The Black Key Group (Whitney Lykins and Isabella Acker) created a special host committee of young, savvy professionals throughout South Florida to assist in creating, executing, and facilitating Pop-Up Piano Miami.
Artists include Rodrigo Gaya, Eric Estrada aka Wase One, Alexander Mijares, Ruben Ubiera, Desiree Kawass, Ivan Roque, Ross Von Rosenberg, and Arnaud Pages
Timothy Feager, General Manager of Steinway Piano Gallery of Miami, stated “Steinway & Sons is very excited about getting behind Pop-Up Piano Miami. We need to bring more awareness to the arts, and this is a great and fun way to accomplish this task.”
SUENALO, Locos Por Juana, Krisp, The Heavy Pets, Juke, JUke, Bells, and Arboles Libres! Click on the banner for dates and times.
During the week of Art Basel Miami Beach (December 6 – 9, 2012), Steinway & Sons Miami will present Pop Up Piano Miami 2012, a public arts project that premiered during Art Basel Miami Beach 2011. With the continued support of Steinway & Sons Miami and sponsors, this year the program is set to launch on a significantly larger scale by not only supporting local music and arts programs but also joining a global initiative. Eight pianos donated by Steinway & Sons Miami will be strategically placed across Wynwood, Midtown Miami, Downtown Miami, and Design District areas. Each piano will be crafted by eight artists. Art Basel week spectators will have access to tickle the ivories between three scheduled “pop-up” performances by talented musicians. After Art Basel Miami Beach week, the pianos will be donated to local charities. PUPM will also work to expand and implement specially designed music programs and workshops at some of the charities where the pianos will permanently reside. Additionally, this year PUPM will benefit Friends of the New World Symphony and the Kimbanguist Symphony Orchestra, Central Africa’s only symphony through a special fundraising concert event that will feature two legendary musicians.
Each year talented artists are chosen to customize the Steinway-donated pianos, making each an original, one-of-a kind, functional piece of art. The pianos are put on public display throughout the community during Art Basel Miami Beach Week making it one of the city’s most wide-spread music and public arts project during Basel Week.
Street music abound!! 2011 saw the likes of local favorites like SUENALO, Brendan O’ Hara, Raffa and Rainer, and national acts like ELEW giving free street performances. Keep your eyes and ears out for more this Art Basel season!
All of our pianos are donated to charities and music programs that face extreme funding shortages when it comes to Arts education. This photo is from the unveiling of our donation to the MAST Academy’s students.
Pop-Up Piano Miami is meant to help the community come together during the busiest time of the year. The public is invited to gather and enjoy the music, and even to tickle the ivories themselves.
Jimmy’z Kitchen Wynwood on Thursday, December 6 at 7:30pm:
2700 N. Miami Avenue, Miami, Florida 33127
Piano artwork by Arnaud Pages
Perfomances by Krisp and Bells
Krisp is an indie-dance-rock band hailing from Miami. Band members Andres Ledesma, Jason Mavila, Alex Lopez and Charlie Woods keep audiences dancing with their electro-infused rock sound. The boys recently performed at Beached Miami’s two-year anniversary fete.
Bells’ unique sound is a perfect balance of percussion and soul. The new band is the brainchild of Sandra Lawson-Ndu and Doug Stuart, who brought Derek Barber and Geneva Harrison on board to complete the harmonious vibes. Although fresh on the scene, Bells has already attracted the attention of local music lovers.
SUGARCANE raw bar grill on Friday, Dec. 7 at 7:30pm:
Piano artwork by Desiree Kawass
Performances by Locos Por Juana and SUENALO
Locos Por Juana is a Miami-native jam band composed of Itagui Correa, Mark Kondrat, and Javier Delgado—but don’t be surprised if you see a handful of additional musicians on stage with them. The music has roots in Afro-Colombian sounds, and is blended with dance-worthy reggae and dancehall vibes. Their mash-up style has earned them two GRAMMY nominations so far.
