Sigma Alpha Iota

PAN PIPES WINTER 2015 saI-NaTIONal.ORg 12 "instrument" and logos "word") care for the collection. To encourage young people to visit MIM, admission is only two euros for ages 4-26. Older adults pay twelve euros, and seniors pay nine. All tickets include an audio guide. On the first Wednesday aernoon each month, there is no charge to visit, and musicians perform in the galleries. ere are four floors to explore. In exhibit rooms are certain display cases where you'll find numbered earphone symbols by specific instruments. When you stand on footprints painted on the floor in front of these select cases, you can press the corresponding number on your audio guide to hear music played on the instrument in front of you. is is a special listening opportunity because, in general, these instruments are rarely taken out of the glass cases and played. But you can purchase a CD of performances played on 50 unusual instruments along with a book of color photos and descriptions. Being a cellist, I was particularly keen to see and/or hear the less familiar string instruments, including an ancient psaltery, a medieval three- stringed rebec with its bow, "fancy" fiddles, a Greek lyre, a khitara, a baryton with 21 pegs for strings, and a 1686 kit (or small violin). Many string instruments had unusual body shapes and peg shapes; others had f-holes (sound holes that usually look like an "f " or a reversed "f ") resembling lightning or circles. One bridge even had a heart shape cut out in the middle. Several instruments had carved heads for scrolls. Instruments varied in thickness and width. On the back of one bass viol was an inlaid map of Paris. Of course, there are more than string instruments on display, and when I found a trombone with a serpent head, I immediately thought how much pleasure brass players would have seeing this unique instrument. When I spied a hexagonal piano, a square piano, and even one with a curved keyboard, I pictured pianists playing these unusually shaped instruments. I knew woodwind players would be fascinated by the double aulos, a Russian bassoon with a fish head, a tenor oboe, and a curved English horn, and I am positive they would be especially interested in the extensive exhibit about instrument creations of Belgian Adolphe Sax (1814-1894). During the bi-centennial of his birth, the fourth floor was devoted entirely to everything Sax. I'd never known or heard about, much less seen saxhorns and saxotrombas before. Not all of the instruments in the collection are traditional European ones. ere are instruments from other countries and cultures as well. ere are even electronic and mechanical instruments. Be sure to go to the restaurant (I recommend the crepes) at the top of the building where you'll enjoy a spectacular panoramic view of the city. e museum offers group tours for children and young adults. ere is an extensive library, a gi shop with music and art nouveau objects, and a 200-seat hall where most every day musicians give free concerts. According to Jo Santy, communication manager at MIM, these concerts with music from varied genres offer "something out of the ordinary." Seeing all these instruments piqued my curiosity, and back home, I can continue checking out MIM's instrument of the month at mim.be/instrument-of-the-month. In other words, if you are unable to get to Brussels to visit the museum in person, take advantage of these digital resources about the collection. It's a great modern way, complementing the works by Camille Saint- Säens, Sergei Prokofiev, Benjamin Britten, and Alan Livingston, to learn about and hear instruments. Jayne I. Hanlin is an initiate of Alpha Omicron and current member of the St. Louis Alumnae chapter. Mrs. Hanlin, the sister of famed pianist Malcolm Frager, is the co-author of Learning Latin rough Mythology (Cambridge University Press, 1991). a World oF music The Museum of Musical Instruments in Belgium holds more than 9,000 instruments, with 1,100 on display. For more information, visit mimo-international.com clicK For more MUSEUM continued from page 11

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