Photo by Natalie Jenks

On Thursday, the fourth annual Flower Piano event will kick off at the San Francisco Botanical Garden in Golden Gate Park. The unique event features pianos throughout the outdoor gardens, luring amateurs and professionals alike to tickle the ivories.

From July 5–16 only, visitors will find twelve pianos tucked among the many flower-filled gardens within SFBG’s 55 acres. Visitors are encouraged to play what they like, from chopsticks to Tchaikovsky.

On weekend days, event partner Sunset Piano has invited professional pianists and a whole host of other musicians to perform throughout the Garden as well, and the public is welcome to pack a picnic and enjoy the shows (all pianos are taken over both Saturdays, July 7 and July 14, from 12-2pm for performances). View the performance schedule

Featured artists include Latin jazz master Chuchito Valdés and more four-hand performances on dual pianos including one of Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals by critically acclaimed pianist Allison Lovejoy, together with Kymry Esainko and members of the Classical Revolution Orchestra.

“Our visitors have used words like ‘life-affirming, moving, and transcendent’ to describe their experience of Flower Piano,” says Stephanie Linder, Executive Director, San Francisco Botanical Garden Society.

“The welcoming act of placing pianos in the Garden has a real impact on the way in which people interact with each other and take notice of their surroundings. We often talk about the Garden as an oasis in the heart of the city. Flower Piano is a profound expression of that and we are thrilled to be working with Sunset Piano again to offer our community this unique and meaningful experience.”

Enjoy the Gardens + Pianos by Night

For three nights – July 12-14 – NightGarden Piano will take place. Beautifully lit pathways guide visitors to pianos aglow with performances by Sunset Piano all-stars and open pianos to play. Featured this year are Jill Tracy’s Sonic Séance, Sarah Cahill performing music by Terry Riley and Meredith Monk, and the a cappella men’s choir Conspiracy of Beards singing the songs of Leonard Cohen. Food and drink are also available for purchase. Tickets are $45 each with proceeds helping to fund Flower Piano.

Event partner Sunset Piano is also the subject of a documentary called Twelve Pianos. It follows Sunset’s Mauro ffortissimo through the project’s inception and launch, capturing the challenges, the passion and the joy of this crazy undertaking. Disappearing pianos, world class musicianship, and awe-inspiring landscapes are the backdrop for this inspired tale of music and wonder. A window onto the increasingly marginalized bay area subculture, Twelve Pianos shows the lengths people will go to in order to preserve art and culture in the face of an uncertain future. Check out the trailer below, and catch the film streaming on Amazon.

Sarah B.