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Thank You for Another Magical Flower Piano!
We strive to deliver Flower Piano every year and to provide access for all. Please donate what you can to support this magical event! You can donate online here or venmo us at @GardensofGoldenGatePark.
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Become a member and get a jump on next year's Flower Piano lines! Your membership will take you through next year's Flower Piano. As a member you will also enjoy unlimited admission and guest privileges to the Gardens of Golden Gate Park for the upcoming Magnificent Magnolia bloom, discounts on programs and at the shops, and more! Join today!
Sunset Piano and San Francisco Botanical Garden Present
Flower Piano®
September 16-20, 2022
10am - 6pm
San Francisco Botanical Garden
Golden Gate Park
Sunset Piano and San Francisco Botanical Garden are excited to present one of the most unique, creative, and innovative events in the Bay Area. After a successful return last fall we are excited to bring back Flower Piano to transform San Francisco Botanical Garden once again into the city’s own alfresco concert hall where everyone is invited to play and listen.
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If interested in sponsoring Flower Piano 2022 please contact Director of Philanthropy Brooke Bedingfield at bbedingfield@sfbg.org or (415) 661-1316 ext 305 or complete this online form
FLOWER PIANO 2022 PROGRAM
Wednesday, September 14
5pm - 6pm, Great Meadow | Fall and Fly: Special Flower Piano Opening Event
Like the opening ceremony for the Olympics, a groundbreaking commissioned work created for twelve grand pianos will be performed on the Garden’s Great Meadow just before Flower Piano. San Francisco-based composer Benjamin Gribble has written Fall and Fly, an incredible 23 minute sonic journey in three movements, exploring the textures of a twelve-piano choir. Stanford Symphony director Paul Phillips will personally conduct this one-of-a-kind performance. Special guest speakers Rebecca Solnit, Gary Kamiya, and poet Agneta Falk will contextualize the evening with themes of transformation, renewal, and regrowth.
Special event ticket required - buy here >>
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Friday, September 16
10am - 12pm, Great Meadow | Noe’s Garden: Noe's Garden brings a special good morning concert, ideal for children 0 - 7 and their families. Sing, dance, and move your body along to beloved folk songs from around the world, as well as Noe's own nature-inspired originals. Celtic harp, acoustic guitar, and puppetry make this a concert the whole family will enjoy.
12pm - 1pm, Zellerbach Garden | Tom Jonesing: Pop Renovations, Remodeling, and Demolition
1pm - 2pm, Garden of Fragrance | Kitten on the Keys: Cabaret Originals, Unexpected Covers, Nostalgic Flapper Rock
3pm - 7pm, Celebration Garden | Beat Corner: Avante Garden Music and Poetry
Bay Area Poets hosted by Agneta Falk
Music by Mauro, Dean, Antony, Paulo, and others
Angela LaFlamme and Friends, Tribute to Tom Waits
3pm - 4pm, Conifer Lawn | SFJAZZ High School All-Stars: Four-hands performance by Alex and Lucas Perry
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4pm - 5pm, New Zealand Collection | Ian Scarfe: Masterpieces of Bach, Chopin, List, and Barber
4pm - 5:30pm, Great Meadow | Community Music Center Latin Jazz Kick-off: Community Music Center, celebrating more than a century of music for everyone, hosts a fresh and festive jam session, or descarga, with Eduardo Corzo, pianist and CMC faculty member, with an all-star array of guest musicians. Enjoy music in the open air where the outdoors are your dance floor.
