When Jeffrey Epstein died in prison in 2019, he left behind a trove of secrets. One was how a sexual predator and college dropout was able to form ties with an incredible number of the world’s wealthiest and most powerful men, including Prince Andrew of the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia’s crown prince.
Another mystery was why Epstein had such a valuable Italian cello. It was the only non-financial asset listed on his foundation’s annual tax filings, with a value of $165,676 and a description of “cello.”
Epstein had never played the cello and had shown no interest in investing in musical equipment.
The first riddle is complex, and lawyers, victims, and journalists are still working to unravel it. The second appears to be minor, confined to the world of fine string instruments. The two riddles, however, are linked. The cello’s odd voyage into and out of Epstein’s possession also provides insight into the infamous criminal’s life and legacy.
Epstein’s house in Manhattan was brimming with oddities. In the master bathroom, there was a portrait of Bill Clinton in a blue outfit, a plush giraffe, and artificial breasts.
Epstein gathered people more than possessions. He fostered leaders in business, money, politics, science, mathematics, academia, music, and even yoga over the years. Introductions to people in his sphere, donations to groups they supported, and other gifts and favors were frequently used to cement the relationships.
That’s when the cello entered the picture.
Accordion Lessons And False Claims
Epstein and his younger brother, Mark, showed a talent for music as children growing up in Brooklyn. Both began with saxophone tuition before progressing to more challenging double-reed instruments. Jeffrey was a bassoonist and Mark was an oboist, both of whom were in high demand in orchestras and other bands. Jeffrey received a scholarship at Interlochen, a prominent summer music camp nestled in the woodlands of northern Michigan, as a bassoonist in 1967. He requested his mother to bring bagels when she came to visit him that summer.
Jeffrey Epstein falsely claimed to have had a promising career as a concert pianist as an adult. He also claimed to have started piano lessons at the age of five, which Mark Epstein denied in an interview. Epstein went on to take piano lessons later in life, although he never advanced beyond a high-school level of ability.
Starting when he and a companion backpacked around Europe in the early 1970s, the cello became a recurring feature in Epstein’s self-told life tale. Playing the piano for Jacqueline du Pré, the British cello virtuoso was one of the things Epstein subsequently told. According to Epstein, he met du Pré in London in 1971 while on a business trip. Du Pré was patronized by Queen Elizabeth II, and Epstein claimed that it was via the cellist that he was able to meet members of the British royal family, forming a particularly strong bond with Prince Andrew.
The story wasn’t altogether unbelievable. Du Pré, who died in 1987, was still playing when Epstein went to London and acquired a full-length fur coat, which he wore for years. But du Pré didn’t need Epstein as an accompanist because she was married to famed pianist Daniel Barenboim, who was among the world’s numerous other professional musicians.
In 1997, at Interlochen, where Epstein became a major contributor and frequent visitor, he met and befriended Melissa Solomon, a 14-year-old cellist. He insisted she go to Juilliard and agreed to pay her tuition there, according to her testimony in a 2019 podcast. He never tried to have sex with her, she claimed (though he did persuade her to massage his feet), but after she declined to attend a party with Prince Andrew, Epstein severed relations and stopped paying her tuition.
Jane, another Interlochen student, testified in the recent trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s closest associate. Jane claimed that Epstein and Maxwell began grooming her while she was a 13-year-old camper and that Epstein raped her after promising to help her progress in her career.
At The Ranch For Thanksgiving
After a performance by cellist William DeRosa, a teenage prodigy who’d made his concert debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at age 11, Epstein appeared backstage at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, in the mid-1990s. DeRosa was considered one of the world’s top cellists by the time Epstein saw him, having performed at Carnegie Hall, on television, and with major symphony orchestras.
Epstein and DeRosa didn’t cross paths again until roughly 2004, when DeRosa began dating Kersti Ferguson, a blond model.
Ferguson, who is from Savannah, Georgia, said in an interview that she met Epstein when she was 18 through a mutual friend. Ferguson met Maxwell at Epstein’s Palm Beach estate, where the two spent time together. While Ferguson was in college, Epstein invited her to his Virgin Islands residence, and after she broke up with a boyfriend, he flew her and her mother to his New Mexico ranch for Thanksgiving. He would phone her four times a day on occasion. He showed her images of himself with important pals, including former President Bill Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Epstein insisted on checking out DeRosa after she started dating him. DeRosa remembered Epstein telling him, “Be nice.” DeRosa’s musical abilities seemed to interest him. He offered they play together once, but DeRosa dismissed him. He admitted that he had never heard Epstein play the piano before.
