Old-Time Piano Playing Championship

By: © Nelson Taylor 2008

Festival Location: Deactur, IL, USA

Festival State: Illinois Festivals

Festival Type(s): Traditional Music Festivals, Bizarre Festivals

No matter the population, towns and cities across America grab on to whatever sliver of public relations material they can to help define their existence. We all do it. We all want to be somebody. And we are all judged by our achievements and failures whether we like it or not. Decatur, Illinois is no different. It has a population of 112,000 and defines itself in several different ways. First, Decatur is known as the Soybean Capital of the World, due to local food supplier Archer Daniels Midland. Second, Abe Lincoln had a home and law practice in Decatur before declaring his run for the presidency. Third, Decatur is the original home for the Chicago Bears football team. Finally, Decatur has been the home of the World Championship Old-Time Piano Playing Contest since 1975. Not bad for one town, huh?

But what do these four things tell us about Decatur? Well, it's a community of politically-minded farmers who think about the old days when they're not in front of the TV every Sunday afternoon.

Every May, the town celebrates the World's finest old-time piano players, who get together to have a helluva good time while trying to pen down the $1,200 in prize money. The event begins with about 32 pianists who each play two numbers in several rounds of single elimination. To make the competition fair, everyone plays on the same 1883 rosewood Weber upright named Moby Dink. While the contest is the main event, there are also old-time and ragtime music workshops, the World's Largest Sing-Along Party and Variety Show, plus a dealer room and nightly parties.