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When I first met Marlow and Frances Cowan nearly three years ago, I recall Mr. Cowan joking, “At our age, we don’t buy any green bananas.” So it was especially neat for our Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media staff to help him celebrate his 93rd birthday this month.
You may remember the Cowans as the couple whose impromptu piano duet at Mayo Clinic went viral, having reached more than 8 million viewers on YouTube.
The story began in Sept. 2008 when the Cowans were in Rochester, and their piano duet in the atrium of our Gonda Building was captured by another patient and her daughter and posted to YouTube. Six months later we saw the video, which had been viewed about 1,000 times, and embedded it here on Sharing Mayo Clinic.
Then it really took off. Within just a few weeks their video was viewed more than a million times on YouTube and the Cowans had been featured in The Des Moines Register, and two weeks after that they were flown to New York for a live in-studio gig on Good Morning America.
In February 2010 they returned to Rochester for some appointments, and asked if we would want to schedule a little concert. That led to a big story on KARE TV in Minneapolis/St. Paul, as well as a segment on national television in Japan.
With one more return visit last October, we arranged for the Cowans to play what they say will be their last full-blown public concert, in connection with our Social Media Summit and member meeting of the Social Media Health Network. We called it “A Concert for the Ages” and you can see it for yourself.
Mr. Cowan had mentioned that night that he would like to get all the video footage of from this journey put together as a keepsake for his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. So we conspired with his daughter, DeDe Shour, to surprise him at his 93rd birthday celebration with a package of DVDs to share with his family.
Thanks to Joel Streed from our Center for Social Media staff for producing the DVDs, and to DeDe and her husband, Mark, who took these pictures of the Feb. 19 celebration and our surprise gift. See the slideshow of the photos:
Please join us in wishing Marlow and Frances Cowan many more years of perfectly ripened bananas! Share your comments and greetings below, and we’ll pass them along.
Happy birthday, Mr Cowan!!! May God richly bless you, your bride, Fran, and all those you love. You got a new fan here in Colorado. Have an awesome day!!!
I have enjoyed watching your concerts on youtube – wishing you all the best from small town Vermont.
Happy birthday Mr. Cowan. I hope you and your beautiful bride have many more joyous birthdays and celebrations today. I loved your piano playing duet at the Mayo Clinic. It really made my day. I was actually sitting in the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL when I first saw the video. It was such an inspiration and made my day. God bless you both.
Happy Birthday Mr. Cowan. May your day be blessed with much happiness. Being in Gondola Building at Mayo sure puts me at ease when I am there for my appointments. I just wished I would have been there for the big duet!! Keep on enjoying life, and may God bless you with much health and happiness.
Lisa
I sure hope you had a VERY happy birthday, Mr. Cowan!!! I just LOVE watching your impromptu concert on YouTube! It warms my heart to see the way you and your wife interact! May God bless you with great health and many more birthdays to come! *hugs*
I’ve seen this several times and love it especially since I’m also a Mayo Clinic patient and love, love, love the music I’ve heard down in the Atrium by the pros as well as just ones who love to play for anyone’s enjoyment. It lifts the spirits of patients who usually take a few minutes between appts. to clear their mind. I love it!! God bless those 2 with many more years! What a blessing!
I had the privilege of meeting Marlow/Frances Cowan 55 years ago when I was 10 years old in Des Moines, IA. They were the directors of the YMCA Boy’s Choir. I auditioned for the chorus which started a five year experience I still carry as an adult. Not only was it a great pleasure for me to be involved with such musical talent as the Cowan’s, they taught life’s lessons with God, Country and how to treat our Fellow Man. So many times over the years have I thought how wonderful these two wonderful people were in my life in the formative years.
God has blessed me and I ask God to continue blessing Frances and Marlow until they reach their eternal piano duets in Heaven.
Regards,
Clint
Clint L. Herlein
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You are a special couple. God bless.
I missed your birthday last year, so I wish you both a lovely Christmas, a happy new year and to Mr Cowan a wonderful birthday. Your music, humour and enthusiasm is wonderful and a joy. I hope I am not too rude but can you help with the name of the tune you played in the third video – it reminds me a little like yellow rose of Texas. Thank you again for all the plesure you give.
HAPPY NEW YEAR and an early HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!!!!
truely enjoyed your video.
lynda
Are the Cowans still alive and well? My parents just visited the Mayo Clinic in Rochester and, upon sending me pictures of the atrium and donated pianos, I immediately recognized them and recalled the Cowans video. I hope they are both doing well and are still playing every chance they get!