Suenalo is South Florida’s own Latin fusion jam band. Each of the eight band members contributes a unique sound to the collective, marrying notes of hip-hop, R&B, jazz and a hint of electro. SoFla has already established Suenalo as a local favorite; the band was honored with two Miami New Times’ Best of Miami Awards: Best Latin Rock Band (2005) and Best Latin Band (2011).
Wynwood Cigar Factory on Saturday, December 8 at 7:30pm:
Piano artwork by Ross Von Rosenberg
Performances by Juke, the Heavy Pets, and Arboles Libres
Juke is Miami’s favorite blues band with a twist. Challenging the conventional sound of blues, JUke adds elements of indie and rock n’ roll to invent a new sound that audiences beyond South Florida love. Together, Eric Garcia (singer/songwriter/
The Heavy Pets are an American jam band based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida who perform rhythm and blues, jazz-funk and reggae fusion with rock and roll. Officially formed in 2005, they appear regularly at music festivals such as Bonnaroo, Langerado, the New Orleans Backbeat Jazzfest, Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival, and their namesake PetZoo. Currently the group is composed of guitarists Jeff Lloyd and Mike Garulli, keyboardist Jim Wuest, bassist Justin Carney, and drummer Jamie Newitt, with Lloyd and Garulli chiefly sharing vocal duties. In 2010 they released their second studio LP The Heavy Pets. The album was dubbed a “Top 10 Album of 2010” by The Huffington Post.
Arboles Libres is a Miami-based band, whose name means “Free Trees” in Spanish. They are comprised of singer Juan Ignacio (Nacho) Londono, guitarist Eddie Moreno, and drummer Anthony Genovese. The trio has just self-released their first studio album this summer called Father. Arboles Libres released an EP in 2009 which was followed by a host of nationwide performances and opening slots at: SXSW, LAMC, CMJ, He’s My Brother, She’s My Sister, The Memorials, and an invitation to perform for Marc Anthony in an exclusive addition for the show Q’Viva’, to name a few.
Find more of Eric’s work here.
Eric Estrada has three major influences in life: fishing, music, and art.
Born and raised in Miami, he spent every weekend of his childhood in the Florida Keys. Once in high school, he got into the graffiti scene. At the age of 16, he was mentored by a well known Miami artist. It was with him, where he began to get paid for artwork. Not on walls or canvas, but on high end power boats.
But in his college years, he picked up a rod and got back into fishing. Fishing quickly took over his life, and lead him to the Everglades.
Where fishing became a lifestyle, rather than just a hobby. By the time he picked up his first canvas, the only thing on his mind was fly fishing. On those windy days that fishing just wouldn’t work, he would get lost on canvas. What one would see in one of his paintings is a moment he remembers. Portrayed as he sees it.
Find more work from Ivan here.
Born on December 27, 1991 Ivan Jorge Roque also known as “The Lost Artist” is a Cuban-American urban artist from the infamous Carol City, Florida an inner city located on the northern side of Miami-Dade County. Roque attends the Miami International University of Art & Design working to attain his bachelor’s degree all while still pushing his works to much greater extents. For an artist of his age Roque has had many accomplishments from working with local established artist Gabriel Gimenez to the hip hop group known as RVIDXR KLVN, and even having a public installation commissioned by the Town of Surfside located in Miami Beach, Florida also not to mention the countless shows all over the city. Ivan Jorge Roque truly is the freshest artist in the Miami art scene and a pioneer in the “Urban Pop” movement he is definitely something to be watched out for in the next coming months as we see what creations can come of the one that is forever lost.
For press inquiries contact Jessica Wade Pfeffer at jessica(at)jessicawadeinc(dot)com
For sponsorship inquiries please contact Patricia Baro at patricia(at)mixedmediacollective(dot)com
For general inquiries please contact Isabella Acker at isabella(at)theblackkeygroup(dot)com
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