5pm - 6pm, Zellerbach | Tin Yi Chelsea Wong: Drama and Rituals: Bach, Ligeti, Crumb, Liszt
6pm - 7pm, Redwood Grove | Jill Tracy: Mystical, Elegant, Dark, Cinematic, Haunting Sonic Spells
Saturday, September 17
10am - 12pm, Great Meadow (starting point) | Rabbit Hole Theater Magical Scavenger Hunt: Find magical characters during a family-friendly scavenger hunt through the Garden
12pm - 4pm, Celebration Garden | Duo Piano Program
12pm - 1pm | Ian Scarfe and Elektra Schmidt: Ravel, Poulenc, Gustavino, and PDQ Bach
1pm - 2pm | Regina Myers and Sarah Cahill: Recent Works by Riley Nicholson, Errollyn Wallen, and others
2pm - 3pm | Jennifer Peringer and Lauren Cony: Mozart, Dolores White, Germaine Tailleferre and Gabriela Lena Frank
3pm - 4pm | Allison Lovejoy and Kymry Esainko: Saint-Saens "Carnival of the Animals" with a chamber orchestra featuring members of the Classical Revolution, and Niki Ulehla and her original Puppets!
12pm - 2pm | Twelve Piano Extravaganza
12pm - 1pm
1. Great Meadow | Rob Dehlinger’s Alpha Rhythm Kings: Swingin’ King Size Classic Sounds
2. Celebration Garden | Ian Scarfe and Elektra Schmidt: Ravel, Poulenc, Gustavino, and PDQ Bach
3. Garden of Fragrance | Kevin Gerzevitz Trio: Monkish Bebop and Soul Jazz
4. Rhododendron Garden | Robbie Dehlinger: Original Piano Music Which Honors the Classics
5. Ancient Plant Garden | Trio Poema: Argentine tango Music
6. New Zealand Collection | Amy Norman: Swingin’ Tunes & Sultry Songs
7. South Africa Collection | Samer Fanek: Contemporary Music With an Arabic Flair
8. California Native Garden | Berkeley Academy of Music: 20th Anniversary, Polished Classical and Jazz
9. Redwood Grove | Marisa Lenhardt and Paul Caccamo: Tells Stories and Sings, Bringing Context to Opera
10. Conifer Lawn | Kymry Esainko: Melancholy Moods to Soothe the Savage Skeptic
11. Moon Viewing Garden | Penelope Keep: Bach, Scriabin, Gershwin, Chopin, & LEHRER!
12. Zellerbach Garden | Classical Revolution: Chamber music for strings and piano
1pm - 2pm
1. Great Meadow | Mr Lucky and The Cocktail Party: Ellington, Mancini, Bacharach, Withers…!?
2. Celebration Garden | Regina Myers and Sarah Cahill: Recent Works by Riley Nicholson, Errollyn Wallen, and others
3. Garden of Fragrance | Rob Reich Trio: Crystalline melodic discoveries, interrupted by improvisational flights
4. Rhododendron Garden | Dawn Oberg: Music That Cares About You, The Listener!
5. Ancient Plant Garden | Betty Roi Trio: Authentic Parisian Chanteuse Cabaret sings Cabaret & Jazz
6. New Zealand Collection | Joe Mag, Martuni’s: Pop, Show Tunes, and Sing-a-Longs
7. South Africa Collection | George Brooks, Frank Martin: Original compositions inspired by Jazz, Indian
Classical
8. California Native Garden | Gail Dobson Quintet & Vocal Students: Love’s in Need of Love Today
9. Redwood Grove | Caroluna and Ian Scarfe: Glorious Opera Arias, Art Songs, and More!
10. Conifer Lawn | Patti Weiss & Bobby Bralove: Beautiful Melding of Improvisational Piano and Violin
11. Moon Viewing Garden | Esther Aeschbach: Bach, Rameau, Brahms, Debussy, Ravel, Gribble
12. Zellerbach Garden | Earth Wind Flowers: Chamber Music of Various Styles!
3pm - 4pm, Zellerbach Garden | Martin Luther McCoy with Paisley Hinton: Mix of classic Beatles and British favorites as well as soul music and songs of protest involving the works of Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan and Sam Cooke
4pm - 6pm, Fountain Plaza | Awesöme Orchestra
Awesöme Orchestra is a full orchestral ensemble that rehearses and then plays famous works with featured performers.
