Preservation and use of Musical Instruments

Uses of musical instruments in museum collections vary from museum to museum, and instrument to instrument. Before any decisions are made about use of a National Trust Historic Site’s musical instruments, it may be beneficial to research why each individual instrument is in the collection of your Site. What was its intended purpose or relation to your Site? Is it meant to be played? Is it meant to be studied? Is it meant for display? The value of a musical instrument may be in its structural and aesthetic qualities, the sound which it produces, or all of the above. Scholarly opinions cover the spectrum of the treatment of historical musical instruments with regards to their use, conservation and care. Some view the instrument as an historic document with any damage or alteration to the instrument detracting from the overall object; others place emphasis on the quality of sound and perpetuation of use.

Musical instruments usually are made of multiple materials, used in different ways from other categories of instruments, and thrive and suffer under different physical conditions. Often, playing an instrument keeps it in playable condition and adequately tuned. Conversely, however, repeated use causes deterioration and irreparable losses to the instrument. It is, therefore, important to take time to consider the benefits and drawbacks of playing musical instrument in your collection. Each instrument should be evaluated on an individual basis and take into account the significance of the object, its current condition, age, and frequency of use.

Considering the following questions within the context of your own Site may be helpful to in making the decision whether or not to use an historic instrument in your collection:

• Why is this instrument in your collection? What is its purpose? Is it intended to be played, studied, or displayed?
• What is the age and condition of the instrument?
• How many parts are original?
• How frequently is the instrument being played, and by whom?
• If these parts add value or significance to the instrument, would their damage or replacement detract from the object?

Following are some examples of general procedure statements that may be relevant to your Site and your musical instrument(s). Please note that the following are meant to serve as a starting point for weighing the considerations that one must take into account when tackling the complex issue of the preservation and use of musical instruments; each National Trust Historic Site is recommended to develop its own guidelines specific to the instruments in its own collection.

• Only approved staff, approved players and licensed tuners may alter or adjust the instruments.
• Permission to play instruments must be received in writing and require approval by Director and/or Collections Manager (or other appropriate point-person for the Site).
• The museum/Site holds the right to deny or restrict individuals from playing instruments in the collection. Time limitations may be imposed to ensure safety and care of the player and instrument.
• No instrument should be played for motives of curiosity or individual pleasure.
• Instruments in the collection should not be considered practice instruments.
• Old instruments should not be played as if they were new:
• Player must be appreciative of the older instrument
• Player must be sympathetic in his/her reaction to any mechanical or musical constraint brought on by the age or condition of the instrument.
• Player must not alter the instrument by tuning, adjustments, physical or mechanical alterations.
• Individual instruments are subject to specific guidelines of use.
• Musical instruments can be particularly succeptible to large swings in temperature and/or humidity levels. Instruments are often made of a variety of materials, often including metals and woods, which are extremely sensitive to fluctuations in their environments. Between uses, make sure that the instruments in your collection are kept in stable conditions.
• Keep all original pieces of an instrument in the collection. For example, if a string snaps on a historic stringed instrument or a hammer in piano is replaced, the original (broken, used, worn) parts should be kept in the collection. These parts of the instruments are all considered parts of the history and function of the object and should not be disposed.

Sources and further reading:

• Recommendations for Regulating the Access to Musical Instruments in Public Collections by the CIMCIM: the International Committee for Musical Instrument Collections of the International Council of Museums: http://www.music.ed.ac.uk/euchmi/cimcim/irt/irte.html
• Instrument and Document: Balancing Values in the Conservation of Musical Instruments by John Watson, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, 2006: http://cool.conservation-us.org/coolaic/sg/wag/2006/watson_06.pdf
• Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute’s page on Caring for Musical Instruments: http://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/musinst.html
• An interesting podcast in which John Watson discusses the philosophy of in-use musical instrument conservation. http://ncptt.nps.gov/2011/podcast-john-watson-on-the-philosophy-of-in-use-musical-instrument-conservation/2011
• J. Scott Odell, “Musical Instruments” in Caring for Your Collections, The National Committee to Save America’s Cultural Collections (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1992), p. 128.
• The National Trust Manual of Housekeeping: The Care of Collections in Historic Houses Open to the Public, The National Trust (New York: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, 2006).

Page prepared by Lauren Appelbaum, Collections Management Intern, Summer 2011