Petaluma street piano strikes right note

It was the most unusual spot to find a piano. While heading over to meet a friend, Richard Apple came across the old instrument on a busy sidewalk in downtown Petaluma.

The black Wurlitzer spinet upright piano was painted yellow, orange and red with a cityscape scene. It tempted passers-by on Petaluma Boulevard to tickle its keys with the words “Play Me, I’m Yours” written on the front.

Apple, who had taken piano lessons as a young boy, at first showed restraint. But in the end he couldn’t resist. The 16-year-old Petaluma resident tapped on a few keys before running off to meet his friend for dinner.

“You don’t know. The next Beethoven could unload on this piano,” said Santa Rosa artist Zack Rhodes, who spent about month painting the instrument out in front of Risibisi restaurant.

“We want this to be as inviting as possible,” he said. “Come and play.”

The 27-year-old artist teamed up with Chase Palmieri, whose family owns the restaurant, to rescue and paint the old piano, which permanently sits outside Risibisi for anyone to play.

Palmieri reached out to Rhodes when he returned home after studying abroad in Turin in northwestern Italy. It was there that he first learned about the public piano movement and wanted to start it back in Petaluma.

A piano was placed at a train station near his home in Turin. Every time he walked by the instrument, he said, someone was playing it.

“Not once was the piano not being played and there was always a group of people watching,” said Palmieri, 24.

The impromptu musical performances encouraged people to stop and take a break from their busy day, he said. Meanwhile, the community made sure to take care of the piano. That inspired him.

“I just kept thinking, ‘Wow, that’s a cool idea. It would be even cooler if it (piano) was painted,” Palmieri said. “Eventually, I decided I could have a little space in front of my dad’s restaurant. When I come back, I should make that a project of mine and reach out to a local artist and see if I can make the same thing happen on Petaluma Boulevard.”

A local shopkeeper put him in touch with Rhodes, who’s credited for launching Free Art Friday in Sonoma County last year. As part of a grassroots movement happening in cities worldwide, Rhodes and other local artists stash their paintings, illustrations and other works in inconspicuous places, leaving clues on social media sites such as Instagram and Facebook for followers to find.

Rhodes said it was the first time he had ever painted a piano. It was an intimidating task, particularly having to paint it while out on the sidewalk as people walked by, he said.

“This definitely got me out of my comfort zone,” Rhodes said, adding that people often stopped by to watch and critique his work.

Apple was pleased with the transformation. He said the bright colors and designs make the piano less intimidating to play.

“It would be cool to have them all over Petaluma,” he contended. “It adds a young hipster vibe to the town.”

Similar street pianos have popped up in cities all over the world, from Hong Kong and Paris to Seattle and Fort Collins, Colo., where more than 60 pianos have been painted and left around town.

A former homeless man became an online sensation after someone recorded him playing “Come Sail Away” in Sarasota, Fla. His fans created a GoFundMe account to help him get back on his feet. He later was invited to play the national anthem at a 49ers game at Levi’s Stadium, which he did in September.

In Prague, a police officer made international headlines after he wowed onlookers with his impromptu recital.

While it might be the first in Sonoma County, Petaluma isn’t the only city in the state to get a public piano.

The San Diego Symphony will place several pianos throughout the city and county next month as part of its Upright & Grand Piano Festival. Like the one in Petaluma, they’ll also be painted by local artists.

Meanwhile, British artist Luke Jerram previously installed pianos in Los Angeles, Monterey and San Jose as part of his touring ‘Play Me, I’m Yours’ project, which he started seven years ago in Birmingham, northwest of London.

It was his project that inspired the “Pianos About Town” program in Fort Collins. The first pianos placed in the downtown five years ago were an instant hit, according to the Bohemian Foundation, which reached out to the city, artists and local organization to launch the program.

About a dozen pianos are rotated around town in the summers, said Ellen Martin, the city’s Art in Public Places program administrator. Half of the pianos will remain outdoors during the winter, she said. The public typically helps care of the pianos -- for example, ensuring they’re covered during a snow storm.

People of all ages sit down to play, said Tom Scharf, the foundation’s music programs director. Some of them are highly skilled musicians, while others have little to no experience.

“One gentleman taught himself to play the piano using our pianos,” Scharf said. “He’d always wanted to learn to play, but never had access to a piano before our program.”

Palmieri said he’s seen a steady flow of musicians and onlookers approach the piano outside the family restaurant, which hasn’t been bad for business. About 50 people a day stop by to play or admire the music and instrument. Some end up checking out the menu at the restaurant. However, Palmieri, who hopes to inspire others to share a piano with the public, said the main purpose was to get people to stop in their tracks and appreciate music and art.

Similar to Free Art Friday, the street piano project is breaking down barriers, providing people from all walks of life access to music and art, said Kristen Madsen, director of Creative Sonoma, a program the county created last summer to advance its arts sector.

“(It’s) reminding the community in a whimsical way that art is for everyone in whatever way we might choose that to be,” she said.

The purpose of these projects is simple, she said. It’s about bringing people delight, Madsen said.

“We should have hundreds of them all over the county,” she said.

You can reach Staff Writer Eloísa Ruano González at 521-5458 or eloisa.gonzalez@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @eloisanews.