4pm - 5pm | Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor (first movement) with Elektra Schmidt, soloist
5pm - 6pm | Pines of Rome for full orchestra by Ottorino Respighi, guest conducted by Dr. Sixto F Montesinos Jr
Sunday, September 18
11am - 6pm, Zellerbach Garden | Featured Artists
11am | Tammy Hall and Leberta Lorál: In Gratitude and Acknowledgement of Nature’s Power
12pm | Musica Cubana Quintet: Musica Cubana
1pm | Allison Lovejoy: Romantic, Impressionist, and Modern Masterpieces
2pm | Kev Choice Trio: African-American Piano Music from Classical to Hip-Hop
3pm | Serene: An Epic Adventure
4pm | Mariah Parker: Indo Latin Jazz Quintet
5pm | The Orange Sunshine Experience: Psychedelic Jazz with Drummer Fabio Reis
11am - 6pm, Great Meadow | Featured Artists
11am | Elektra Schmidt: Schumann Kreisleriana and Anna Muravitskaya : Arias and Folk Songs
12pm | Sumi Lee Levy: Current Argentine Tango Music from Buenos Aires
1pm | Kash Killion & Killion’s Trillions: World Music, Sun Ra, Jazz, Reggae, Tango
2pm | Alon Nechustan Trio: 21st Century Piano Adventures in Rhythm
3pm | Lavay Smith: Classic Jazz, Blues, and Early R&B
4pm | Van-Anh: Old World Chopin to New World Disney
5pm | Christian Tumalan’s Trio: Jazz, Brazilian, and Remarkable Hispanic Classics
1pm - 3pm, Conifer Lawn | Little Mission Studio: A fun-loving music school based in the Mission inspiring creativity and cultivating musicianship in the community. Join Little Mission Studio as they present curated performances of both solo and chamber piano music from Little Mission students, ensembles, and faculty members featuring a wide variety of musical styles and genres.
2pm - 4pm, Garden of Fragrance | SF Symphony: Performances by SF Symphony musicians
4pm - 5pm, Conifer Lawn | San Francisco Conservatory of Music: Pre-College pianists
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4pm - 5pm, Celebration Garden | Oscar Cervarich: Spanning the Romantic era to the Blues, Oscar will play your favorites including Beethoven, Debussy, Chopin and more
Monday, September 19
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12pm - 1pm, Great Meadow | Danny Sullivan: Mad Scene Medley Explosion!
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1pm - 2pm, Great Meadow | Kevin Navarro w. Joshua Hughes, Bass-Baritone: Broadway Musical Theater & Great Moments in Opera
2pm - 3pm, Celebration Garden | Erick Peralta in partnership with Community Music Center: The Neo-Creolism of the Peruvian Piano with Erick Peralta: Bringing together his myriad of musical experience and influences, Erick Peralta presents a personal perspective on his native music from Peru, through the voice of the piano. This musical journey will highlight compositions from the música criolla songbook of Peru, blending the traditional sounds with contemporary elements, with the intent of proposing a “nuevo criollo”: the neo-creolism of Peru.
3pm - 6pm, Celebration Garden | Beat Corner: Avante Garden Music and Poetry
Bay Area Poets hosted by Jessica Loos
Music by Mauro, Dean, Antony, Paulo, and others
3pm - 4pm, Zellerbach Garden | Eric Shifrin: Swinging Standards, Bouncy Latin, and Rumpa Chunka
4pm - 5pm, Conifer Lawn | FPM: Vocal/Piano Duo Playing NOLA Jazz Originals
5pm - 6pm, Conifer Lawn | Mena Ramos & Laura Harris: Afrocuban Folkloric Percussion Meets Classical and Jazz
Tuesday, September 20
12pm - 1pm, Great Meadow | The Cottontails: 20’s/30’s Jazz, 40’s Swing, 50’s/60’s R&B
1pm - 3pm, Zellerbach Garden | Ensemble SF: Formed in 2013 by members of the San Francisco Ballet and Symphony, Ensemble SF is dedicated to inspiring a more inclusive world through art. Elizabeth Schumann on piano, Angela Lee on cello, Matt Young on viola, and Jessica Fellows on violin.
