The Musical Museum, Brentford (London), England

399 High Street
Brentford
Middlesex
TW8 0DU
ENGLAND
Telephone:- +44 (0)20 8560 8108

Fax:- +44 (0) 20 8847 9383

http://www.musicalmuseum.co.uk/

Our plans for the day went a little wrong because of the weather.  We wanted to spend the day around the river Thames with a possible visit to Kew Gardens, but it was a cold, windy, and rainy day.

We wound up at The Musical Museum not quite knowing what to expect, but it turned out to be a fascinating day.

Gallery at the Musical Museum

This photograph was provided by The Musical Museum.  The Musical Museum reserves all rights to these photographs including the copyright.  They may not be copied or reproduced without express permission in writing from the museum.

First there was a live exhibit with people demonstrating war-time jitterbug dancing.  Excellent!  They called on the audience to join in, but I politely declined as I rarely dance for humanitarian reasons.  (The museum’s website is advertising free ballroom dancing lessons in July!)

The next part of the visit was a tour of the museum’s fascinating collection of automatic instruments.  Our guide was knowledgeable and infectiously enthusiastic as he showed us around collection, which is one of the world’s foremost collections of music machines.

This lecture and demonstration opened up a world that I knew nothing about.  I was particularly interested to see that some of the pianos reproduce precise recordings of music as played by famous pianists and composers, including Gershwin and Rachmaninoff.

An altogether fascinating afternoon and well worth the admission fee (8 GBP with concessions for senior citizens).

There is a cafeteria where you can get sandwiches, beer, and wine.  The museum is also well adapted for people with disabilities — a member of our party is a wheelchair rider.

With Kew Green, Strand-on-the-Green, and Kew Gardens nearby, I find this to be a delightful area of London.  The Musical Museum is one more reason to visit!

Strand-on-the-Green

For visitors from abroad, an excursion to this areas reveals a beautiful part of London that is a little different from where tourists usually venture.  This is an especially nice excursion for anyone who is waiting around for a plane at Heathrow Airport, you can easily get here by taking the Heathrow Connect train from Heathrow to Ealing Broadway.  At Ealing Broadway, take the 65 bus, which stops at the door of the museum.  After your visit to the museum, take a walk down Strand-on-the-Green, a five minute walk from the museum, stopping at one of the pubs for a drink and a snack.  (Ask carefully, but you’d probably need a layover of six to eight hours to get here, enjoy the museum, visit Strand-on-the-Green, and get back in time for your next flight.)

Click here for directions to The Musical Museum from other parts of London.