Shopping for a cello⁴¹

Kodanda took me to a music store to buy a cello. The owner of the store was an old man. He was very nice, but he was so old that I was afraid his soul had actually left the body. He looked as if his soul was in Heaven but his body was still here on earth.

I played on ten or twelve different cellos — cellos for $3,000, $4,000, $8,000, $10,000 and $16,000. First the man said one particular cello was $6,000; then he said it was $8,000. So he was saying anything he wanted to say. I played on the $16,000 cello secretly. Otherwise, I thought that perhaps it might not be allowed.

There were four or five that were not as good as the one that I have. Three or four were good. There was a little difference between the ones for $8,000 and $16,000. You could hear that the higher-priced ones were sweeter.

Kodanda said later that to be in a room with me without any disciples made it the happiest day in his life. He was giving me the different instruments to try. He was the only boss.