Eton College students give a concert every year at Steinway Hall in London for their friends, families, and teachers. It’s always an interesting occasion which includes a master class, for students who have won a school piano prize, as well as a tour of the premises and – the highlight for many – a visit to Pizza Express!
I’ve attended this event several times since teaching at the school. This year we enjoyed a substantial Steinway ‘tour’ on which we had the opportunity to test the Spirio piano, an instrument capable of ‘live performance capture and playback’. Much fun was had recording pieces, hearing them on the playback, and students especially liked the somewhat spooky playback feature where keys move on their own, devoid of human fingers.
After our tour, we were asked if we’d like to see a piano worth 2.5 Million pounds. Eyes bulged with curiosity and we were whisked downstairs to one of the workshops where we huddled around a large black Model D in the middle of the room. But, to our surprise, we were told that the instrument in question was behind us. On turning, we glimpsed a small, modest, wood-cased upright standing in the corner (see photo below).
This seemingly humble Steinway upright once belonged to John Lennon, who gained worldwide fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and guitarist of The Beatles.
The model Z Steinway was built in Hamburg in 1969 and Lennon purchased it 54 years ago today: December 15th 1970. It was delivered to his Berkshire home and – most importantly – was the instrument he used to write his famous song, the anthem for peace, ‘Imagine’. This song was based on a poem written by wife Yoko Ono whom he married in 1970 in Gibraltar, and it was during this time that Lennon emerged as a peace activist. It’s often assumed that ‘Imagine’ was composed on the famous white Steinway grand used in the legendary video, but in fact, he wrote it on this little Steinway upright, ordinarily worth around £5000 today.
The walnut-cased instrument, complete with cigarette stains and standard ‘wear and tear’ markings, was bought by pop icon George Michael in 2000 reportedly for 1.45 million pounds, and it even featured at the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games. Now believed to be worth in the region of £2,500,000, it’s currently housed at the Strawberry Field Exhibition in Liverpool, the home of The Beatles.
The piano was in London for some repairs at the time of our visit, and after admiring the instrument, a student from our party sat down and gave us an impromptu rendition of the song. But for the ‘real’ experience click the links below:
