Visit Main Street in Littleton, NH, and you’re likely to hear people playing pianos set up along Main Street sidewalks.
Head a block from Main Street and you’ll find public xylophones installed at Harmony Park along the Ammonoosuc Riverwalk.
Littleton’s experiment with outdoor instruments as a placemaking tool has endured. While many downtowns have tested temporary installations of public pianos, Littleton has kept the tradition alive for more than 15 years.
The Littleton Area Chamber of Commerce oversees the piano project and funds the annual repair, tuning, and storage of the six pianos.
Something as simple as public pianos can foster a vibrant cultural landscape that stimulates economic activity and attracts tourists, says Executive Director Angel Larcom.
Harmony Park, meanwhile, is home to a public installation of percussion instruments, including a xylophone. Those instruments are weatherproof and are out year-round.
Placemaking is covered regularly in Downtown Idea Exchange newsletter.
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