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Pros kick off public piano project Sunday

All are invited to play on instrument at Oxford Community Arts Center.

Stephanie Zing is a resident artist at the Oxford Community Arts Center. She is gluing beads and necklaces to the top of the piano. Contributed photo by Scott Allison.

Scott Allison Stephanie Zing is a resident artist at the Oxford Community Arts Center. She is gluing beads and necklaces to the top of the piano. Contributed photo by Scott Allison.

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Staff Report Updated 9:06 AM Friday, August 6, 2010

OXFORD — A piano has been placed at the Oxford Community Arts Center for the public to play as part of Cincinnati Public Radio’s “Play Me, I’m Yours” project.

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of 90.9 WGUC, the 40th anniversary of 91.7 WVXU and the 60th anniversary of 88.5 WMUB, Cincinnati Public Radio has placed pianos through the Cincinnati area for anyone to discover and play.

Resident artists of the Oxford Community Arts Center Kris Courtney, Chrissy Collopy and Stephanie Zing have created a public art installation in association with international UK artist, Luke Jerram, for the project.

Under the theme of international unity, Courtney was inspired to present abstract views of American and UK flags in primary colors. Collopy added her avant-garde expressions, and Zing contributed a glass and found object mosaic to the work.

The Oxford Community Arts Center, at 10 S. College Ave., will celebrate the completion of the design and artwork on the piano at 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 8, with a concert performed by Jimmy Rogers and Laurie Traveline Neyer.

The “Play Me, I’m Yours Front Porch Piano Concerts at OCAC” are scheduled on Sunday afternoons throughout August and September, but primarily the piano is there for the use of the public in spontaneous bursts of musical joy.

Neyer, a well known local musician who performs with John Kogge and the Lonesome Strangers, as well as Tre Lunas with Bonnie Allan and Lisa Biales, is a resident artist at the Oxford Community Arts Center.

Neyer teaches piano from her studio at the center and teaches music to children at the McGuffey Foundation School. She is also the organizer of the new “Front Porch” series.

“Bring a blanket or a lawn chair,“ Neyer said, “but Jimmy is so great that you probably won’t be able to sit still.”

Rogers, a multi-talented songwriter and musician has carved a niche for himself regionally and throughout the country. His unique blend of Boogie Woogie, R&B and Soul comes together in a live show that has captivated audiences for more than a decade.

Like many musicians, Rogers got his start in bars, performing and learning from mentors that included legendary pianists Big Joe Duskin and H-Bomb Ferguson.

When asked what it was about the piano that attracts him, Rogers said, “I guess it was the only instrument someone couldn’t take away from me. Instruments that get put in cases stay in cases. If an instrument comes out, it says, ‘play me.’ ”

For more information, call the OCAC at (513) 524-8506 or visit http://oxarts.org/events.