The Artist

"A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence."

~Leopold Stokowski

The Bay Area is full of magnificent artists. Painters. Sculptures. Writers. Dancers. Filmmakers. Performance Artists, and of course Musicians. But every once in a while the natural beauty of the landscape, or seascape in this instance, come together to create a moment of art, that if you are lucky, you will still be thinking about years later. I am pretty sure I will remember what I saw yesterday, on a small cliff in Half Moon Bay, for a long time.

Meet piano liberator, also known as Mauro Ffortissimo. He calls himself the "piano liberator" because of his vision for this particular grand piano. He recently acquired the piano when the new owners of a house in Half Moon Bay found that a past occupant had been left behind... a grand piano. The piano was said to be too rusted and old to be properly tuned, so the new owners gave the piano to Ffortissimo who had a vision for it's last days.

The artist, and a some friends of his, moved the piano to a small cliff at the end of Kelly drive in Half Moon Bay, and that's where it has been since the beginning of February, becoming a part of the landscape, as the artist plays music ranging from the classical to the Beatles. While I was taking the photos for this post, I was lucky enough to enjoy what will be some of the last notes from the piano, and how could I not smile when one of my favorite Beatles songs, "I Saw Her Standing There," met in the air with the sound of the ocean for accompaniment.

Thursday, February 14th, Valentine's Day, will be the last day the piano will be played by the artist on that small cliff in Half Moon Bay, as that is the deadline posed by the city for it's removal due to environmental concerns. As with each evening for the last couple weeks, the piano will embrace the sunset as it's life comes to an end. It is the plan of the artist to set the piano ablaze, perhaps Viking style, at some point soon, but it's it isn't as sad as it might seem, because if I shut my eyes, and think of the music I heard today, I can almost imagine it crossing over into Valhalla.

The Artist And The Piano...
 

 

And The View

 



Whoah, we danced through the night
And we held each other tight
And before too long I fell in love with her
Now I'll never dance with another
Since I saw her standing there

From "I Saw Her Standing There" by The Beatles

Mood: Peaceful

~Me :)