The Pianos Return to NYC
Art and music for everyone!
A singularly unique experience blending music, art and charity will take place on Monday, June 6 in the Financial District. 50 pianos that have been painted by local artists will be wheeled onto 28 Liberty Plaza for a day long celebration of performance and art. Stars including Lea Salonga, Daphne Rubin-Vega and Paul Shaffer will be performing. This is all part of The Sing for Hope Pianos Launch Event, bringing art to everyone. Following this kick-off, the pianos will be displayed in 50 different public locations throughout the five boroughs, from June 9 through June 19. They will then be donated to New York City public schools in need of a piano.
I just learned about this wonderful organization, Sing for Hope, and their massive effort this June to bring the joy of art, music and performance to the public. What a great endeavor: Procure 50 pianos through donation or purchase, identify artists to paint the pianos, deliver them to Liberty Plaza to provide a day long opportunity for a concentrated number of people to enjoy the art and music, then place them throughout the city for 10 days, and finally give each piano a home at a needy public school. Brilliant! A lot of moving parts, literally. But seeing this come to fruition is truly inspiring.
To discover where the 50 pianos will be placed following the kick off event on Monday, you can
download a free iPhone app in the iTunes store: SFH Pianos, or go to their website.
As a general mission, Sing for Hope identifies under-resourced schools, hospitals, and community centers throughout the five boroughs and fosters relationships with hundreds of fine artists, musicians, singers, and performers. This roster of artists participate in volunteer service programs at their partner sites.
To find out more about the organization, The Sing for Hope Pianos launch event, or where you can view or play the pianos from June 9-19, go to www.singforhope.org
Valerie Smaldone is a 5-time Billboard Magazine Award winner and is well known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 on-air position in the New York radio market on 106.7 Life-FM, an iHeart station. She has hosted, produced, and created several award-winning nationally syndicated programs featuring in-depth interviews with stars like Paul McCartney, Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Mariah Carey among others. Her radio talk show "Bagels and Broadway" highlighted theatre and food personalities. She is an accomplished interviewer and voice artist heard on commercials, narrations, promos and audiobooks, as well as a sought after live announcer.
Most recently, Valerie produced and directed a film, The Thursday Night Club, featuring pop diva Gloria Gaynor in her movie acting debut. She is one of the creators and producers of a docu-series, Divine Renovation, starring Erik Estrada, on streaming networks soon.
