Some years ago I wrote and delivered a speech for a poorly-constructed communications class. It was the perfect blend of humor and inspiration, serious and satire, and I meant every word of it. The other day, while rifling through old binders attempting to create order in my chaotic academic universe, I happened upon my only copy of it. It's still a true inspiration, and I'm posting it here specifically for those of my readers who know and love the Brown Piano as I do. As a disclaimer, it was delivered as a speech, not a paper, and punctuation reflects melodramatic pauses rather than proper grammar. Also, after years of experience, I have learned that it impossible for a piano to produce a song, for a song has words. In the spirit of authenticity, I have reproduced it exactly as I found it.
You might need a kleenex . . .
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To the Brown Piano
Across campus, or for that matter, nearly anywhere on campus, you can hear the sounds of plows and trucks, hammering and shouting. These are the melodious songs of construction proceeding on the new Recital Hall in the Otto Winger Memorial Building. This fine old campus building houses the Study Abroad Office, the Learning Center, the Writing Center, the Art Department, the Music Department, the ever-important commuter lounge, and the old recital hall, lined in panels of Avocado green and housing three of the music department pianos. Each of these fine pianos is a Steinway, a brand generally regarded as representing the finest manufacturer of pianos in the world. The first piano is an upright, like you would find in most houses. it is simple, black, shiny, and used for the college's choir rehearsals. Sometimes you may miss seeing this piano if it is moved out of the way into a corner. The second piano, however, is very prominent upon the stage of the hall, standing like a flagship in the harbor. This is the concert grand Steinway—an ornament to the stage, the hall, and the campus. It produces a rich, full sound when its ivories are tickled. If you continue from this beaitufl grand and go back behind the the rear stage curtains, over in the corner, you will find the shape of another piano, covered by a thick padded piano cover, and just sitting, waiting like buried treasure for someone to unearth it. it is to this oft-neglected instrument that I pay tribute.
If this jewel is so well hidden, you may ask, "James—how did you find it?" Well, I am a pianist, and one day I sat discussing the school pianos with a fellow pianist in the afore-mentioned Winger Lounge. We were comparing the tone and touch of each of our favorites in the practice rooms. As we talked, Dr. Debora DeWitt, chair of the Manchester College Department of Music happened upon our conversation. Dr. DeWitt is also a pianist, and she delighted in hearing our opinions on the pianos in the building. We chatted for a few minutes, and then she asked, quite suddenly, "Why doesn't anyone ever play the brown Steinway?" My mind suddenly awoke, newly aware of a piano within the confines of the school that I had not yet played. I turned to her, eyes full of wonder, and replied, "There's a brown Steinway?" Needless to say, her question was answered. "The brown Steinway," she explained, "is on the stage, but never gets used because I think everyone thinks it's junk. It's not!" she insisted, "We have it tuned yearly and the insides have been completely rebuilt in the last ten years. It is an amazing instrument."
With this new revelation, I set of to ind the fabled brown piano. it was a hard search, but fortunately, not a long one. I found it just where I described, neglected in the corner. over the weeks that followed, I began a lasting relationship with the brown piano that I will value all of my life. Though old and bent, scarred and scratched, with the beautiful finish fading, I learned the value of the brown piano. let me share what it has given me.
-This is a piano of many years and great experience. Not only has it seen more pianists and played more concertos than any other piano on campus, it has also seen more wars, experienced more blissful peace, and seen Manchester College through many stages in its many years. It has seen growth and decline, happiness and misery, prosperity and need.
What have I learned from the brown piano? What can YOU learn from the brown piano?
First, we can learn about talent.
-It is not the blanket covering the piano that sings the beautiful song, but the use of what's inside; the hammers, string, pedals and keys working together bring forth beautiful song.
-Sitting in the corner, our talents will never be developed, will never be of any value to us or to anyone else.
Second, we laern about perseverance.
-Changes are all around us, and always will be. Like the piano, we can endure through change, both local and global, and we can emerge from it, stronger, richer, and wiser, rebuilt on the inside, though we may be tarnished and scarred on the outiside.
Third, we learn about personal worth.
-Who we are does not depend on the ideas of others. Truly, we can be of great value, though others may not immediately recognize it.
-Physical appearance can never be a true measure of worth. Even the scarred and scratched piano brings forth music for kings when properly cared for.
Let us together today revisit the question asked by Dr. DeWitt, "Why doesn't anyone ever play the brown Steinway?" The answer is simple. No one understand what the brown Steinway can teach them. They just don't understand the true value and beauty of this treasure. That it may be a gem in the life of many, even your life, as it has been in mine, is my hope. Thank you.
