Marble Pedestal: SUB piano

A couple weeks ago, I walked into the Students’ Union Building (SUB) and all I heard was music and laughter. It was beautiful. Someone had just added a piano near SUBmart and The Daily Grind.

Before the addition of the SUB piano, I would walk into SUB and be met with the stress radiating off my peers, but now the space is filled with positive energy and excitement. The piano has added a new lightness to campus. 

There is usually a group surrounding the piano laughing and smiling as their friend plays. The piano has become a great community builder. Students can listen to their friends play, or even to strangers play, and make a new friend by joining in. Instead of being alone and hunched over a computer with a grave look on their face, students are enjoying themselves.

The student body has many talents that are not related to academics. The SUB piano gives students the chance to experience these gifts. Life is about more than academia, and there are many talents we can appreciate in each other.

By experiencing these musical gifts, students can step back from the intensity of university workloads. Midterm season is stressful. During these busy times, we often forget that there is more to life than school. That is until the pleasure of something simple, like someone playing the piano, confronts us.

Music is not only beneficial to listeners, but to artists as well. Yamaha, a known maker of pianos, lists many benefits to playing the piano, which includes increased joy. The worries of life melt away while with the sound of music. 

The other day, I saw a student playing the piano. He was sitting alone, but he looked so peaceful. I was captured by how perfectly centred he was. He didn’t have a care in the world. All that mattered was the next note. Music and a love for music has a grounding effect that is a positive addition to the university campus.

Growing up in a household with a piano and a mother who plays has given me an appreciation for music that I share with many of my peers. No matter the genre, music brings joy, peace, and community involvement to a space.

The SUB piano has been an excellent addition to the university and I am excited to see the next artist to play.