant team in Stockholm, Sweden
2020 The Pianobook Community Collaborative Composition
Musicians submitted over 380 parts in an effort to create the biggest piece of system’s music #pianobookpianoday2020 Youtube. Systems music is a computer assisted composition in which the sound evolves over a long period of time.
2021 – Recording to raise money for “Rosa”
Thomas Ragsdale and All Partial collaborated to create this project. The proceeds were donated to “Rosa”, a grassroots women’s organization that helps make the United Kingdom a safer and fairer place for women and girls.
2021 – Pianothon at Shoreditch Treehouse 2019
Approximately 100 pianists provided 12 hours of music on a Steinway Concert Grand Piano in London, England.
2021
In 2021, the Piano Day celebration topic was “Abandoned Pianos.” This topic was chosen because of the large number of performance venues that were shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic which caused many pianos to be unplayed for an extended period of time. Deutsche Grammophon invited pianists from all over the world to participate in this event which was live streamed on Piano Day. Among the list of the pianists that performed in this event were Lang Lang, Maria Joao Pires, Evgeny Kissin, the Labeque sisters, Katia and Marielle, and Yiruma. The artists performed to show compassion and send a message of hope by way of piano music to people who suffered from illness and lost loved ones during this critical time.
Here are more examples of Piano Day celebration events:
Sharing Lists of Unusual Pianos and Unusual Ways to Play the Piano
Here are a Few Examples:
- The Walking Piano used in the movie “BIG” (Tom Hanks)
- The Klavins M450 – World’s Largest Piano
- The Fluid Piano invented by Geoff Smith has a movable bridge for each string. It can be tuned in different ways and the pianist can “bend” notes to sound similar to blues guitar as you play.
Master Classes
Master classes are given at many universities and other venues to give students the opportunity to learn from professionals and career pianist/performers by performing and receiving feedback and new ideas on their own playing or just attending the class and learning from others. Some musicians donate their time.
Piano Donation Programs
Although piano donation programs existed before Piano Day began, many newer such programs were inspired by Piano Day Celebrations. These programs arrange to match unused pianos with people who otherwise may not be able to purchase a piano. Some organizations even cover the cost of moving expenses.
Free Concerts
Free concerts are held around the world. Pianists take turns providing music throughout the day. There is also live-streaming, sharing of playlists and collaborative playing with friends and family. Pianists share their talents at nursing homes, schools, and hospitals in an effort to spread joy and their love of music with others through community service.
15 Ways You Can Celebrate!
- Visit www.pianoday.org to submit a piano-related idea, poem, or composition
- Join the Piano Day Community page on Faceboook
- Attend an official Piano Day event online or in person
- Visit Pianobook website or YouTube channel
- Write a short note of appreciation to your piano teacher, favorite pianist, piano mover, piano tuner, piano salesperson, etc.
- Listen to piano pieces online
- Create a piano playlist and share it with friends
- Share a piano photo, poem or video on social media
- Listen to a ragtime pianist
- Listen to a jazz pianist
- Make a commitment to take piano lessons for at least one year
- Pay your unused/unwanted piano forward so someone can benefit
- Buy the sheet music or view a tutorial of a piece you’ve always wanted to learn
- Learn to improvise
- Set an appointment today to get your piano tuned
