Dorm residents at MIT dropped a piano from the roof of a building onto another piano last week.
OK, I’m not happy about this.
It’s a ‘tradition’ at the prestigious university, and frankly, one that should stop. The tradition celebrates the last day students can drop classes and not have them appear on their transcripts.
I know, I know, I’m a total buzz kill.
But really folks, as a pianist – of sorts – this really ticks me off.
It’s a waste.
I have a piano. I saved for that piano. And I love that piano. And no, you can not have it to drop to its death from your overpriced roof.
In reality, I’ve had four pianos in my life time. A really great Hammond UPright that I had to sell when I went into the Navy. No room in the duffle bag. A total clunker while I was in college in Tennessee; sold that when we moved, and Wurlitzer we have now.
I also had a MacPhail Baby Grand made in 1902, which I bought at an auction and sold the next week for four times what I paid for it. It was a wedding gift to a lady from her husband. Her children and grandchildren were fighting over the estate, and the judge decided to sell it all…hence, the piano became mine.
But, back to MIT.
The tradition started 30 years ago, in 1972. I’m assuming it was some science experiment. And people line UP at the bottom and make a dash to get souvenir pieces – keys, strings, stuff like that – from the destroyed musical instrument. the University doesn’t run the event, they are just there “to make sure nobody gets hurt.”
Though their approval is tacit, it’s approval nonetheless, and security aside, it’s no one, not nobody. For the love of Liz, you’re MIT, you should know better. Emily would be so UPset!
And, to top it off, there are people waiting in line to have their pianos dropped!!!
Frankly, it’s waste. There are plenty of people out there without pianos, and would love to have an old clunker to give little Junior lessons.
And think of all those piano starved children in China!
Donate them to a school that will use them, not one that will destroy them!
So, next year, drop a drum stick or two. Screw the whales, save the pianos!
5 comments
Comment by Diane on May 1, 2012 at 11:41 am
Amen!
Comment by Tony P on May 1, 2012 at 11:59 am
I suspect the standard piano will go the way of the do-do someday. Synthesizers have gotten quite adept at reproducing the sounds of many instruments.
And the next version of touch screens – they’ll be using quantum effects to be able to sense not only touch, but the force of the touch. Devices with that feature should be rolling off the lines this year. Not just that but tactile feedback too!
So it will be a simple matter to construct a six foot by one foot LCD screen with force sense and tactile.
Welcome to the 21st century!
Comment by Lori on May 1, 2012 at 12:36 pm
This makes me upset too.
That and the fact you didn’t keep the baby grand.
Comment by Jan Thomas Hebel on May 1, 2012 at 7:18 pm
Oh, I.bet you bitched when Hendrix set his guitar on fire too
Comment by Montana Rental on May 3, 2012 at 3:10 am
I am kind of bewildered here. Why would they destroy musical instrument for such a meaningless tradition. University is usually the place that teaches us to respect creativity and I can’t get the point of such a tradition. What is the message it sends? Not to mention the fact that someone could get seriously hurt.