Jessica Mitford’s only surviving son, Ben Treuhaft, is currently living in a tent on Portobello Beach, in Edinburgh, Scotland, which, as you can imagine, is not exactly the warmest or most sun-drenched place to live, especially at this time of year.
The second child of Mitford and Robert Treuhaft, Ben and his brother (according to his mother) were raised in a spirit of “benign neglect” described as “matter of fact” rather than “touchy feely.” Mitford had previously given birth to two daughters by her first marriage to Esmond Romilly. Their first child, Julia died in infancy from measles, and Constancia (“Dinky”) was born in 1941, the same year Esmond went missing in action during the Second World War.
The 66-year-old Ben, has become as equally eccentric as his famous mother, being known as a musician, activist and piano tuner, who relocated from New York with his family last year to Edinburgh, where he opened a piano shop in the city.
However, after a recent argument with his wife, father-of-two Treuhaft quit the family home in the city’s residential Morningside district, and set up camp in a tent on Portobello Beach. From his new abode, Treuhaft tunes instruments, plays the piano, and welcomes visitors. He is considering making his £500 tent a permanent feature at the seaside location.
This week, police officers visited Treuhaft over concerns for his safety. As the Scotsman newspaper reported, the musician was surprised by their concern.
“I was shocked. They were very friendly. They came to check that I was OK. We all shook hands and they left. They said ‘if there is anything we can do please come to our station’. The police are on my side, just like the council, which is good for my project.”
Treuhaft hopes he will be able to stay on the beach “until the twelfth of never.”
“It started off as a fantasy but it has come true. I’m planning on staying here for the duration – forever. My wife and I had an argument and she booted me out because I talk too much. I bought the tent for £500 and that’s basically all the expenses covered. The rent is free and I have a great view. I’m going to stay here as long as possible, if the council doesn’t clear me out.
“I’ve always wanted to live with a piano on the beach.”
Mr. Treuhaft’s wife, meanwhile, has been quoted as describing her husband’s actions as “ridiculous.”
Before arriving in Edinburgh, Treuhaft was interviewed by James Maher for the blog Ev Grieve: Out and About in the East Village, where he explained his piano business:
I’ve lived in the neighborhood since 1998. I’m from Oakland. I’m a piano tuner and I had my piano shop in Berkeley for about 25 years. And then I got sick to death of the Bay Area. I was 50 years old and 50 years was enough, so I rented a Ryder truck and drove my whole piano shop out this way.
When I arrived I didn’t have any customers, although I was the big fish in Berkeley. My background was with the Steinway Concert Department and I had no trouble getting a gigantic clientele over there. I worked with the San Francisco Conservatory of Music even though I didn’t wear shoes until I was 35 years old. I was barefoot. I was a hippie, you know. Everybody put their shoes back on but I didn’t. I just went around with no shoes on because I figured it was so much more comfortable. It became almost a religion with me. I would go to the Conservatory of Music and I would pat around with no shoes. Then, I figured when I was 35 years old that I could make a little bit more money if I put shoes on. So I sold out and wore shoes after that.
No Siree, Treuhaft clearly isn’t some Johnny-come-lately bohemian! He was also the brains behind Senda Piana to Havana, which beat the US embargo on Cuba by sending instruments to the country’s struggling musicians.
Cuban musicians struggle on antique American pianos, strings rusted through, or on Russian pianos half-eaten by termites. Cuba’s music pedagogy produces famous results, but as few new pianos are imported to Cuba, and parts are unavailable, Cuba’s musical community suffers.
In 1995 we began rounding up used pianos—plentiful in the USA—and sending them to Cuban schools. We’ve sent 237 used upright and grand pianos and tons of related supplies, donated from across the USA. The instruments are distributed to the wonderful broken-down music schools that dot the island. Occasionally they’re awarded to individual students.
How long Ben Treuhaft will stay on Portobello Beach is not known, but an interview with him from inside his tent can be found here, Ben’s piano tuning services are available here, and his Facebook page is here. Below, Sarah Harbin’s film Sonata for the Left Hand about Treuhaft and Senda Piana to Havana campaign.
Previously on Dangerous Minds
Jessica Mitford: A Radical Touch of Class