Nick Cave says he tried to get a free Fazioli piano after filming Idiot Prayer

Last week, Nick Cave debuted his Idiot Prayer solo show. It was filmed London's Alexandra Palace venue last month during the coronavirus pandemic.

In the latest response on his fan Q+A site The Red Hand Files, Cave has discussed how much he loved the piano that he played in Idiot Prayer.

Andrew from the USA asked the question, "The piano you played for Idiot Prayer was magnificent. Was it a personal instrument, or is this just the kind of thing people put in front of one when they go places?"

Cave responded, "The piano I played at Alexandra Palace was a Fazioli. There were limited pianos I could access during lockdown. There was, however, a Fazioli. I had never played one before but Dom Monks, the guy who recorded the Alexandra Palace performance, highly recommended this piano."

"The moment I sat down at the Fazioli, its warm, soft, nuanced sound spoke to me like no piano had spoken to me before," Cave continued. "I was swept away by its extraordinary tonal range. It whispered to me. It roared at me. It was the most beautiful instrument I had ever played."

He explained that after filming Idiot Prayer, he spoke to his manager about how much he loved the Fazioli piano, "I reminded him that I still have the same nasty little Chinese upright I have had for over thirty years. I explained that I was sixty-three years old and suggested that perhaps it was time I got a nice piano. I said to my manager - I just love that Fazioli."

Cave then discussed how being a famous musician means "companies give you shit for free". He explained that despite his success, "I have never sponsored a musical instrument (in that respect, I am virtually alone in my field) but I just loved that Fazioli."

The Australian musician revealed in the post that his manager tried to get a free Fazioli piano straight from the HQ in Sacile. His manager attempted to discuss a free Fazioli multiple times, and the Italian woman who received the calls appeared to mistake Nick Cave for Nicolas Cage, and hung up each time.

Cave ended his response by writing, "So, Andrew, I agree - the Fazioli is a glorious piano. Magnificent, as you say. As Herbie Hancock said about his Fazioli - that 'one note announces the celebration of the freedom and creativity of the human spirit'. This is true. The Fazioli is warm and delicate and remarkably subtle, but has a deep, strong heart. It is full of angel tears and il sangue dei santi and encompasses the universe. It is a dream piano.And yet I wait for the day a giant removal van will pull up outside my house, my manager hanging out the passenger window, wearing a t-shirt with a piano on it, and a big smile on his face, screaming ‘Fazioli!’ Until then my little Chinese upright grins at me from the corner of my room. I walk over and sit down and I begin to play."