Everybody knows that pianos are expensive things. The very cheapest products will set you back at least £500 and the ones at the other end of the scale – well, they’re apt to sell for hundreds of thousands of pounds. It’s a hobby that certainly doesn’t come cheap and this might explain why there are so few working class pianists. It’s a terrible shame, because being able to play the piano is an extraordinary talent, say the experts at Mann’s Music.

Classical music is an area that is still heavily dominated by notions of wealth and privilege. You might have dreamed of becoming a virtuoso pianist all of your life but if you can’t afford the equipment, you’re going to have an extremely hard time reaching your goal. Things are gradually getting better – lots of schools and colleges now offer pupils who can’t afford their own instrument, the chance to practice on a piano bought and maintained by the school. There are now myriad bursaries and scholarships available for students who can’t afford to pay for music school.

Yet, such change has been slow and it doesn’t look like it’ll be speeding up any time soon. Nowhere provides more evidence of this elite and exclusive world than the sale of luxury pianos. According to People.com, Mariah Carey paid a staggering $662,500 at auction for Marilyn Monroe’s second hand, white baby grand piano. The piano originally belonged to Monroe’s mother and the Hollywood star held on to it right up until her death in 1962. 

Carey isn’t the only one who seems to have a fascination with famous pianos. George Michael famously bought John Lennon’s Steinway Model Z grand piano for the princely sum of $2,100,100. The star reasoned that the piano would be better off in England than in the US, say experts at the BBC. Michael regularly lends the Steinway to museums, so that fans and enthusiasts can get a look at it. 
Yet, the most expensive piano ever sold eclipses both of these luxury items. The Heintzman Crystal piano was designed to mark the grand celebration of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. It was played during the opening ceremony of the games and was later sold to a private bidder for $3.22 million. It is nine feet long and encrusted with near priceless crystals and is the single most expensive piano in the world. The piano was manufactured by Heintzman for use by the world renowned Chinese pianist Lang Lang. 

Lang Lang was only twenty six years old when he appeared in front of the world at the Beijing Olympic ceremony. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that he must have been nervous, though. The pianist started playing at just three years old. He gave his first public recital at five and by the age of ten, he was playing in front of a worldwide audience on the Oprah Winfrey show. It’s fair to say that this master pianist has had more than enough experience when it comes to performing in front of large crowds. 

Lang Lang’s 2008 performance wowed the entire world and so did his crystal encrusted piano, says the experts at Vagablond.com. Whilst we still don’t know who owns the Heintzman now, it’s easy to imagine him or her rolling around on a bed made out of money and lounging in a bath of Cristal champagne. If you can afford to buy a $3.22 million grand piano, you can surely afford to do anything. The sky is quite literally your only limit.