National Museum of American History

Your observation has been the subject of much debate in the worldwide museum community for many years, not only regarding musical instruments, but all functional objects such as clocks, watches, automobiles, etc.

Your observation has been the subject of much debate in the worldwide museum community for many years, not only regarding musical instruments, but all functional objects such as clocks, watches, automobiles, etc. You can find reference to articles, seminars, discussions, papers on the use of musical instruments at the web site of the International Committee for Museums and Collections of Musical Instruments (CIMCIM), a committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). There are many audiences to be served by museum collections. Contemporary makers and connoisseurs, as well as musicians and listeners, benefit from public access to information revealed by objects that are carefully preserved. It would be ideal if functional objects could be thoroughly documented at the outset, so any changes (and especially loss) of original characteristics could be preserved. But we live in an imperfect world, and many private custodians of musical instruments do not have the resources, nor inclination, to capture and disseminate knowledge of these features. To that end you are correct. We not only use the Stradivari "Servais" cello in live performances here at the museum, it has been enjoyed by many throughout the world through nine recordings. In addition we have Computed Tomography (CT) scans that accurately document every physical aspect of the instrument, and shared knowledge of the cello through three major publications, as well as the web site. Before it came to the Smithsonian in 1981, this instrument was never seen nor heard in public, kept in private hands, since the death of Adrien-Francois Servais in 1867.