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The 7th Campus Piano Event, organized by the Faculty of Political Science and Economics<\/a> and sponsored by the Waseda Society of Political Science and Economics, took place on 18 December at the Orange Cat caf\u00e9 in the International House of Literature<\/a> (Haruki Murakami Library). The International House of Literature has a beautiful white exterior featuring \u00a0an adornment to the building in the shape of waves. The grand piano currently on display at the Haruki Murakami Library was previously in the \u201cPeter Cat\u201d jazz caf\u00e9 run by Murakami and his wife. This event provided a special chance for the participants, regardless of their skill level, to play this grand piano in a casual manner.<\/p>\n Students, faculty members, and local residents stopped by and freely played and listened to music. There were around 50 attendees, of which around performed. All attendees were welcome to perform, and they were permitted to choose any piece, no matter the genre or length, for their performances. Before playing, a student staff member, who acted as a bilingual MC, asked the performers what piece they wanted to play. During this event, performers shared a variety of musical pieces from differing genres including classical and modern, from both Japan and overseas, and music that appears in popular films and anime. In tune with the season, many Christmas and New Year themed songs were played. Despite being a piano centered event, the grand piano was not the only instrument used during their performances. Some participants even brought their friends along who played other instruments including the violin, cello, trombone, and guitar and performed together.<\/p>\n Students hailed from various departments, majors, school year, and some who are affiliated with different Waseda music circles also joined the event. They came to the Orange Cat caf\u00e9 during breaks between classes and lunch time to play the piano or simply get a drink while listening to others playing. Chairs placed behind the piano provided a space for the students to have informal conversations with their peers in between performances. I heard Japanese and other languages mixed in the conversations among the participants, and I asked three participants what they enjoyed about the event. They told me that, other than being able to play Haruki Murakami\u2019s piano, they enjoyed talking about taste in music and personal experiences related to music, recalling together when and how they learned to play the piano, what music clubs they joined in high school and at college, and what film, TV program, and anime soundtracks they have recently enjoyed.<\/p>\n\n\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/assets\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Image-6.jpeg\")
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