On September 10, 2026, San Francisco Botanical Garden’s annual Flower Piano event returned for its 11th year, bringing joy and community to people from all walks of life through public music. Across open meadows dotted with picnic blankets and shady secluded groves, the notes of classical pieces and video game scores mingled with the voices of couples conversing and children laughing.
Entrance is free for all San Francisco residents, and from September 10 to 20, the event attracts people from all walks of life. Scheduled performances take place each day, but for most of the time the pianos are open to the public. Students, professionals, and hobbyists alike show up to share their passion. “You don’t need to speak a specific language or have a specific identity, a worldview, a background. Anyone can appreciate music,” Avery Belenson ’27, who has been playing at Flower Piano since she was young, said.
Daryus Makani is a local piano teacher who studied composition at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He first heard about the event as a kid from his great uncle, who lives nearby; now, they attend together annually. “I’ll tell you, I’m more nervous to play at Flower Piano than I am at my own graduation recital,” he said. “There’s something about the vulnerability…it’s humbling because you realize, wow, all this all this time that I spent on whatever piece it was is just this fleeting moment that I get to pass in someone else’s life. It makes it all worth it, as a musician.”
Shoji Moto moved to San Francisco five years ago as a health tech engineer, bringing with him a love for piano that he rediscovered in college through video game and anime soundtracks. He was back for his second day. “I didn’t know what to expect since it was my first year here, but all the pianos are really high quality…these are some of the best grand pianos I’ve played,” he said.
photo by Angie Woo ’27
The botanical gardens, while beautiful, are not the typical climate-controlled environment required to keep pianos in good condition. Brendan Lange, Director of Advancement at the Gardens of Golden Gate Park (GGGP) explained the challenge. “They’re not meant to be outside in, moist, damp western San Francisco,” he said. “The tuners have to basically retune them constantly. It’s almost like how the Golden Gate Bridge is always being painted. The pianos are always being tuned.”
Piano transport is another challenge, handled by the Central Valley family run company Accurate Piano Movers. “These giant things that weigh hundreds and hundreds of pounds, and then you gotta move them through the botanical garden, which is not like the concert hall, you know, or into someone’s house,” Lange said. “They’ve built special Flower Piano dollies, with what look like four-wheel drive, big fat tire casters to get through the wood chips and the decomposed granite pathways and some of the trickier spots…like deep in the redwood grove.”
The pianos are provided by a partner organization called Sunset Piano, run by artists Mauro Ffortissimo and Dean Mermell, who began by placing public pianos along the San Mateo coast back in 2013. After a string of similar projects, including working with the mayor’s office to bring pianos to parts of the city like Civic Center Plaza, the friends approached San Francisco Recreation and Parks about bringing pianos to Golden Gate Park. From there emerged the first Flower Piano festival, part of the botanical garden’s 75th anniversary celebration in 2016.
Lange says the core of the event has remained constant over the years. “There’s more performances, more partnerships, there’s more production…all sorts of refinements,” he said. “But really the heart of the matter is very steady, and the same as it was at the beginning. 12 pianos, put out into the garden, open for anyone and everyone to come and play.”
Why 12? “There’s a musical reference,” Lange said. That is the number of notes in a chromatic scale. When asked if the festival would be back next year, he returned to that symbolism. “12 was the goal, which sounded crazy at the beginning and like a dream. But next year will be 12. We are fully committed to seeing it through 12 for sure. And then, it’s hard to imagine it ever going away.”
Are you thinking about heading to the gardens next September? Annette Huddle, the Director of Education at GGGP advises “Choose your time wisely. The gardens have something for everyone…There’s times when it’s vibrant and alive, like today when we’re looking at as many as 7,000 people coming through the garden. There’s other times on a cool, foggy morning when it’s really quiet and you can watch the spider webs covered with dew…There’s all kinds of moods to the garden, so whatever your mood is, you can find a time that’s right for you.”
photo by Angie Woo ’27
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