Over the summer months, the colorful outdoor piano has been a central place for musical creativity. Picnic at the Piano has brought the community together with the unique experience of a family-friendly outdoor concert. The outdoor piano has been part of the community for the last five years. For the last four years, outdoor piano concerts have been available for those in the community. 

On July 24th Derek Stoll performed a live jazz piano concert at the Okotoks Downtown Plaza. Many community members packed a picnic to enjoy some jazz piano over the lunch hour. 
Derek expressed that "to have live music outside is a terrific idea, especially here because it is a good piano that is well looked after." Derek enjoyed the opportunity to perform here in the Okotoks "it was a real treat to perform for a random audience."

Derek has a love of jazz music.  He says that "what excited me about jazz is the creative side. Most music is already written down, but with jazz, you get to do your own thing. Essentially you are the composer doing variations on the fly."

During the concert, many children started to dance in the park. Derek was thrilled to hear that the music had touched those in the community since jazz is " dance music with a strong groove."

 There will be one more performance this season by musician Kate Melvina. Mark August 28th from 12-1 pm on the calendar.

 ~Emma Thorn