Arabic version: إقامة حفل بيانو على عمق 61 متراً تحت الأرض في منجم بنديغو

According to ABC News, a 300kg piano was transported 61 metres underground into Bendigo’s Central Deborah Gold Mine for a one-off concert marking 175 years since gold was first discovered in the central Victorian city.

The event was conceived by Bendigo Fine Music chair Thomas Heywood, whose mother had formerly owned the piano. Heywood said organisers could find no evidence that such a concert had been held before, describing the mine room’s timber ceiling and hardstone walls as well suited to musical performance.

Friday’s concert was limited to 60 attendees, who could remove their hard hats once inside the concert room. Pianists Yasmin Rowe and Ian Munro performed, with Rowe saying she had never played underground and describing the setting’s rock, light, colour and atmosphere as special.

The pianists said the dry, reverberant acoustic required real-time adjustments, including less pedal use. Munro said the unusual setting renewed the interest of playing, recalling a teacher’s question when he was 14 about whether he would continue to love the piano as an adult.

Joshua McPherson, his wife Jo and son Sam moved the disassembled piano on a trolley into a lift and through the mine’s rocky tunnels. The piano body was covered with a blanket to guard against moisture, while technician Nic Hamilton checked and tuned the instrument before the performance.