Re: New Museum of Music in Paris
By Philippe Rouillé
Yesterday, Jan Kijlstra wrote :
> This week-end in Paris, France, a new museum of music is opening,
> showing about 4000 instruments.
The location (Cite de la musique de La Villette, in Paris) is new, so is too the presentation of the instruments, but the collection is an old one (beginning about the 19th century, linked for a long time with the Brussels collection), that of the Conservatoire national de musique (National music school, formerly Rue de Madrid in Paris, where the exhibition space was charming, but really too scarce).
The new building is very modern and spacious, but some people do not like it -- lots of rough concrete and wooden stairs, the circulation of visitors is not evident. The cost was high, due to some problems of mis-conception which delayed the opening for one year and a half, thus the reaction of President Chirac !
The instruments are actually very well displayed on four floors, and appear in all their splendor. It is one of the finest collections of musical instruments in the world, mainly harpsichords, quatuor, and winds, only a few popular or ethnic instruments.
Only half a dozen mechanical music instruments are displayed, because the collection is rather poor in this field, which for many years, was neglected by the curators.
You will find a grand piano Steck Duo-art (which needs some adjustments), and in a window-case, 4 Serinettes from the end of the 18th century: 2 usual ones (one by Davrainville, Paris, and the other one by Ferry, Paris, 1784), one very small (7 pipes), and another one inserted in a book (very nice piece !). You will find too a rather coarse automaton (19th c. I think) where a lady teaches a bird how to sing; and at last a good Davrainville Mechanical Organ.
A wonderful and rare monkey organ with a lot of automated figures is not exhibited.
None of these instruments is demonstrated (excepted sometimes the Duo-Art) but you may hear some music through the headphones which are given to you at the entrance.
About 30 old phonographs are exhibited too.
And, in the 1st floor, a lot of electric and electronic instruments, from the "Ondes Martenot" and the wonderful "Theremin" to the most recent electronic keyboards.
A very good shop : lots of books and CDs about music, but only 1 postcard on mechanical music, depicting the coarse automaton of the lady teaching a bird how to sing ...
Musee de la musique
Cite de la musique
221, Avenue Jean-Jaures
75019 Paris
(Métro Porte de Pantin)
Tel. +33 01 44 84 44 84
Minitel : 3615 citemusique
The museum has a small web site : http://www.cite-musique.fr And click on museum.
Philippe Rouille
(Paris, France)
rouille@cnam.fr
http://www.cnam.fr/museum/musica_mecanica/ |
(Message sent Sun 19 Jan 1997, 22:00:21 GMT, from time zone GMT+0100.) |
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