Four years ago, in 2012, Herne Hill in south London gained its first street piano.

The piano had already served its time as part of the 2012 Play Me, I’m Yours event, where multiple pianos were sprinkled across the city as part of the City of London Festival. It was most likely destined for the scrap heap, but fate intervened and it came to live in Herne Hill. (Others from the festival were saved by Morganico, a local artist, and went to live in his friends‘ homes.)

The piano’s new home was outside the station, in the underpass. As Giles Gibson and Michael Stuart from the Herne Hill Forum said at the time, “We didn’t know if it would work. We weren’t sure if it would even last a week.”

The rest is history.

In fact, we’re pretty sure that the Herne Hill Piano is worthy of a World Record as the longest serving street piano in the world! No other piano has lived on the street for four years – in the known universe! (We’ve checked on Facebook and Twitter so it must be true.)

It was also this piano that inspired our first short film, The Peoples’ Piano, and is a major star in the second, Instrument of Change: Street Piano, a feature-length documentary that we’re working on now (you can watch the trailer here).

A massive ‘Thank You Herne Hill Piano!’ from all the street piano film team.

Join us for an event to celebrate Herne Hill’s first street piano – and welcome its replacement – on October 1. Details to follow soon.