diff --git a/roles/pi_musicmouse/README.md b/roles/pi_musicmouse/README.md
index 6adfbfd..ab0a2af 100644
--- a/roles/pi_musicmouse/README.md
+++ b/roles/pi_musicmouse/README.md
@@ -5,9 +5,12 @@ Deploys the MusicMouse backend (`python-backend/`) and its built web frontend.
 - Checks out `musicmouse_version` from `pi_musicmouse_repo` to `/opt/musicmouse`, then
   **fails early** if that checkout has no `python-backend/pyproject.toml` - see
   "Which version" below.
-- Installs a pinned `uv` release and uses it to create `/opt/musicmouse/.venv` with
-  Python `pi_musicmouse_python_version` (the backend needs 3.12+ for PEP 695 syntax;
-  Raspbian Bookworm's apt python3 is only 3.11) and `pip install` the backend into it.
+- Creates `/opt/musicmouse/.venv` from the distribution's own `python3` and pip-installs
+  the backend into it. The backend targets the Python that Raspberry Pi OS ships (3.11
+  on Bookworm) precisely so this step stays boring: apt and piwheels have prebuilt
+  armhf wheels for the native dependencies, so nothing has to be compiled on the Pi.
+  If the venv was built by a different interpreter than the current `python3`, it is
+  thrown away and rebuilt.
 - Builds the frontend (`web/`) on the *control machine* (delegated to `localhost`, not
   the Pi - no Node/npm is installed on the Pi) and syncs `web/dist` over.
 - Installs `/media/musicmouse/config.yml` from `files/config-<inventory_hostname>.yml`
diff --git a/roles/pi_musicmouse/defaults/main.yml b/roles/pi_musicmouse/defaults/main.yml
index c44756c..d150c67 100644
--- a/roles/pi_musicmouse/defaults/main.yml
+++ b/roles/pi_musicmouse/defaults/main.yml
@@ -5,24 +5,6 @@ pi_musicmouse_repo: "ssh://git@git.bauer.tech:2222/martin/musicmouse.git"
 # `git push -f origin <branch>:deploy/musicdolphin` and re-run this role.
 # musicmouse_version: "deploy/musicdolphin"
 
-pi_musicmouse_python_version: "3.13"
-pi_musicmouse_uv_version: "0.12.10"
-
-# Which uv build to download. Raspberry Pi OS ships a 64-bit kernel with a 32-bit
-# userland, so `uname -m` (and therefore ansible_architecture) says aarch64 on a box
-# that can only run armhf binaries - the aarch64 build installs fine and then fails to
-# exec with "No such file or directory", which is the dynamic loader missing, not the
-# file. ansible_userspace_bits is the fact that tells the truth.
-pi_musicmouse_uv_target: >-
-  {{ 'armv7-unknown-linux-gnueabihf'
-     if (ansible_architecture in ['aarch64', 'armv7l', 'armv6l'] and ansible_userspace_bits == '32')
-     else _pi_musicmouse_uv_targets[ansible_architecture] }}
-_pi_musicmouse_uv_targets:
-  aarch64: aarch64-unknown-linux-gnu
-  armv7l: armv7-unknown-linux-gnueabihf
-  armv6l: armv7-unknown-linux-gnueabihf
-  x86_64: x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu
-
 # Where to check out the repo on the *control machine* to build the frontend (npm isn't
 # installed on the Pi - see README). Keyed by version so different hosts on different
 # versions don't clobber each other's build.
diff --git a/roles/pi_musicmouse/tasks/main.yml b/roles/pi_musicmouse/tasks/main.yml
index 8fdf7b2..f945027 100644
--- a/roles/pi_musicmouse/tasks/main.yml
+++ b/roles/pi_musicmouse/tasks/main.yml
@@ -3,47 +3,15 @@
   ansible.builtin.apt:
     name:
       - git
-      - libvlc5 # runtime lib python-vlc (installed into the venv by uv) binds against
+      - libvlc5 # runtime lib python-vlc binds against
       - vlc-plugin-base
       - alsa-utils
       - samba
-      # Pillow ships no armv7 wheel and Raspberry Pi OS's userland is 32-bit, so it is
-      # compiled from source here and needs its image headers. (piwheels would have a
-      # prebuilt one, but only for the system Python, not the 3.13 uv installs.)
-      - libjpeg-dev
-      - zlib1g-dev
+      - python3
+      - python3-venv
+      - python3-pip
     cache_valid_time: 7200
 
