Stoop show: Brooklyn accordionist entertains neighbors
In this Wednesday, April 15, 2020 photo, choir director and neighbor Pam McAllister, left, encourages musician Paul Stein, center, to invent timely words to his songs as Stein entertains neighbors with an accordion concert from his stoop in front of his Sunset Park, Brooklyn home during the coronavirus outbreak in New York. Stein's partner Elena Schwolsky listens, lower right. "I enjoy playing live music for people, and I can do that without leaving my house," Stein says. A longtime political and social activist, Stein is careful to maintain social distancing rules and encourages his neighbors to do the same. "Everyone stays put in their front yards, but can still hear the music, he says. Stein uses an amplifier so neighbors down the block can also hear it. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
NEW YORK (AP) — Paul Stein felt useless — stuck in his Brooklyn brownstone apartment, watching his neighbors suffer deprivations as COVID-19 swept the city.
He knew what he had to do.
He took out his accordion.
And he played.
His stage is the steps leading up to his building, his stoop.
He regularly sings and plays during the nightly 7 p.m. rounds of applause for health care and front-line workers.
Over the past few weeks, he has played three 45-minute concerts.
Said Stein: “I try to come up with songs of hope. We need to keep our spirits up. We need hope now.”
