Phoenix instrument museum sounds like a winner

The Musical Instrument Museum (MIM), perhaps the first global museum of its kind, is gearing up for its grand opening in Phoenix, Arizona, on April 24.

MIM will celebrate music by exhibiting instruments from every country in the world. It has already acquired more than 12,000 instruments and objects, including many heirloom and hand-crafted instruments, for its core collection, which pays homage to musical traditions from folk and popular to ritual and courtly.

Included in the complex is Geo-Galleries, five expansive show rooms that focus on different regions of the world, and the Artist Gallery, where unique stories of musical icons are told through their instruments.
The spacious, light-filled two-floor building will also feature a classroom, garden courtyard, performance hall, recording studio, restaurant, café, and store.

There will also be instruments that guests can touch and play, insider’s views of how instruments work, and workshops that detail the instrument-building process.

Among the experiences on offer will be the tradition of the Beijing Opera, a rare Javanese gamelan orchestra, a recreation of a gong workshop, and an exploration of the revival in traditional instrument-making of the Maori people of New Zealand.

www.themim.org