Half Moon Bay is holding a ‘Main Street Piano’ event Thursday through Sunday to let people rediscover downtown and help local businesses.
Downtown Half Moon Bay is having a “Main Street Piano” event this week to bring people out, support local artisans and musicians, and support the local businesses.
Make it Main Street, a new initiative by the city to celebrate local arts and culture, is collaborating with the Sunset Piano project, where two artists and musicians Mauro Ffortissimo and Dean Mermell promote piano culture and have brought pianos all across the state. The first event is Thursday, Aug. 5, from 3-7 p.m.
“What we’re doing is sort of an economic recovery initiative, trying to draw people, locals, as well as nonlocals back into town,” event coordinator Joy Portelli said. “To kind of rediscover downtown and let people get in here and get the taste of the neighborhood and a sense of the creativity and the people around us.”
Three grand pianos will stay out from Thursday to Sunday with scheduled and spontaneous performances by internationally known coastside concert pianists and accompanists. The public is also welcomed to sit and play, and there will be safety protocol including hand sanitizer and sanitizing the keys after each player.
A Garden Piano sculpture is installed at Mac Dutra Park where the event’s Thursday’s Speakers’ Space feature will take place as well as provide opportunities for music students to perform. There will be a limited number of 10-minute performance slots for which to sign up.
There will be a Piano Liberation event at 720 Main St., near The Ark and Sacriledge Brewing & Kitchen, where Ffortissimo will play while simultaneously orchestrating the deconstruction of a 1920’s upright piano. And there will also be an acoustic music circle and a movie night showing “Twelve Pianos” with two screenings, followed by a Q&A with the director and a few of the featured performers.
The event is not serving food and beverage for people to support the local restaurants, breweries and wineries instead. There will be about 15 booths including a Makers Market featuring different artisans and some nonprofit organizations.
Performances will be by Juilliard alum Lisa Spector, jazzman Steve Abrams with bassist Heath Proskin, Esther Aeschbach, Stephanie Newsome and Sammi Foti paying tribute to iconic female musicians, and duets with Ffortissimo and flautist Viviana Guzman.
Make it Main Street started its first event in July and will be doing events the first Thursday of every month through November.
Go to visithalfmoonbay.org/downtown/events/make-it-main-street to learn more.
(650) 344-5200, ext. 105
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CA Is Burning said:
Makes sense, 500 union jobs, millions in donations from unions to democrats.
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