Hands-down my favorite part of downtown Minneapolis this past summer was the pianos on Nicollet Avenue. Not necessarily a new idea, to be sure, but I was struck by the talent of seemingly random players and the joy it gave passers-by. Any given morning on my walk from the train to the office I’d pass the piano in the City Center doorway to hear someone pounding out some excellent blues.

Most striking was the day I passed a homeless man camped out under his usual spot below a skyway on 7th Street one morning only to find him playing an intricate classical piece on the piano outside the DID pop-up store at evening rush hour. Serendipity, music and the urban dance. Keep up the good work, Mpls DID!

“The ballet of the good city sidewalk never repeats itself from place to place, and in any once place is always replete with new improvisations” – Jane Jacobs

Pianos add so much to public life