Annual 'Make Music Day' Offers 1,200 Free Concerts Across All Boroughs

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- New Yorkers across the boroughs are celebrating the annual "Make Music Day," WCBS 880's Jim Smith reports.

At the corner of Bleecker and 6th, the "Showstoppers," a group of senior citizens are singing and dancing to the pop hits of their era. This pop-up concert is bringing smiles to those strolling the village.

"Where else can you stop and see a group of senior citizens singing on the corner to polka music -- it's fabulous," said one passerby.

And that's just one of hundreds of musical performances across the five boroughs for the annual "Make Music Day."

Christina Britton-Conroy, leader of the Showstoppers, wears a patch that reads "Music Is Life."

"People who have music in their lives have the ability to harvest some kind of sunshine even if they've got rain and depression in their lives," Britton-Conroy said.

Spectators say making music and arts publicly available is part of what makes New York.

The event is a unique festival of more than a 1,000 free concerts in public spaces throughout the five boroughs of New York City, all on June 21st, the first day of summer.

MMNY takes place simultaneously with similar festivities in more than 700 cities around the world – a global celebration of music making.

To find all the concerts, visit makemusicny.org/