Musical Instrument Museum

Auerbach Pollock Friedlander provided full scope theatre and audio-video systems consulting services for the Musical Instrument Museum’s Music Theater, a 299-seat recital hall, as well as audio-video consulting services for the recording equipment provided within the space.

Working closely with RSP Architects and the acoustics consultant, Shen Milsom Wilke, Inc., Auerbach Pollock Friedlander carefully crafted the intimate “jewel box” Music Theater – a primary venue in the programming of the Museum. Basic to the Music Theater’s mission, the space was designed to showcase a wide variety of instruments and performers in the context of an unusual and visually-compelling array of instruments gathered from around the globe. In addition to the flexible performance aspects of the Music Theater, the room is equipped with sound and video recording technology so performances may be captured for archival purposes.

With five Geo-Galleries focusing on the Museum’s collection of approximately 10,000 instruments featuring pieces from every country in the world, the Musical Instrument Museum is currently the only facility of its type in the United States. An artist gallery highlights the instruments and stories of musical icons, while the modern design of the two-story building is suggestive of the surrounding Arizona landscape.

Architect: RSP Architects
Acoustics: Shen Milsom & Wilke
Size: 190,000 SF
Cost: $250,000,000
Completion: 2010