Hacker News Reader

Comment by tomcam | Hacker News Reader

Not sure I count as a “collector”. I own many hundreds of musical instruments, but the vast majority are meant to be played. But I never pay more for something than I think its “intrinsic“ worth to be precisely because this scenario. I wouldn’t pay much extra for a guitar that John Lennon had allegedly played, for example, because what if that turned out not to be true?

I have purchased duplicates of instruments for parts or preservation though.

View on HN

Apropos musical instruments with a story: I've recently listened a lot to an album called "The Unfinished Violin" by the English folk musician Sam Sweeney. One of the rare good Spotify recommendations I've gotten in later years. Anyway, I wondered about the name, so I looked it up.

It turns out the violin he performs on was made by a young violin maker called Richard Howard, but never assembled by him: he was drafted for WW1, and died in 1917 at the battle of Messines.

I think that's the kind of history that matters, that adds a certain context to the music. To everyone in this thread saying the history of a thing doesn't matter: if something like that doesn't matter, what does?

Incredible story! Although I personally avoid most instruments with significant history because I’d be a poor steward. I just want to play and study them.

Fraud and collectibles practically go hand in hand.

The FBI estimates 70 percent of all autographed sports memorabilia are frauds.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com