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The interactive table that was installed a few days ago in space 12 of the Barcelona Music Museum’s permanent exhibition stems from the proposal to include new museographic items and a new musicological discourse to update and enrich the permanent exhibition contents in general, and particularly those in the guitar space.

The Music Museum’s guitar collection includes nearly a hundred instruments that are witnesses of the organologic, aesthetic and social changes from the 17th century to the present day. Considered one of the best collections of guitars in the world found in public institutions, it offers a tour of the history of the most versatile and universal instrument, with unique pieces such as the guitar of the Lions, Antonio de Torres’ guitars or Catalan guitarists’ instruments from the twentieth century.

This new piece of equipment aims to make the world of guitars more approachable by the public based on different aspects and to give life to the collection by providing content that complements the information provided. It includes elements of a historical, scientific, technological, educational and recreational nature that invite us to go beyond an aesthetic vision and a mere organologic recognition of the guitar.

THE TABLE’S STRUCTURE AND CONTENTS

Introductory display

The interactive display starts with an initial image that positions us in front of the guitar display case and enables one to choose the various sections.

Presentation of the instruments exhibited

The touch screen offers the option of choosing any guitar shown and accessing its historical and organologic information. In addition, eight of the most unique guitars tell us their own personal history and, in some cases, you can also access a recording of the instrument that lets you learn more about it from its sound.

Discover the complete collection

The Museum’s guitar collection has a hundred pieces, not all of which are exhibited, but are kept in the reserves. An interesting video highlights and displays their various morphologies and showcases the entire collection.

Take a look: types of guitars and their parts

Different types of guitars have been created throughout history as a response to different styles and sound needs. This section is the most didactic; one can discover the differences between guitar types and, moreover, it gives a detailed description of the different parts of each one.

Construction and restoration: informative videos

It’s interesting to know more about the construction and restoration processes of a musical instrument: two videos can be viewed that demonstrate those two processes.

Antonio Manjón, a luthier, accompanies us in the video that explains the construction process from the first moment all the way to the delivery of the instrument. In the next video, Jaume Bosser, also a luthier, shows how the Music Museum’s venetian guitar from XVIIth (MDMB 438) was restored in 2009.

Moments in the history of the guitar

This section presents eleven moments in the history of the guitar that have decisively marked the instrument’s evolution, both regarding its construction and use in all kinds of repertoires. A historical perspective of the instrument is gained that will surely turn on their heads some of the stereotypes associated with this instrument.

Did you know...

Our interactive table contains some of the most entertaining curious facts and anecdotes associated with guitars. It’s almost certain that you’ve never considered the relationship between guitars and coffins, or between guitarists and Verdaguer, or even with toothaches. All this and more can be discovered in just one click.

Pinacotheca of guitars

The appearance of musical instruments in paintings throughout time is not unusual, and the guitar is no exception. Discover in this window how the instrument appears in an assorted and varied iconography that includes artists such as Casas, Benlliure, Degas, Manet or Vermeer, preserved in museums around the world.

‘Sarau’ at the Tavern

Decidedly festive in nature, this DVD, recorded by Xuriach in 2018, takes us into the atmosphere of a tavern and the celebratory dances of baroque Catalonia.

The guitar within your reach

There are many resources that enable one to delve deeper into discovering the Music Museum’s guitar collection. In this last section, one can find everything from a detailed bibliography provided by the Documentation and Research Library to a collection of versions and discography performed with some of the Museum’s guitars. If you’d still like to know more, we recommend you take a guided tour through the guitar space.

There is much to discover; the world of the guitar is exciting in many ways and with this new interactive table, one can enter in a very intuitive way that encourages us to know more.

Oh! And don’t forget to read the phrases shown on the screen saver, they’re very curious and inspiring.

3,2,1... The interactive guitar!