On NC State’s Centennial Campus, the bright and lovely sound of a piano can often be heard ringing across the Oval, coming from underneath a large white tent between Hunt Library and On the Oval Food Hall. Appearing mysteriously in fall 2021, this whimsically decorated outdoor piano has fostered a community of its own, sparking conversations and spreading life, joy and music across campus.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, large tents have appeared on campus featuring picnic tables, lighting and even wifi to provide students with more outdoor seating options. The tent on Centennial Campus, however, also has an eye-catching piano that suddenly appeared to the bewilderment and joy of many. 

“Very early last semester, a friend of mine texts me and says ‘There’s a piano under the tent,” said Zack Bonds, a graduate student in applied mathematics. “It just showed up in the middle of the tent. … All there was was just this colorful piano, very bizarrely decorated.”

Unknown to students, the piano came from a collaboration project between Jude DesNoyer, the activation and special events manager for Centennial Campus, and Gregory Carter, a lecturer in the College of Design.

“The idea for the piano is something I’ve had for quite a while,” said DesNoyer. “When the pandemic came and those tents came in, I was like — there’s the opportunity to try it and put a piano under there and just see what happens.”

With the idea set in motion, DesNoyer found a piano for free on Craigslist and contacted Carter to decorate it.

“I tend to be Jude’s go-to person when he comes up with an idea,” said Carter. “[For the piano], I knew I had these exterior latex paints, and I knew I had these metallic little objects… and one of the shapes looked kind of like a bluebell. So I decided, ‘Well, if I’ve got this flower theme started with some of the shapes I have access to, what if I turn it into a thing about flowers and vines and things like that?’”

What resulted is an eccentric blue piano adorned with dots and stars between black and green vines leading to orange, blue and green 3D flowers. The piano, made in 1902, had been given new life and was ready to see its new home.

“It’s got a very traditional, very kind of bluesy, New Orleans feel to it,” said DesNoyer. “And it was like, you know what, that’s what it’s gonna be. We’re not gonna tune this to make it perfect, we’re not going to change it. We’re just gonna call it what it is and let it ride and have its own character.”

The piano was soon dropped off with no explanation whatsoever.

Regardless of where it came from, people began playing the bizarre and mysterious piano. Before long, the tent piano became a staple of Centennial Campus. Whether an avid player, listener or just a passerby, the piano has captivated many, bringing people together through the shared enjoyment of music. 

“I just love the atmosphere in this area,” said Karina Seebaluck, a third-year studying psychology. ”The tent and the benches really encourage people to come around and be united by music.”

One such way people have been united is through a Discord server called “Oval Tent Piano Players.” Beginning as a group chat between students who met at the piano, the conversation switched to a Discord server as more people became interested. With a QR code posted on the piano itself, anyone is encouraged to join the server, regardless of musical experience. The server now hosts a diverse community of over 100 people who share an interest in the piano.

“We have a wonderful variety [of people in the server],” said Andrew Farkas, a third-year studying computer science and one of the students responsible for creating the server. “We’ve got some people who don’t play and just listen, some people who just want to start learning piano, some people who have been playing as long as I have. … Everyone has all sorts of different genres and specialties and skill levels, and it’s really great.” 

Through the server, members often share sheet music, organize hangouts, share news and even perform tuning and maintenance on the piano.

One student was even inspired to spread the joy of an outdoor piano to Main Campus.

“I realized it’s really cool for a piano to just be set on campus and nobody say anything,” said Kevin Childs, a fourth-year studying computer science. “It’s all kind of a mystery, and something as simple as that can form a community. … So I decided one day, [to] go on Facebook marketplace and see if I can find a free piano and drop it off on the Main Campus for people on Main Campus to play and, ideally, a community to form similar to the one that formed on Centennial Campus.”

Thanks to Childs, people on Main Campus now also have an outdoor piano to enjoy, located under the tent outside of Case Dining Hall.

Both pianos saw use through the fall semester until they were suddenly taken away over winter break, leaving many to wonder about their fate. Thankfully, they were returned for the spring semester. The Centennial Piano was returned with a plaque giving credit to Carter’s artwork, finally giving a clue about the people responsible for it.

Although they returned from winter break, the question still remains as to what the long term future of the pianos will be.

“I really hope they stay,” said Michael Babb, a recent NC State graduate who works at the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation on Centennial Campus. “I hope that the college somehow promotes this and keeps it as a staple. I really like it, and I know a lot of people really like it, not just playing it but listening to it too.”

Unfortunately, according to DesNoyer, the tents are currently scheduled to be removed after the spring semester.

“We’re working on trying to figure out where the piano’s going to go,” said DesNoyer. “We’re building out another kind of activation space. It’s not on the Oval, it’s a little bit removed from the Oval, and it may unfortunately end up there.”

However, the fate of the piano and other spaces on campus may also lie in the students’ hands.

“I know for a fact that [the removal of the tents] sparks conversation on Centennial Campus,” said DesNoyer. “If there are any students that have any ideas that are similar to the piano, I’d love to talk to them. … I don’t have all the answers, but I know there are some students with some really good answers out there. I just need ways to find them.”

With the crazy North Carolina weather finally warming up for good, find some time to check out the tent pianos on Centennial and Main Campuses. Go and play or listen, sit down and study or maybe even start a conversation with someone and make a new friend. If you find it’s something you enjoy, consider getting involved with people like DesNoyer, and shape this campus into what you, the student body, want it to be.