Musical Instrument Museum

Musical Instrument Museum is at 4725 E. Mayo Blvd. The museum boasts an extensive collection of more than 13,800 musical instruments and associated objects, at least 7,000 of which are on display at any given time. Upon arrival you'll don a wireless headset that picks up signals transmitted from each exhibit; as you walk toward an exhibit you'll hear the sounds of the instruments displayed.

In the Orientation Gallery on the ground floor, see instruments including a 14-foot Thomas Robjohn pipe organ made in 1859 and an 11.5-foot octobass. You can play instruments from around the world in the Experience Gallery, such as a Javanese gamelan, a West African djembe, a Peruvian harp, a theremin and more. In the Artist Gallery, see instruments from renowned musicians, such as Roberta Flack, George Benson, and the Carter Family. The Elvis exhibit in the Artist Gallery, done in conjunction with Elvis Presley Enterprises, includes a changing array of instruments and artifacts centering on The King.

Upstairs, five Geographic Galleries are divided almost continentally: Africa and the Middle East, Asia and Oceania, Latin America (including Mexico and the Caribbean), North America (U.S. and Canada) and Europe. Each gallery has displays devoted to the music of individual countries. Asian dombras and dutars (long-necked lutes), Guatemalan marimbas, Tibetan dungchen (giant copper trumpets), and many other instruments are all on display.

MIM presents a wide variety of concerts in its comfortable 300-seat theater. Approximately 200 artists appear each year.

Guided tours are available. Food is available. Time: Allow 2 hours minimum.