Summer pianos bow out

Terri Pedersen enjoys hearing music from the pianos in downtown Yorkton, even if it’s become less frequent as the summer’s dragged along.

“At the beginning of the year, before the weather got to them, pianists could play them,” she said. “Now...the keys are seizing [up].”

The two pianos are in admittedly rough shape. Many of their keys are stuck, unable to squeeze out a single note. People still stop to poke them, but their music days are nearly over.

Leaving pianos outside exposes them to rain, which rots the wood and damages the strings. A piano that stays outdoors won’t last for too long.

Pedersen isn’t too sad about that, since this summer was meant to be the pianos’ swang song.

The pianos were placed near Broadway Street in May by Rediscover Downtown Yorkton. Pedersen, the Co-Chairperson for the group, said the pianos were part of their project to make the downtown area more interesting and interactive.

“It’s not just a shopping place,” she said. “This is a community hub.”

Randy Goulden, who serves as a consultant for Rediscover Downton Yorkton, proposed the outdoor pianos idea years ago after seeing them in other towns. The group lacked the manpower at the time, but they managed to pull it off this year.

“We get wonderful comments from visitors.” Goulden said.

The pianos came from a house in Foam Lake and Columbia School. Paul Pedersen, a member of Rediscover Downton Yorkton, helped move the pianos, along with workers from Terry’s Cabinets.

“The biggest job was actually lifting the pianos,” he said. “We’re talking hundreds of pounds.”

“After that...gravity was on our side,” he added. “We just rolled them off trailers on ramps and put them in place.”

Terry’s Cabinets built benches for the pianos so people could sit while they played. They also put a stencil of the Rediscover Downtown Yorkton logo on the pianos.

Terri Pedersen said the project was a success, with several people telling her they have pianos to donate. However, she’s unsure if they’ll do it again next year, since they want to try something new every season.

“We need to start thinking every year of something different,” she said. “You’ll have to come downtown next spring and see what’s happening then.”

As for the pianos, they’re not headed directly for the scrap yard. They’re going to be taken apart and used for an art installation at Rediscover Downton Yorkton’s pop-up event in March.

“We’re building a bar area and it’ll combine pieces of [the pianos],” Paul Pedersen said. “It’ll stand out.”