Man berates newbies playing public piano at Botanic Gardens, says they are ‘terrible’

SINGAPORE: Singapore has a number of public pianos where anyone can play to their heart’s content. While you and I have likely most often witnessed people who are proficient impressing passers-by with their skills, those who are also new to the instrument are perfectly welcome to use them.

Not everyone, however, is kind to newbies, as a Reddit user recently recounted. In a post on the r/askSingapore subreddit on Thursday (Oct 30), u/smilinghy7 wrote that when they and their friend played the piano at Botanic Gardens, a man came up to them and told them, “Both of you are terrible at piano.”

“My friend and I, just adult beginners, were excited to see the acoustic upright piano at Botanic Gardens (near the Tanglin Gate, a quieter, less-crowded spot). This was our first time playing at a public piano. We were playing a simple song, making mistakes, and just enjoying the moment,” she said, after which the man, who was with a woman walking her dog, directed his unkind remark to them.

“Like… hello, it’s a public piano, not a concert hall. There’s even a sign saying everyone’s welcome to play,” the post author wrote, adding that the man could have simply walked away if he didn’t like what he was hearing. Or, if he wanted to have some quiet, he could have expressed himself more respectfully.

However, the two friends were undaunted, and they kept on playing.

Later, a woman passed by and told them that she enjoyed their playing, which made their day.

The post author then asked Reddit users for their take on the incident, and whether or not they believe that “public pianos only for people who can play at Chopin level.” They added that they only practice with a digital keyboard, since they don’t have an acoustic piano at home.

“I thought the whole point of public pianos was to let everyone play and enjoy it (regardless of whether you know how to play or not),” u/smilinghy7 added.

Commenters on the post defended the newbie piano players, saying that the man had just been downright rude.

Some suggested comebacks that the piano players could have used in response to the man’s rude remarks, including, “You are terrible at manners” or “I know, but it’s fun!”

One wrote that they could have shot back with, “Did I ask for your opinion?”

“Ignore the guy. I’ve heard people play on public pianos. Do I know where they are at in their learning journey? No. Am I their teacher? No. If I don’t like or can’t appreciate their playing, I can move on,” another advised.

“Just play lah. The public piano is literally for everyone. Child pressing a single key over and over and over again, also no issue. It’s not for viral moments only,” wrote a commenter.

“I play almost once every two days at Holland village and have never been told by anyone that my piano sucks, even with that level of foot traffic, even though I’m not particularly good. I think you found a [*******] who wanted to show off to his girlfriend or something, but think of it as pulling the reverse lottery. If these guys are common, I would have been hit by now with the sheer number of times I use the piano,” a Reddit user wrote.

“I’m a pro musician. Sometimes I use the public pianos to play random stuff I think in my head,” another added. “If I want to play random stuff that doesn’t sound good, I’m gonna do so. Don’t let people like these into your heart, OP.” /TISG

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