2pm - 4pm, Celebration Garden | Colin Farish & Victoria Theodore: Spontaneous Jazzical Compositions in Serendipitous Coincidence
3pm - 4pm, Zellerbach Garden | Sandra Simich: Debussy, Brahms, Chopin, Beethoven
4pm - 5pm, New Zealand Collection | Eric Chase: Mozart’s Concerto Interiors: Meditations Searching for Tranquility
5pm - 6pm, Garden of Fragrance | Steve Abrams & Heath Proskin : Hard Bop, Swing, Latin Jazz and Salsa
SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Thank You to Our Sponsors!
EVENT SPONSORS
Marie & Barry Lipman
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Karen & David Crommie
Elman Family Foundation
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The San Francisco Garden Club
Jane & Tom Singer
Matthew Cook
We look forward to seeing you at Flower Piano—here are some tips to have an enjoyable experience:
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Getting Here:
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Walking, biking, and public transit are strongly recommended
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FREE valet bike parking will be provided on the weekend from 10am-6pm next to the Main Entrance to the Garden near 9th Avenue and Lincoln Way
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Traffic and parking can be challenging, especially on the weekends—see our visit page for shuttle, parking, and other details
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Pianos open at 10am but the Garden opens daily at 7:30am—you are welcome to come in to the Garden and get settled before the pianos open but please do not play the pianos before 10am
Program and Map:
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See the complete schedule here
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Large scale program signage available inside both entrances and Conifer Lawn
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Map of piano locations available on the Flower Piano webpage and program signage posted in the Garden
Tickets:
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Please be prepared to show your member card or tickets and IDs when checking in with staff upon entry
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Members, please enjoy expedited entry at the Main Gate via the member line—enter on the Library (south) side of the Entry Garden—thank you for your support!
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If you need to buy tickets onsite please do so with staff at the permanent kiosk at either entance
Food, Drink, Picnicking:
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Picnicking is encouraged
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Andytown Coffee Roasters will have food and drink available on the weekend at Fountain Plaza
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Outside food and drink are allowed—amazing local inner sunset food options are available right outside the Garden's Main Gate—reentry allowed—get a handstamp on your way out for reentry
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Camping, folding, and similar chairs and coolers allowed
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No tables or structures
COVID Protocol:
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If sick, have tested positive, or had a close contact with someone who has Covid please stay home
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Masks recommended indoors such as restrooms, Library, and Bookstore
Other Preparations:
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Layers, layers, layers - be prepared with clothes for all weather!
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Sun protection - even in the fog, you can get burned - hats, sunblock, sunglasses all encouraged
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Stay hydrated - water bottle refill stations are available at restrooms and Fountain Plaza
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Comfortable, sturdy walking shoes - the Garden is 55 acres and pianos are spread throughout across various surfaces
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Rain or Shine! Rain currently looks to be likely Sunday through Monday—we are tenting the pianos and the show will go on—we will pause and temporarily shut down pianos if it is steady heavy rain until it passes. We are monitoring the situation closely, some delays may occur but we hope to continue per programmed schedule as best as the weather allows.​​ Stylish umbrellas, rain boots, and other rain gear encouraged ☔
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We will share rain, programming, and other dynamic updates as best as possible on our social media channels
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Celebrate Flower Piano and Support this Magical Event!
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Consider making a donation of any size—all support is greatly appreciated—you can even Venmo us @GardensofGoldenGatePark!
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Become a Gardens member and enjoy expedited entry at Flower Piano, guest privileges and more!