If you ever wanted to learn to play an instrument but didn’t want to shell out the cash to buy one, now you can try one out for free.
The Calgary Public Library’s Memorial Park Branch is the new home to a musical instrument lending library.
Library card holders can borrow everything from guitars and banjos to keyboards and bongos.
Paul McIntyre Royston, president of the Calgary Public Library Foundation, said Thursday it’s a chance for Calgarians to try out different instruments with the hopes of sparking interest in music.
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“One of our key missions is discovery, explorability. If we can spark somebody’s passion a little bit, get them excited — you know, a parent or a family member doesn’t have to spend hundreds, potentially thousands of dollars on an instrument. You can give this a try,” said McIntyre Royston.
The project is one of the first steps in rebranding the Memorial Park branch as an arts-and-culture-oriented library in the Beltline.
“The library is about people connecting with other people and music is one of the best ways to do that.”
McIntyre Royston said he’s confident the instruments will be handled with care.
“The library has been a sharing economy for thousands of years and we’re pretty good about doing this. Ninety-nine-point-nine per cent of our members are awesome about how they use the materials and then return them,” said McIntyre Royston.
The money for the instruments came from Sunlife Financial.
With files from John Himpe
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