Museo internazionale e biblioteca della musica
The music museum on the piano nobile of Palazzo Sanguinetti, with historic instruments, portraits of musicians and the bequest of Padre Martini.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The International Museum and Library of Music in Bologna was inaugurated in 2004 in the historic centre, on the piano nobile of Palazzo Sanguinetti, a building that also housed Gioachino Rossini. The key figure of the collection is Padre Giambattista Martini, whose library and correspondence with scholars and musicians of the period form the core of the collections; in 1770 the fourteen-year-old Mozart studied with him in preparation for the examination for the Accademia Filarmonica.
The route unfolds over nine rooms and traces about six centuries of European music history, with over a hundred paintings of musicians, more than eighty historic instruments and documents, including printed music from the 16th to the 18th century, incunabula, manuscripts, opera librettos, autographs and letters. Among the most important pieces are Ottaviano Petrucci’s Harmonice musices Odhecaton and the portrait of Mozart of 1777; some rooms are dedicated to Rossini and Farinelli.
On the ground floor the workshop of the lute maker Otello Bignami has been reconstructed. The museum also has an events hall, multimedia stations, educational workshops, a space for temporary exhibitions and a bookshop; the library, with its reading room, has its entrance at Piazza Rossini 2.
Highlights
- Nine rooms with over eighty historic instruments
- Bequest of Padre Giambattista Martini
- Harmonice musices Odhecaton by Ottaviano Petrucci
- Portrait of Mozart of 1777
- Rooms dedicated to Rossini and Farinelli
- Reconstruction of the workshop of the lute maker Otello Bignami
Permanent exhibitions
- Museo internazionale della musica – Nine rooms with historic instruments, paintings of musicians, printed music and documents from the Padre Martini bequest.
- Laboratorio del liutaio Otello Bignami – Reconstruction on the ground floor of a lute maker’s workshop.
- Founded
- 2004
- Operated by
- Comune di Bologna – Istituzione Bologna Musei
- Visitors per year
- approx. 65,892
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €5 |
|---|---|
| Reduced | €3 |
| Visitors with disabilities | freecompanion free · Free admission for people with disabilities with one companion. |
Free admission with the Card Cultura and the Bologna Welcome Card. Online tickets at midaticket.it.
Accessibility
- Partially wheelchair accessible
- Elevator
- Accessible restroom: no information
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
At the entrance there are three steps without a handrail; staff can install two portable ramps with a gradient of about 20%. Wheelchairs wider than 74 cm may not be able to access all rooms. Since May 2022 an audio-tactile route has been available, with Braille texts, audio files and tactile maps, which can also be used with the MuseOn app. In some areas there are no visual aids for deaf visitors, and music may be played without warning.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Amenities & dining
- Museum shop
Bookshop.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| School programs | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Educational workshops and multimedia stations are available. |
