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| - There's a weird disconnect with me when I walk into this museum to see instruments, whose sole purpose is to be played and enjoyed, displayed for you to stare at while they stay silent. Granted, I'm sure a lot of these instruments are not playable anymore, and they do have stations where you can listen to the TV footage of some (but not all) of the instruments when they are played. But, I have a constant urge to pluck strings, play keyboards, and pound on drums when I see them laid out like they have been uncovered at an archaeological dig. It's true they do have a "touch and play" section on the first floor, but the selection is limited (I'd imagine because of the upkeep to maintain constantly played instruments that instrument neophytes are trying out).
Despite the overwhelming urge to try out the museum exhibitions, there is a great variety of instruments to look at, laid out by region, with information stands to inform you about the history of said instruments. Pretty fascinating to see how different instruments emerge in our cultures and what sounds are deemed "pleasant" vs. cacophony. One of the things that I think would make the museum experience more pleasant would be to extend the range of the ear sets they give you, because generally you can only stand in one spot before the headset reception starts to fade, which makes it inconvenient to listen to the instrument samples when there are lots of visitors at the exhibit.
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