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| Unusual instruments |
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| Instruments from Latin America completely made of recycled items - look close |
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| Even an air guitar! |
The museum, which opened in April of 2010 is the largest of
its kind in the world and the only global
instrument museum in the world. Brainchild of Robert
J. Ulrich, former CEO and chairman emeritus of Target Corporation
and his friend Marc Felix, MIM has 6,500 instruments from
over 200 countries on exhibit at any one time. There are also special exhibits,
currently Stradivarius (until June 5th), the violins and their maker,
a restaurant, a theater, and a conservation lab that is open to viewing at all
times via a large glass window.
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| The conservation lab |
While most museums have audio guides that follow a set
viewing pattern, the audio tour at the MIM is like having your own personal
guide, and not just audio but video. Hidden identifiers at exhibits
automatically cue the guides to exactly the right track at over 300 sites. You
can spend as much or as little time as you want anywhere, and select which
exhibits interest you and bypass any that don’t. For me, that was almost
impossible – EVERYTHING looked interesting.
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| Ever play water-filled glasses? My kids will love this one! |
We were warned though – we were
told to seek out what we really wanted to see and then go back and take in
whatever else time allowed for. Good advice. One could spend hours in the first
gallery – Africa – comparing the instruments
and the sounds of all it’s countries.
More advice – eat a good breakfast. While we had every intention
of dining in the restaurant, an award winning café with a changing menu
featuring locally grown, seasonal ingredients and cuisine from around the globe, we ran
overtime. Not keeping an eye on the clock, by the time we finished upstairs,
the café had closed. But I know there will be another time – I plan on going
back to the MIM whenever my next trip to Phoenix
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| One of the galleries |
As entertaining as the museum is it is also quite
educational. For instance you can look up your ethnic musical heritage. Scotch,
Turkish, Chinese, Native American? Look it up and listen.
Naturally, some larger countries have more than one exhibit. Native American for instance is broken down into tribes and I could have spent an entire day just listening to everyU.S.
Naturally, some larger countries have more than one exhibit. Native American for instance is broken down into tribes and I could have spent an entire day just listening to every
Some variation of certain instruments is common to most
countries. It seemed every one has a variation of a drum, and a flutelike
instrument. Stringed instruments similar to guitars also seem to be a common
musical thread. I was the most intrigued however by how many countries had some
type of ‘bagpipe’. If you thought, like
I did, that it is strictly a Scottish tradition you would be wrong. Very wrong.
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| A bagpipe from an Eastern European country - Slovakia |
Costumes worn by artists from Elvis to Taylor Swift are on display here, as their audio and video performances come on. In the videos you watch a performance on that very instrument or in that very costume that is in front of you.
A final gallery to spend time in is the Experience Gallery -
a hands on experience that encourages you to try your hand at any of the
instruments from a variety of countries on the floor. Believe me, it is not
just for kids.
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| Bang a gong... |
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| ...or something else.... |
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| ...or 'play' a Theremin - an instrument you never touch. (photo courtesy MIM) |
Browsing upstairs in the African Gallery I heard the most
beautiful piano music echoing through the halls. I had to see where it came
from. Seated at that Grand Piano, was a man completely engrossed in his music.
I asked a guard who that was, thinking the museum must have someone come in
occasionally to play. His response was ‘I have no idea.’ At this point I did
not realize the piano could be played by just anyone visiting. I headed down to
where a crowd was beginning to gather and enjoyed this impromptu concert. The
man was truly amazing, playing everything from show tunes like ‘Summertime’, to
the classical ‘Fur Elise’, to Jerry Lee Lewis’ ‘Great Balls of Fire’ with ‘Chariots
of Fire’ and ‘Flight of the Bumble Bee’ thrown in. What a treat! I was riveted.
Later that afternoon, my friend Rick, whose idea it had been
to visit this particular museum,(so thank you sir), was standing next to
someone listening to some audio or other when the man said something like ‘Nice
playing’. Rick’s response was ‘You should have heard the guy playing the piano downstairs
earlier’ only to look up and find out it WAS the guy who had been playing the
piano downstairs earlier.
Special kudos to that man, who gave his name as David Grosso
and said he was a retired Miami
If you live in the Phoenix area, when it gets too hot to spend time
outdoors this summer but you need to get out, or you really want to impress out
of town guests, head over to the Musical
Instrument Museum
http://themim.org/
All photos are my own, unless otherwise credited
Interested in photo prints? Contact me! maureenblevins@yahoo.com
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I am always adding more!
and visit my website: http://mauverneen.com
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