-- name: Ensure uv install directory exists
-  ansible.builtin.file:
-    path: "/opt/uv-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_version }}-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_target }}"
-    state: directory
-    mode: "0755"
-
-- name: Download and extract uv {{ pi_musicmouse_uv_version }}
-  ansible.builtin.unarchive:
-    src: "https://github.com/astral-sh/uv/releases/download/{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_version }}/uv-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_target }}.tar.gz"
-    dest: "/opt/uv-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_version }}-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_target }}"
-    remote_src: true
-    extra_opts: ["--strip-components=1"]
-    creates: "/opt/uv-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_version }}-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_target }}/uv"
-
-- name: Symlink uv/uvx into /usr/local/bin
-  ansible.builtin.file:
-    src: "/opt/uv-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_version }}-{{ pi_musicmouse_uv_target }}/{{ item }}"
-    dest: "/usr/local/bin/{{ item }}"
-    state: link
-    force: true
-  loop:
-    - uv
-    - uvx
-
-- name: Verify uv runs on this host
-  ansible.builtin.command:
-    cmd: /usr/local/bin/uv --version
-  register: pi_musicmouse_uv_version_out
-  changed_when: false
-
 - name: Checkout Musicmouse repo
   ansible.builtin.git:
     repo: "{{ pi_musicmouse_repo }}"
@@ -73,9 +41,34 @@
       buried.
   when: not ansible_check_mode and not pi_musicmouse_pyproject.stat.exists
 
-- name: Create virtualenv with Python {{ pi_musicmouse_python_version }}
+- name: Get the system Python version
   ansible.builtin.command:
-    cmd: "/usr/local/bin/uv venv --python {{ pi_musicmouse_python_version }} /opt/musicmouse/.venv"
+    cmd: python3 -c "import sys; print('%d.%d' % sys.version_info[:2])"
+  register: pi_musicmouse_system_python
+  changed_when: false
+
+- name: Get the version the venv was built with
+  ansible.builtin.command:
+    cmd: /opt/musicmouse/.venv/bin/python -c "import sys; print('%d.%d' % sys.version_info[:2])"
+  register: pi_musicmouse_venv_python
+  changed_when: false
+  failed_when: false
+
+- name: Discard a venv built by a different Python
+  # `creates:` below would otherwise keep an old interpreter forever - which is exactly
+  # what a switch away from a separately-installed Python leaves behind. A venv holds
+  # absolute paths into the interpreter that made it, so it cannot be migrated; the
+  # cheap and correct move is to rebuild it.
+  ansible.builtin.file:
+    path: /opt/musicmouse/.venv
+    state: absent
+  when: >-
+    pi_musicmouse_venv_python.rc == 0
+    and pi_musicmouse_venv_python.stdout | trim != pi_musicmouse_system_python.stdout | trim
+
+- name: Create the virtualenv from the system Python
+  ansible.builtin.command:
+    cmd: "python3 -m venv /opt/musicmouse/.venv"
     creates: /opt/musicmouse/.venv/bin/python
 
 # Installing the backend is deliberately not a handler hanging off the checkout.
@@ -85,9 +78,9 @@
 # ModuleNotFoundError. Instead, decide from what is actually on the device - the commit
 # it has checked out, and whether the venv can import the package at all.
 #
-# uv's own output cannot answer this: `musicmouse` is a local path dependency, so every
-# run rebuilds and reinstalls it and always prints "Installed 1 package". Keying off
-# that restarts the service on every run and rescans the whole library for nothing.
+# pip's own output cannot answer this either: `musicmouse` is a local path dependency,
+# so every run rebuilds and reinstalls it. Keying off that restarts the service on
+# every run and rescans the whole library for nothing.
 - name: Read which commit the venv was built from
   ansible.builtin.command:
     cmd: cat /opt/musicmouse/.venv/.installed-commit
@@ -104,7 +97,7 @@
 
 - name: Install the backend into the venv
   ansible.builtin.command:
-    cmd: "/usr/local/bin/uv pip install --python /opt/musicmouse/.venv/bin/python /opt/musicmouse/python-backend"
+    cmd: "/opt/musicmouse/.venv/bin/pip install /opt/musicmouse/python-backend"
   when: >-
     pi_musicmouse_importable.rc != 0
     or pi_musicmouse_stamp.stdout | trim != pi_musicmouse_commit