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Special Field Trip: SF Botanical Garden Flower Piano Opening Day

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Special Field Trip Flower Piano in San Francisco Botanical Garden, Friday Sept 12, 2025 10:00am to 4pm with option to go to Opening Evening Event 

The San Franciso Botanical Garden celebrates its 10th Annual Flower Piano event from Sept 12 to Sept 21. The Camera Club is going on Opening Day Friday, Sept 12. This day will have better performers and may be less crowded by being a weekday.

Durning Flower Piano, the SF Botanical Garden is at its best, if your photography interests go beyond Flowers and Flora. Photography opportunities are great for event photography, street photography, environmental portraits, performer photography.  I attended Flower Piano 3 times of the 9 times it has been held.


In addition to the professional performances scheduled, people who are skilled and unskilled will walk up to pianos not being used and put on a performance.  Some make for great photos, some make for great sound, some do both.

Please Note below:

- PBS New Hour video from the 2024 Flower Piano below
- You may qualify for free tickets, and paid tickets
- The Lounge Option (additional Ticket required)
- Recommended Plan for the Field Trip
 - Club Meetup & Picnic Lunch at 11:00am socialize & form small groups to tour
 - When you register for the event, you will be asked about being in a carpool

From SF Botanical Garden Website 
Link to Flower Piano Website

In the final days of summer and celebrating its 10th anniversary, Flower Piano will fill San Francisco Botanical Garden with music for everybody, September 12-21, 2025.  

Participants are invited to explore and enjoy the Botanical Garden’s plant collections as they seek out 12 pianos spread out across the 55-acres. At each of the pianos, there will be scheduled professional and community partner performances as well as open play time for anyone to sit down and play, reflecting a range of genres, ages, and cultures. 

During Flower Piano 2025, the Celebration Garden in the Botanical Garden will be transformed into the Flower Piano Lounge, an upgraded musical landscape featuring priority entry to the festival, special performances from local headliners, access to premium bars, food from local makers, lounge seating, dedicated restrooms, and flexibility to relax and enjoy all areas of the festival at will.

PBS News Hour did a 7 minute video on 2024 Flower Piano.  The video does a good job of showing how the event feels




Ticketing

To minimize waiting in lines, get your free or paid ticket in advance - Get Your Friday, Sept 12 Tickets Here

General Admission Flower Piano is Free to those below (But get your Free Ticket online in advance to avoid waiting on lines)

- Members of SF Botanical Garden
- SF residents - Current ID or Driver License showing San Francisco address
- American Horticultural Society (AHS) Reciprocal Garden Member -(e.g.,Gamble Garden is member, Filoli is not ).  Bring your Garden Member Card

Admission prices are  Get Your Friday, Sept 12 Tickets (Free & Paid)  Here:
- Adult $21.75
- Senior 65+ $10.75
- SF Botanical Garden Member or SF resident $0.00
- AHS Reciprocal Garden Member $0.00

Upgrade to Flower Piano Lounge 2025  LINK to SF Botanical Garden Lounge Info 

On Sep 12 lounge is open from 4:00pm to7:30pm. with 5pm: Montuno Swing Salsa Band

During Flower Piano 2025, the Celebration Garden in the Botanical Garden will be transformed into the Flower Piano Lounge, an upgraded musical landscape featuring priority entry to the festival, special performances from local headliners, access to premium bars, food from local makers, lounge seating, dedicated restrooms, and flexibility to relax and enjoy all areas of the festival at will. The Lounge has limited capacity.

Price of Lounge includes General Admission to Flower Piano and is $75/adult with 20% discount to SF Botanical Garden Members.

Link to purchase Lounge Tickets for Sept 12.

 

Field Trip Plan

 - Register Here for the Field Trip
 - Buy Tickets in advance
 - Decide whether Attend Lounge Opening Night
 - Consider joining a carpool or group to tour the event
 - Bring required docs for free tickets on Flower Piano Day


PACC Meetup and Picnic Lunch at 11:00am in Celebration Garden
Camera Club Picnic Lunch to socialize and form groups to tour.  
Bring your own food & drink, as there is no food to purchase in Garden.  There are water fountains.
Don't feed the animals

Link to Map of San Francisco Botanical Garden

Here is the plan for the day

9:30am
Meetup with your carpool and depart Palo Alto for SF Botanical Garden   
 10:30am

 Good time to arrive Golden Gate Park, still need to get past gate, get oriented and go to your first piano location Consider Garage Parking near de Young Museum
 11:00am to 11:30am Camera Club Picnic Lunch and form groups to tour 
Bring your own food & drink no food to purchase in Garden
 Celebration Garden
 12 Noon
Performances Start  
 12 Noon

Elektra & Friends
Classical Favorites & Contemporary thrills for Piano + 1/2/3
 Garden of Fragrance
   Georgeann Strong
Texan Pianist and Garden Lover Returns Again!
 Zellerbach Garden
 1:00pm

 Calito Franco and his Tumbao Anejo
Great San Francisco Salsa… You Will Dance!
 Great Meadow
   Amy Norman
Swingin’ Tunes & Sultry Songs
 Ancient Plant Garden
   Bob Bralove, Patti Weiss, and Gabe Harris
Acoustic Conversations; Jazz, World, and Original Music
 New Zealand Garden
 2:00pm  Dawn Oberg
Indie Piano Pop You Probably Should Hear
 Ancient Plant Garden
   Wavefront Manifold
Fragrance of Tango, Cinema, and Bohemian Rhapsody!
 Garden of Fragrance
   CAROLUNA, soprano and Jennifer M. Lee, piano
Opera in the Garden with Caroluna
 Moon VIewing Garden
 3:00pm  Les Artes Lounge
“French Enough” Songs: Gainsbourg, Brel and more!!
 Conifer Lawn
   Sojourn Duo
Dances Through Time for Four-Hand Piano
 Redwood Grove
 4:00pm  Lounge Opens  Celebration Garden
     




Date and Time

Friday, September 12, 2025, 9:30 AM until 4:00 PM Pacific Time (US & Canada) (UTC-08:00)

Location

Throughout the San Franciso Botanical Garden
https://gggp.org/flowerpiano/
1199 9th Ave
San Francisco, CA  94122
USA

Event Contact(s)

Richard Mirabella

Category

Field Trip

Registration Info

Registration has closed - Event is past