'Play Me I'm Yours'

"It doesn't matter if you're a world-class virtuoso like Beethoven or a guy who took one year of lessons like Bloomberg, just sit down and let your fingers do the talking," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg in a statement about "Play Me, I'm Yours" art project, in which 60 pianos have been placed throughout NY city for people to play for free. "

I was watching the news yesterday when I saw this interesting piece on an art project taking place in New York. Pianos were dotted around the city including public parks, streets and plazas. Major locations included the Lincoln Centre, Brooklyn Bridge and Staten island Ferry Terminal. The idea being the project was to get the public engaging with one and other again.

"Every Saturday morning Luke Jerram would see the same people washing their underwear but no one would talk to one another.He realised there must be invisible communities right across cities where people share the same space but do not engage. So, he had the idea of putting pianos on the streets to act as a catalyst to get people communicating. Now, beyond the horns and the traffic of the streets of New York, his project seems to be working - the air is filled with the sound of music."

I think this is a very unusual approach to get people communicating, most people would think the best way to get people talking is through a club or meeting. However I love this fun, interactive approach which is more likely to get random members of the public talking to one and other. Even if people only take a few minutes out their day to play/ listen to music I can see how it could bring people closer. In such a busy city, where people are always on the move it would be interesting to find out how successful a project such as this is.

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/play-me-i-m-yours-piano-project-in-new-york-33284?cp