A Yamaha Grand Piano Played by Freddie Mercury Is Heading to Auction

You’ll want to keep on fighting till the end to snag this musical memento.

A Yamaha C3 grand piano played by Freddie Mercury is heading to auction this fall via Propstore. The instrument, used by the music icon to craft many a song for Queen, is one of multiple pieces up for grabs as part of a treasure trove offered by the band’s legendary producer Reinhold Mack and his son, Freddie Jr.

Mercury played plenty of tunes on this Yamaha at Musicland Studios in Munich (an iconic studio where bands such as the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, and Black Sabbath also used it to craft their various albums). Specifically, the Queen star composed both solo material and band hits, such as “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” on the piano, as well as other songs that appear on The Game, Hot Space, and The Works. Considered to be one of the most important Mercury-related pieces to hit the block since a 2023 sale of his personal items, the Yamaha is expected to fetch up to $528,000 at auction.

A closer look at the piano.

Propstore

“Freddie was not only a colleague and close friend; in many ways, he was part of our family. Away from the countless hours we spent creating music together at Musicland Studios, our home in Munich became a place where he could escape the pressures of fame, relax, and simply be himself,” Mack said in a press statement.

That’s not the only Mercury memento in the sale, either. The Reinold Mack Collection has 81 other lots on offer related to Mercury. That includes an AKG C414 EB microphone used by the singer to record his lead and backup vocals at Musicland Studios (estimate of $52,800 of $105,600) as well as early handwritten lyrics from songs from Mercury’s debut solo album—including “My Love Is Dangerous” and “Let’s Turn It On.”

“We have carefully preserved these items for decades, not because of their value, but because of the memories they hold,” Mack continued. “We now feel the time has come for others to enjoy and appreciate them, and we hope they offer fans a connection not only to Freddie’s extraordinary artistry, but also to the warm, funny, and kind-hearted man we were privileged to know. The memories we shared can never be auctioned; they will remain with our family forever.”

In total, the treasure trove, along with other musical items that are part of Music Memorabilia Live Auction, is expected to fetch a cool $4 million. The Yamaha and more musical lots will go under the hammer on October 1 and 2; though if you want a sneak peek of what’s on offer, they will be part of an exhibition at the Cumberland Hotel in London from September 23 to 27.

Authors

Nicole Hoey

Digital Editor

Nicole Hoey is Robb Report’s digital editor. While studying at Boston University, she read, wrote and read some more as an English and journalism major. A class taught by a Boston Globe copy editor…

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