from Lexington Public Library - Eagle Creek Branch
The inspiration for the Eagle Creek Branch book cart entry began with the concept of a piano. The overall shape and size of the cart guided us in the direction of an upright style instrument, such as an old-fashioned player or ragtime piano. “The Eagle Creek Rag” is crafted out of hard board, hinges, and recycled sections of wood trim. The keyboard is comprised of individual keys cut from a piece of scrap lumber. It has a working pin barrel mechanism created using a round, cardboard, oatmeal container, heavy parchment paper perforated to resemble a pre-programmed music roll; and K’nex toy gears and parts for the device and motor. A MP3 player and speakers are hidden inside and have been programmed with ragtime music selections. Our piano is accompanied by characters in costume who have been playfully named Joplin (the musician) and Snazzie Mazzie (our showgirl, who was named in honor of Marin Mazzie, a member of the original Broadway cast of Ragtime: The Musical). The Ragtime musical genre enjoyed its peak popularity from 1897 to 1918
Runner-Up
Judge comments:
This was obviously an incredible amount of work. They cut out individual keys and used scrap lumber to turn their cart into a ragtime piano, and went as far as making the “music roll” turn while a hidden MP3 player played music. Bonus points for the well-aged sepia toned picture and the Dick Dastardly mustache! Participants will be splitting a $100 gift certificate to the Unshelved Store.