Epstein was arrested in Florida in 2006 when investigators discovered evidence that he had been having sexual relations with girls. Epstein never mentioned having sex with Ferguson or urged her to recruit other young ladies, according to Ferguson. Ferguson, on the other hand, claimed that when she tried to hug him, he’d “shrivel up,” as if terrified of contracting a sickness. Even though Epstein told Ferguson that he had no intention of marrying, she believed he and Maxwell were in love.
Powerful And Wealthy
Ferguson didn’t hear from him for a while following his arrest. Epstein pleaded guilty to procuring an underage prostitute and received a 13-month prison term, though he was allowed to serve most of it at home.
Then, in 2010, while Epstein was attempting to re-establish his circle of the wealthy and powerful, he dialed her number. Epstein remarked unexpectedly, “I need to buy a cello,” and asked if she would join DeRosa in the hunt. Epstein mentioned to DeRosa that he was buying a cello for a young Israeli cellist the next time they spoke. He suddenly hung up. “Go find one,” he said.
Soon after, DeRosa was in Los Angeles visiting his mother when he learned of a cello being sold by a musician who recorded soundtracks for Hollywood studios.
This cello, while not a Stradivarius or a Montagnana, has a notable provenance and was made by Ettore Soffritti, who worked in Ferrara’s string instrument center from the late 1800s until he died in 1928. The Los Angeles dealer, Benning Violins, hailed the cello’s tone as “rich and powerful,” adding that it was “suitable for the finest of cellists.”
DeRosa gave the cello a try. He was enamored with her. He called it “one of the greatest modern cellos in existence”. With an asking price of $185,000, he thought it was also a good deal.
When DeRosa told Epstein he’d found anything, he seemed thrilled. He claimed that the cello’s intended recipient, Yoed Nir, a young Israeli musician, had to first test the instrument. DeRosa was well-versed in the world of young cellists, but he had never heard of Nir.
The cello was on loan to DeRosa, and Nir put it to the test on a visit to DeRosa’s mother’s residence in Los Angeles. Nir, who was perhaps 30 years old and had dark, shoulder-length hair that he tossed wildly while playing, performed solo cello suites by Bach. Even though he had received musical training, DeRosa thought his playing was unexceptional by his high standards. He could think of several young cellists who were better deserving of such a prize.
“I thought it incredibly odd that Jeffrey had chosen this guy,” DeRosa recalled.
Nir liked the instrument, so Epstein enlisted the help of his accountant, Richard Kahn, to broker a deal with Benning Violins. After getting an evaluation, Kahn negotiated the price down to $165,000.
‘You Can’t Treat Someone Like That’
When DeRosa returned to New York a few weeks later, Epstein’s secretary called to say DeRosa should be at his residence at 7:30 a.m. the next morning. Epstein pointed to a large, unopened cardboard box there. DeRosa claimed he opened the item and confirmed it was the same cello he’d seen in Los Angeles.
“Did you make any money on the transaction?” Epstein asked.
“No,” DeRosa answered.
Epstein went away without saying anything else. DeRosa noted, “He showed no interest in the cello.”
When Ferguson learned of the encounter, she was furious. Epstein was summoned and chastised. She said, “You can’t treat someone like that.” He made no apologies.
The cello was purchased with funds from Epstein’s foundation, and the transaction was recorded on the charity’s 2011 tax return. According to a source acquainted with the situation, Kahn drew up a contract in which the cello would be given to Nir at no cost.
Judy Collins, a vocalist, performed at the Café Carlyle not long after. Collins “added a new element, a cellist, Yoed Nir,” according to a favorable review in The New York Times.
Epstein and Ferguson eventually patched up their differences, and she pleaded with DeRosa to forgive him. Epstein offered to buy a valuable Stradivarius cello for DeRosa when one became available. DeRosa had a special relationship with the instrument because it had previously been owned by a foundation and lent to him early in his career.
DeRosa took possession of the instrument because the seller was so optimistic that a transaction would be made. According to DeRosa, Epstein balked at the $14 million asking price, unwilling to pay more than $10 million. DeRosa returned the cello once the agreement fell apart. According to DeRosa, it later sold for more than the asking amount.
