V & A Museum Instrument Collection

[Deleted]

This email has just been sent to me and I thought that others may be interested / concerned. I understand that they want the space for fashion.

a short message to anyone who's visited the room in the V&A dedicated to it's musical instrument collection - anyone who's pulled those glass cases on rollers out of the wall to see the fantastic collection, anyone with the slightest interest in the history of the guitar -

The museum is thinking of closing the room and putting the instruments in storage - this is a petition to keep the instrument gallery open.


www.PetitionOnline.com/22210/petition.html

Please pass the message on to anyone who may be interested.

[garrysmith]

The Boston Museum of Fine Arts has a collection of historical instruments on display, including some very fancy banjoes, mandolins and guitars.

No resophonics though, which surprises me as I would have thought they'd be regarded as a quintessentially American musical instrument.

[andys]

Signed it Tommo, thanks for bringing my attention to this state of affairs.

Isnt there also a museum called the Horniman Museum which has a big collection of old musical instruments?

[Stevie]

As a radio amateur (ham) I watched on as the Science Museum dismantled its "Ham" exhibition years ago. A fellow Ham lives about 200 yards for me and he was the curator of that exhibit. Talk about the end of an era. I will sign the petition too but I have more than just a little pessimism. Why are these faceless individuals left in charge of our heritage when this is what they do with it? Silver lining time, at least it's all going into storage- not into a skip. We can always rely on the Beeb for that.

[Deleted]

Signed it too
Come on guys spread the word on this one

Cheers

Rob

[ken1953clark]

Duly signed up. If they don't want it in London theres a bit of space in my cellar
Admission will be reasonable...

[Mairena Red]

Hi Tommo,

Thanks for the tip, I too have just signed the petition.

Hi andys,

The Horniman Museum does indeed have a fantastic collection of musical instruments which used to be called the Carse Collection but seems to have dropped the name as you can see from the link below.

www.horniman.ac.uk/collections/musical.php

At one time I was seriously into the baroque trumpet (I blame George Martin and those wonderful brass arrangements on the Magical Mystery Tour EP ). As a penniless student I trekked all the way from Ealing to Forest Hill to see their collection of baroque trumpets and was not disappointed, though the curator pulled a very funny face when I suggested he might let me try one

All the best,

Joe (aka il prete rosso)

[Michael Messer]

I have signed the petition, but I have a feeling that a room dedicated to fashion would be more popular with tourists and that will determine the outcome. It's worth a try. Thanks for posting the information Tommo.

I have met some of the people who work at the V & A museum. I am sure you are right Stevie about faceless bureaucrats in charge of our heritage, but the people I met were not that at all. They are people who are very passionate about all this and live our heritage 24/7, which is why they chose to work at the museum.

I hope they do save it.

Shine On
Michael.

[Stevie]

Your point is well made Michael.
My friend around the corner lived and breathed the Ham radio station at the Science Museum. As Curator, he was not the one to swing the axe. As you say, he worked there because he loved it. (lucky devil!) How ironic that now the admission charge policy has been (happily) reviewed, at the stroke of a pen, off goes the musical instrument exhibit.
Perhaps the V&A is not the correct place to house the collection?

[oldmanblue]

have just signed the petion.omb