In the world of classic cars, barn-finds sometimes do occur. An old Mercedes Gullwing might be discovered under tarps and hay on a farm somewhere in Florida, say, or an E-type Jag exhumed from out-buildings in Norfolk. Such discoveries are relatively rare, yet news of them reaches far beyond specialist magazines and websites for one simple reason: people love classic cars. We all invent stories about their history and fate based on the model, where it was found and who found it.
Musical instruments have nowhere near the same traction in our imagination. For a barn-find fiddle to garner international attention it would have to be a valuable violin, or its provenance would need to be mired in the murk and criminality of Nazi Germany. Yet even these instruments do not capture our notice and imagination in the way a looted Picasso manages. Art trumps music (discuss).
‘What if I could track down a Bechstein in a cabin far out in the wilds?’
So Sophy Roberts has her work cut out for her even before she embarks on this picaresque tale about the lost pianos of Siberia.
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