Music at the Grand-Ducal Court

The exhibition shows some fifty musical instruments dating from the 17th to 19th century, formerly belonging to the Medici and Lorraine Grand Dukes of Tuscany and later moved to the Luigi Cherubini Academy of Music in Florence. Since 1966 the collection has been deposited on loan in the Galleria dell’Accademia and is at present displayed in the Museum of Musical Instruments, housed in the Galleria. Among the most valuable instruments on display are a tenor viola by Antonio Stradivari, two rare instruments by the inventor of the piano, Bartolomeo Cristofori, and the oldest vertical piano in existence. Wonderful paintings portray scenes of musical life at the Florentine Court. Visitors can listen to the original sound of ancient instruments, which has been reproduced thanks to state-of-the-art digital technologies. The Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza and the Fondazione Scienza e Tecnica created the part devoted to “Acoustics and Music,” where scientific instruments from both institutions are on display.

 

Exhibition Dates

28.05.2001 – 11.11.2001 Florence, Galleria dell’Accademia