You don't treat yourself to anything else. And so David Garrett is now fulfilling a "lifetime dream", as he says. He shelled out 3.5 million euros for a very special violin. But even the pop-classic star does not pay this sum out of petty cash.
Star violinist David Garrett gave himself a very special present for his birthday: He bought a rare violin by the Italian violin maker Guarneri del Gesu, as he revealed to the "Bild" newspaper. "I've fulfilled a lifelong dream with it," says the musician.
Garrett explains that he bought the instrument from 1736 at a Paris auction house for 3.5 million euros. "For the sum, I'll have to part with one of my properties and sell an apartment in New York. But this violin is worth it to me!" He also reveals that he doesn't even have a sum like this in the piggy bank.
A violin by the Italian instrument maker is unique in terms of sound quality - "a real myth," says Garrett. There are only about 150 to 200 copies of it worldwide.
A del Gesù violin is sometimes sold for up to 14 million euros, explains Garrett. "Being awarded the contract was like winning the lottery for me."
He took part in the auction from a Frankfurt hotel. The reception was so bad that he went into the courtyard to make a call. "I've never felt so glamorous next to garbage cans and leftover food," says Garrett.
The musician, born David Christian Bongartz in Aachen in 1980, began playing the violin at the age of four and was celebrated as a child prodigy at the beginning of his career. He received his first record deal at the age of twelve. The star violinist, who keeps building bridges between classical and pop, turned 42 last Sunday.
