Museu de la Música de Barcelona, Music museum in Fort Pienc district, Barcelona, Spain.
The Museu de la Música de Barcelona is a music museum located on the second floor of L'Auditori, a concert hall in the Eixample district, and it holds one of the largest collections of musical instruments in Europe. The permanent exhibition displays hundreds of original instruments from different periods and regions, ranging from ancient lutes and harpsichords to percussion from across the world.
The collection traces its origins to the 1888 Barcelona World Fair, when enthusiasm for music and instrument collecting was strong in the city. It grew steadily through the 20th century and finally moved into its current home inside L'Auditori in 2007.
The exhibition brings together instruments from Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe, making it easy to compare how different cultures approach sound and rhythm. Some instruments are shown with recordings, so visitors can hear how they actually sound.
The museum sits inside L'Auditori near Plaça de les Glòries Catalanes, and signs inside the building guide visitors to the museum entrance on the second floor. Allow at least a couple of hours, as the rooms spread across a wide area and many instruments reward a close look.
The museum holds several guitars made by Antonio de Torres, a 19th-century craftsman from Almeria whose designs shaped the modern classical guitar as it is known today. His instruments are rarely on public display, which makes this collection an unusual chance to see them up close.
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