Berlioz piano for sale at 800 Euros
UncategorizedYou know how it is when you’re redecorating. You get rid of a lot of old stuff on sale websites.
So this person in Normandie put an Erard piano up for sale, noting its serial number: 19972.
She was looking for 800 Euros.
A collector identified the instrument as belonging to Hector Berlioz. The composer’s museum is now likely to pay 50,000. Story here.
Summer madness.
Really? This is the first time I’ve ever heard of Berlioz ever owning a piano. IIRC he didn’t play the piano and was awfully proud of the fact, as a composer.
Based on my reading of the article, the 50k figure (in Euros) is cited as what one expert believes the instrument could fetch at auction, not what the museum is likely to pay. Given that the current owner says that she would strongly prefer for it to stay on French soil, and for it to be restored to playing condition, I suspect that the museum would get away with offering a lot less, if it were to place a bid for it.
Maybe Berlioz had a piano for other musicians to play when they visited him?
Whatever, I assume a museum or any private collector would make sure the provenance was properly established before buying “Berlioz’s piano”?