Our downtown’s getting another street piano

An upright piano on which Sault-born mezzo-soprano and doctor of music Reilly Nelson began her musical education is being reincarnated for downtown street use

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1 / 1 78 years after Dorothy Bianchi received this Henry Herbert piano as a gift on her 10th birthday, the instrument is being prepared for new life as a public piano on Queen Street. Bianchi’s grandson Calvin is shown making his first attempt to play the upright, which was made in Toronto by Mason and RischPhoto supplied

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Live outdoor piano music is expected to return next year to downtown Sault Ste. Marie.

SooToday readers will recall that in 2019, a number of repainted pianos were placed on Queen Street East locations including City Meat Market, Case's Music and Soo Blaster, at the corner of Albert and Gore, the James L. McIntyre Centennial Library and near the Civic Centre.

Those instruments all eventually succumbed to weather or vandalism, but directors of the Downtown Association learned at their October meeting that at least one local piano is being refurbished for street life.

"We're going to bring it back," said Nicholas Luck, executive director of the Downtown Association, who himself majored in classical piano performance under Dr. Edward Turgeon at Algoma University.

Luck said a group of volunteers will weld a set of wheels on which the piano will be mounted.

"We just have to cover [the cost] of materials, and we'll have something for activations and events to just roll out," Luck said.

The chosen instrument is a well-made Henry Herbert upright that's been around Algoma District for many decades.

It was originally acquired by Dorothy Bianchi, who received the second-hand piano as a gift on her 10th birthday 78 years ago.

"We acquired the piano from her in 1989 when we moved to the island," says Dorothy's daughter Carrie Nelson.

"I taught singing for a short time to some local kids and used the piano," Nelson tells SooToday.

"We moved to the Sault in 1998 and the piano was moved again."

Her daughters Elise and Reilly began their musical educations on it.

Elise grew up to become a music promoter and Reilly is now a doctor of music and a mezzo-soprano preparing to open tomorrow in Pacific Opera Victoria's production of Mozart's La clemenza di Tito.

"Reilly used it for piano and singing lessons," Carrie says.

"We had it tuned after moving to Upton Road but it was always 1/2-step flat, like Baroque tuning.

"Michael Shannon, a world-renowned vocal coach and pianist, could make the piano do things that no one else could. Our grandson Calvin would dance when Michael played.

"We sold our home in 2021 and left the piano with the present owners, who have since donated it to the Downtown Association," Carrie says.

"It was donated by the Skeggs family," says Elise Nelson.

"My parents sold their house on Upton Road to them and part of the deal was the piano stayed [in the house.] It had been moved enough times in its life!"

In other downtown music news, the 2024 season of Courtyard Concerts, funded by Canada's Music Incubator, has concluded and the Downtown Association is looking forward to working with the incubator again next year.

This year's Courtyard Concerts featured Millie Rouge, L!ME the Band and Hannah Lindsay.