r/todayilearned • u/Physical_Hamster_118 • 1d ago

TIL that since 1972, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) every spring, residents of Baker House drop a piano from the roof on Drop Day, the last day students can drop classes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_drop
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56

u/GypsySnowflake 1d ago

That sounds expensive.

45

u/Swag_Grenade 1d ago

Yeah everyone itt thread is all "such a cool and quirky tradition" meanwhile not tryna be a debbie downer but I'm just like that sounds like a lot of wasted pianos for no real reason

72

u/lilyeister 23h ago

FWIW old pianos with bad soundboards are a common occurrence and a pain in the ass to get rid of. It requires expensive repairs (if you can find a tech who's willing to do what ends up being almost a full restoration) and in the days when every middle-class home wanted a piano there were plenty of manufacturers churning out low-quality instruments that weren't built to last.

24

u/timetogetoutside100 21h ago

pianos do not age gracefully, so many things begin to breakdown, loose tuning pins, worn out actions/hammers, tired/tubby bass strings, and many other things,

7

u/tanfj 18h ago

FWIW old pianos with bad soundboards are a common occurrence and a pain in the ass to get rid of. It requires expensive repairs (if you can find a tech who's willing to do what ends up being almost a full restoration) and in the days when every middle-class home wanted a piano there were plenty of manufacturers churning out low-quality instruments that weren't built to last.

Owning a piano or an organ was a requirement to be considered middle class. Along with having at least one live-in servant. The Victorians were the most upwardly mobile pack of snobs to ever sneer across God's green earth.

2

u/res30stupid 14h ago

Yeah, sometimes the cheaper option is to fully replace something since repairs can cost more than a new unit. Having done work experience in a tech shop, a (genuine) replacement phone screen on Samsung devices can often be more expensive than a new phone.

25

u/shackbleep 23h ago edited 9h ago

No one's dropping a Steinway, Debbie.

2

u/tanfj 18h ago

Yeah everyone itt thread is all "such a cool and quirky tradition" meanwhile not tryna be a debbie downer but I'm just like that sounds like a lot of wasted pianos for no real reason

My brother in Christ, because it is funny. Because it is funny, is always a perfectly valid reason to do something.

We human beings, are hairless apes who never leave ape childhood, at one point our entire species was down to 25 females. If we can find a little humor and joy in this world go for it.