As reported in the New York Times in this article, many pianos from the turn of the century have their last note as a “thud in the dump.” It is sad but true that these 100 year old wooden mechanical instruments reach a point where it is too costly to restore them. The Naramata Centre has just retired three of their vintage upright pianos but none of them went to the landfill.

I helped out with the move and put one of them in my neighbour’s shed. It’s not quite waterproof yet, but the Piano Shack will be a great space for some experimental piano weirdness to happen.

The other two pianos went to the Shatford Centre where we will be doing a piano recycling workshop in May. We will be salvaging the wood and recycling the metal. If you are interested in coming, let me know, and get a tetanus shot.