Pop-up Piano Performances from Union Station

If you’ve used public transportation anywhere in the world, you are probably familiar with the sights and sounds of musicians playing to earn some love and some money. Or perhaps you’ve seen a piano sitting in an airport or a park just waiting for someone to serenade anyone around them. Union Station in Los Angeles is one such location.

Even if you’ve never been to LA’s train station, you’ve probably seen it in such movies as Blade Runner, Bugsy, Catch Me If You Can and The Dark Knight Rises.

The public piano is re-opening at Union Station and to celebrate they are going to start posting archived pop-up performances of five different pianists making great music called Play On! Each performance will be streamed beginning at 7 PM on the Facebook and Instagram page and YouTube channel for L.A. Union Station. The performances will remain available on the YouTube channel.

The series starts today, July 19th, with pianist and producer Jamael Dean – my personal favorite of the five soloists. He’s performed with Kamasi Washington, Thundercat (who joined Washington for Sunday’s concert at the Hollywood Bowl) and more. He’s a musician who knows the traditions of jazz and just how far he can play with them to create his own sound.

Tuesday, July 20th Donia Jarrar will be performing. She creates a fusion of classical music, improvisation, electronic and more to create her own kind of music that has found its way into film, dance, theater and more.

Wednesday July 21st will feature Ukranian Inna Faliks. Classical music is her speciality and she’ll be performing the music of Maurice Ravel and Franz Liszt. She’s the head of piano for UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music and has performed with Camerata Pacifica, Bodytraffic and more.

If jazz and funk is your thing you’ll want to check out Brandon Coleman on Thursday, July 22nd. Coleman has also collaborated with Kamasi Washington and Babyface, Flying Lotus and Donald Glover. His music is as infectious as his omnipresent smile.

The series closes out with jazz on the Latin side with a performance by Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Montes. He was instrumental (pun intended) in the music on Jane the Virgin and has collaborated with many of the top Latin Grammy nominated artists of our time.

There’s only one other artist missing from this list: you. If you find yourself at Union Station and have the talent and nerve to tickle the ivories, the piano is waiting for you. After the hiatus forced by the pandemic, it’s my understanding that the piano has not been drinking. (Extra points if you get that reference!) So play on!

Main photo: Jamael Dean/All photos courtesy of L.A. Union Station