- A 9-foot piano sculpture by Jason Manley was unveiled outside Abravanel Hall.
- It's part of "Key Changes," celebrating the 2026 Bachauer International Piano Competition.
- The interactive piece is playable and also aims to inspire new musical skills.
SALT LAKE CITY — Jason Manley has always been drawn to the piano as a music lover, and his latest piece might just be the ultimate version.
Manley, an Ogden-based artist whose past work features many sculptures and public artworks, was hired to design a piece celebrating the instrument ahead of the 2026 Bachauer International Piano Competition, coming to Abravanel Hall later this month.
"The sculpture developed very organically," he explained, shortly after pulling off a tarp to reveal the piece placed on the plaza outside of the venue, 123 W. South Temple.
The piece stands at 9 feet tall and 13 feet wide, made from pieces of five pianos. It's playable while people can also view the many pieces that go into the magical sound it produces.
"I was thinking about music a lot during it," Manley said, noting the design symbolizes the functions of each piece and the emotions they can evoke. "Hopefully, the sculpture will provide this kind of other side of music that is creating a visual along with the rhythm."
His piece is the newest form of "Key Changes," an art project led by the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation and The Blocks, a joint venture between Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County for arts and culture programs within the downtown core.
It's an all-ages attraction that anyone can view or play through Labor Day weekend. The foundation celebrated its installation on Friday with a mini concert by Utah pianist Bennett Larsen, one of the competitors in the upcoming Young Artists Competition, who played over the sounds of construction and buzzing light-rail trains downtown.
The competition will bring 56 of the best pianists between the ages of 11 and 18 from Utah and 14 different countries, June 14 through June 27. That's out of a field of over 300 applicants seeking to participate, said Kary Billings, executive director of the Bachauer foundation.
The foundation pulls off the event every two years. Expert pianists will have similar concerts on the plaza on July 10 and Aug. 14, as well.
Having the piece out there and the competition could draw people west of downtown Main Street, which is currently a struggle while the Delta Center is closed for renovations. The same goes for any event happening at Abravanel Hall or the neighboring Salt Palace Convention Center.
"I think, generally, just adding to the ecosystem what's available to do downtown is really important while that space is closed," said Lucas Horns, program director for The Blocks.
Billings hopes it might inspire people to pick up new musical skills because a previous iteration of "Key Changes" already did that.
The gigantic art piece unveiled Friday is a follow-up to an equally ambitious art project, where a series of uniquely designed pianos were set up outside of Abaravanel Hall in 2024. Visitors of all ages came by and played at times throughout the summer, and some even picked up new skills from it, he said.
One story resonated the most. Gina Bachauer Piano Foundation officials expected to find the pianos out of tune, since the pianos had been left out in the heat and other elements for months. However, they kept finding one of them in tune and playable throughout the project's run.
It turns out that one resident, Steven Mueller, started watching YouTube tutorials and learned how to tune pianos through the ones set up on the plaza, he told KSL at the time.
Project leaders were so inspired that they ultimately donated a piano to him when the exhibit was removed, so he could keep playing on his home porch, Horns said.
It's proof you're never too old or too young to learn something new.
"We had a lot of excitement and interest (last time), and we hope the replicate that this summer," Billings said.
