Kurt Cobain’s iconic Martin D-18E acoustic, which featured during Nirvana’s legendary MTV Unplugged show, is to be put on display in the UK.
Cobain’s D-18E became the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction when it went under the hammer in 2020, fetching a whopping $6,010,000.
Now, the guitar will go on show at the Royal College of Music Museum in London, starring as part of what's been described as “a landmark exhibition exploring Nirvana’s groundbreaking MTV Unplugged performance”.
Interestingly, Cobain's Smells Like Teen Spirit Fender Mustang ($4.55 million) takes the second spot in the most expensive guitars list, with the pair out-selling infamous axes including David Gilmour's Black Stratocaster ($3,975,000) and Eddie Van Halen's Hot For Teacher Kramer ($3,932,000).
That shows just how revered Cobain’s legacy is (even if the deep-pocketed guitar collector Jim Irsay reckons the acoustic in question isn’t worth such a sizable figure). Rode Microphones owner, Peter Freedman, however, didn’t think twice as he placed the winning bid five years ago.
As a founding supporter of the Royal College of Music’s Australia Commonwealth Scholarship, Freedman has now happily loaned the guitar for the exhibition. He hasn’t spent millions of dollars on the guitar to decorate his living room, after all.
“When I purchased this guitar, my intention was to have it begin a worldwide tour of exhibitions, to support performing artists,” he says. “I am delighted that this intent will be premiered at the Royal College of Music, London, with the first exhibition of its kind and will support talented musicians worldwide.”
Renowned music journalist and Guitar World contributor Alan Di Perna has been tasked with curating the exhibition, which includes a series of events from family-friendly workshops and concerts to performances from RCM students inspired by the guitar.
He’s “delighted” to bring the college’s first-ever rock music exhibition to light, and has championed the legacy of Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged set, saying it was “a stand-out performance by a group that changed the course of rock history in the 1990s”.
RCM's Professor Gabriele Rossi Rognoni hopes the guitar will “open cross dialogues with students of different backgrounds and create bridges between historical and contemporary music”.
The college is already home to the world's oldest guitar – a build that dates from 1581 – and so Cobain's iconic Martin will be a worthy stablemate.
The green sweater Cobain wore that night will be displayed alongside the guitar for the first time. Other points of interest include a selection of Nirvana posters, collectible vinyl records still in their original shrink wrap, and the top portion of a soundboard of another guitar from the same series as Cobain’s fabled Martin.
Taking palace June 3-August 17, tickets to the exhibition will cost £5 and will go on sale on April 30 at 10 am GMT.
Visit the Royal College of Music Museum to learn more.
