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community piano

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Everyone is welcome to play our community piano, which is intended to break down access to barriers to music (pianos are the ideal gateway instrument because the scale is already set out from left to right, but their size and cost make them inaccessible to most families).​ Unless and until it becomes necessary, we will keep the piano unlocked for all to use. Here is our guide to using the community piano:

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  • flip back the 2 front latches, undo the top inside bolt, and use the outside side chains to secure the doors 

  • don't place anything on the piano (especially not food or drink)

  • carefully lift up the keyboard lid

  • don't pound the piano, please be mindful of our neighbours

  • when you've finished, put the lid down, unhook both chains, and bolt and latch the cabinet.​

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Thank you, and happy playing!​

The UP Garden

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creation​​​​​

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Early 1900s

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The piano was built by Henry Barnes of 93 Gurney Road (only a 10-minute walk from The UP Garden!) probably in the early 1900s. ​

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2016

 

We don’t know how many households it passed through but eventually it ended up with a household in Woodville Road, Bushwood. In 2016, that household donated it to All You Read Is Love on High Road Leytonstone. The café owners, Karen and Anders, along with a couple of strong regular customers wheeled it up the road.

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2018

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When it closed in 2018 the café donated it to some other regulars, a family who live in Rosedale Road, Forest Gate. ​​​

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Autumn 2023

 

In Autumn 2023, we applied to People Powered Places, a fund created by the London Borough of Newham. After being shortlisted, we were required to campaign for votes in person and online.

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December 2023

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Thanks to public support, we won funding at the end of 2023! We were the highest placed non-profit community group that was not a registered charity, church or school.

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March-August 2024

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Around 24 hours were spent over Spring and Summer of 2024:

  • planning the timeline, strategy and budget of our community piano project;

  • researching the sizes, materials, longevity, availability and costs of typical second-hand upright pianos, and the likely costs of piano movers and tuners;

  • running community consultations to gather input, and meeting with local knowledgeable piano owners to gain further in-depth input;

  • researching different methods of soundproofing and weatherproofing;

  • drafting mock-ups of various solutions before proceeding to troubleshoot them;

  • researching appropriate materials, local suppliers, and costs;

  • meeting with a local artist to design artwork for the exterior and interior of the weatherproof cabinet;

  • reworking the budget;

  • agreeing on the final design of a weatherproof cabinet; and

  • agreeing on the final design of a pergola for additional shelter in the hope that we would win further funding.

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September 2024

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We won additional funding from the Neighbourhood Small Grants scheme to fund the pergola as well as the painting of the weatherproof cabinet.

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October 2024

 

A total of 47 volunteer hours were donated to:

  • source and arrange delivery of the cabinet materials (discounted and donated by Chambers Timber);

  • construct the cabinet;

  • paint the cabinet interior white, and the floor and lid black;

  • design and create artwork on the exterior of the cabinet (donated by Andy MacManus);

  • research several dozen local pianos, and subsequently liaise and negotiate with, and view, 40+ pianos;

  • agree upon the chosen piano and liaise with its owners (a lovely family in Forest Gate); and

  • research and negotiate with piano movers, and arrange the delivery of the chosen piano (discounted by MB-Pianostore).

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Originally, the book exchange was to be unveiled at our Summertide event, and the community piano at our Autumntide event. When the book exchange project experienced delays, it was moved to an Autumntide unveiling, consequently shifting the community piano unveiling to Wintertide. In the end, the book exchange project was not ready for Autumntide, and so we used that event for a soft launch of the community piano, to gauge who was most interested by it and how they interacted with it, and gather community input.

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November-December 2024

 

The original weatherproof cabinet was built by a volunteer only about a metre or so from its final position so that he could have a good working space around it. We failed to spot how uneven the ground was, which only became apparent when we moved the cabinet to its final position, making the cabinet lean noticeably! Over time, this would inevitably cause the cabinet to fail and even become unsafe. At around the same time, an error with the materials order was noticed (some of it was interior-use wood rather than exterior-use wood). Fortunately, we had already built in significant contingency time, and saved a substantial portion of the original budget by the piano being kindly donated to us, as well as other discounts/donations elsewhere. We therefore decided to prioritise longevity of the piano and weatherproofing by using these saved funds to pay for a carpenter to rectify and fortify the cabinet, who substantially discounted his services.

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Over 80 more volunteer hours were therefore donated to:​

  • source and arrange delivery of further cabinet materials and pergola materials (discounted and donated by Chambers Timber);

  • move the piano out of the cabinet and remove its wheels (which would provide further stability); 

  • remove the cabinet panels;

  • design and create artwork on the interior of the cabinet (donated by Andy MacManus);

  • fortify the cabinet frame and build the pergola frame (discounted by Ben Simmons);

  • paint the roof rafters of the pergola frame;

  • thoroughly clean the piano;

  • move the piano into the fortified cabinet;

  • arrange tuning of the piano (discounted by Phil Ridaut); and

  • affix an interior bolt, and external latches and chains to the cabinet.

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As the book exchange unveiling had moved to our Wintertide event, the community piano team decided not to take any focus away from that and so there was no official unveiling of the community piano. However, it still naturally attracted people's curiosity. A few days later, one of our volunteers happened to witness a member of the public heading to the piano - he said that he had specifically come to The UP Garden to play it as he had heard about it, missed playing but could not justify having a piano of his own, and was looking forward to popping in here and there to play!

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January 2025

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A further 35 volunteer hours were donated to:

  • source and organise delivery of the roofing materials for the pergola (discounted by Lowden Roofing);

  • construct a piano bench;

  • paint the bench and legs of the pergola frame and spray-paint the roofing sheets (with help from GoodGym);

  • affix the roofing sheets to the pergola frame; and

  • design and organise printing and delivery of aluminium dibond signage which explain how the community piano was created and how it works (discounted by OK TO Colour).​

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Eventually, the piano will come to the end of its life, at which point we will search for a replacement donated piano. Until then, we are thrilled to save this piano from the tip and give it an extended life The UP Garden. ​

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We are hugely thankful to the volunteers who between them donated more than 185 hours to the community piano project, the family who donated the piano, all of the businesses who discounted or donated services, the London Borough of Newham for funding the project, and everyone else who supported this project. We have already seen more people come to play it, and hope our community enjoys the piano for a long time to come!​

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