Museums w Instrument Collections Guitar

[BellyDoc]

Nobody’s mentioned the Musical Instrument Museum here in Scottsdale AZ! It’s really an important collection but not specifically of guitars. The instruments are collected by region of origin and are presented in association with audio/video of regional music that the museum-goer receives using a headset activated by proximity to the display. There are numerous guitars, guitar-relatives and guitar predecessors on display in multiple regional collections. There is a Martin sponsored luthiery display. Recently, there was an incredible exhibit on the art of guitar inlay titled “Dragons and Vines”. There’s also a theater space designed specifically for music and a great schedule of interesting performers from American genres and around the world. It’s really a fantastic museum. I take my family and out of town guests there frequently and I never feel like I’ve over visited.

[Lovemyguitar]

In Vienna, there is the fantastic Kunsthistorisches Museum with its Collection of Historic Musical Instruments (however, I think that the instrument collection may be closed temporarily until later this summer, 2018, so one better check if they're wanting to go...). It has a tremendous collection of plucked stringed instruments, including one of the largest collections of old lutes in the world (plus guitars, and a whole range of other instruments).

[Michael.N.]

Here's a pretty comprehensive list of the world's musical instrument museums:

http://amis.org/resources/index.html

Over the years I've used their list of technical instrument drawings that relate to guitars and lutes in various collections around the globe. Fantastic resource.
http://network.icom.museum/cimcim/resou ... st/#c20440

[CliffK]

Thx all!

[John Oster]

Nobody’s mentioned the Musical Instrument Museum here in Scottsdale AZ! It’s really an important collection but not specifically of guitars. The instruments are collected by region of origin and are presented in association with audio/video of regional music that the museum-goer receives using a headset activated by proximity to the display. There are numerous guitars, guitar-relatives and guitar predecessors on display in multiple regional collections. There is a Martin sponsored luthiery display. Recently, there was an incredible exhibit on the art of guitar inlay titled “Dragons and Vines”. There’s also a theater space designed specifically for music and a great schedule of interesting performers from American genres and around the world. It’s really a fantastic museum. I take my family and out of town guests there frequently and I never feel like I’ve over visited.

I visited it last spring--really an amazing place!

[Torrescaster]

IIRC Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has a nice musical instrument collection, including some lutes and older guitars.


http://www.mfa.org/node/9489

[DerekB]

The Museo de la Guitarra in Almeria has a selection of guitars by Torres which illustrate how his designs evolved. They even have a couple of guitars you can play, one of which is electric!!! The one pretending to be a classical is by some margin the worst guitar I have ever played. The bass strings were black with the accumulated deposits from countless sweaty fingers and were most unwilling to produce a sound of any sort. The trebles made it quite clear that they are made of plastic..

[hoppy]

Second the Horniman in south London which I went to recently some lovely baroque instruments. Amusingly they have period instruments worth probably many thousands of pounds and then the electric guitar and bass examples are cheap fender rip offs worth £100.

[CliffK]

Thx all.

Here is an interesting website on a famous Torres:

https://www.lainvencibledetorres.com/en/

[andreas777]

At the moment I'm in Milan for a business and holiday trip. Today I've visited the Musei Civici del Castello Sforzesco. I knew there is an exhibition of musical instruments, but I was not aware that is so large. There are hundreds of instruments from the last centuries including many real treasures. There is also a beautiful collection of guitars. The Monzino collection consists of 80 instruments including many guitars from the 18th to the 20th century. One of the highlights is the chitarra battente by Mango Longo from Naples built in the 17th century (see last picture). This museum is really a 'must' - especially for luthiers.
Here some pictures from today:

foto2.jpg

foto4.jpg

foto1.jpg

foto3.jpg

[Richwilly]

Visited a flamenco museum in Malaga a couple of years ago. Am in Malaga for a few days right now. Will see if I can find it again and post some details and maybe even a few photos.

Victoria and Albert museum in London has some wonderful lutes.

[andreas777]

After visiting the Musei Civici del Castello Sforzesco in Milan in July I've been in the Museu de la Musica in Barcelona today. They have a nice collection of instruments, but maybe not as big as the one in Milan. But the guitar collection is great, with 3 Antonio Torres guitars (see picture) and many other guitars from the 18th and 19th centuries. There are a few guitars that look like modern guitars built before the Torres guitars, so I'm not so sure about the real contribution of Torres.

[simonm]

The cutaway on the right is quite interesting. Do you remember anything about it.

[Michael.N.]

Visited a flamenco museum in Malaga a couple of years ago. Am in Malaga for a few days right now. Will see if I can find it again and post some details and maybe even a few photos.

Victoria and Albert museum in London has some wonderful lutes.

I heard that the instrument department has been closed. I've seen it but it was many years ago, probably very early 90's. They had a lovely Pages guitar (many others), oh and a Strad violin.

[andreas777]

The cutaway on the right is quite interesting. Do you remember anything about it.

Is a Pere Antoni Xernena guitar from the 19th century. I remember some Pages guitars (Jose and Pedro?), one Mirecourt, a Simplicio from the 1920ies, and two Fletas from the 1950ies.