Virginia Musical Museum

This was the last thing I did before exiting the Williamsburg area. And I quite enjoyed myself. Let's address where this is located. Do not be discouraged if you pull up to the address provided to get here and find a piano store. The museum is located within the piano store. I know, it felt odd when I first entered here, but it fit into the building.When I arrived I was greeted by the guy in charge and I asked about the museum. There is a small fee to visit the museum portion of the building. What is really interesting about this place is that they don't expect you to pay for your museum visit until you exit the museum portion. I know what you are thinking, you can't just skip out of here. The museum winds through the back of the building and between two floors. When you exit the museum portion you end up back out into the piano showroom. Honestly, not a bad system if you ask me, makes you appreciate it a bit more.As the name suggests, this is a museum that focuses on the music. Whether it be by instruments or machines that produce music or it be an artist or group that has achieved something musically.You start off downstairs in a room with old musically machines. Some you can interact with, other you are not allowed to touch. And it is so hard to not touch in here. You just want to hear the music. The start spot is just a single room downstairs and then you head upstairs where a majority of the museum takes up a good portion of space.The first room you enter upstairs is like a shrine to musically instruments. From violins to, of course, pianos. You see how people listened to music over time. You saw how musical instruments evolved over time. You got to see how microphones changed over the years to be better for their destined use.Then, you walk into the Virginia Music Hall of Fame. I had no idea this was a thing. Bet you didn't either. Some people enshrined in this area I knew about, others surprised me. Some of the notable people that are in here: Phil Vassar, Missy Elliot, Ricky Van Shelton, Pharrell Williams, Ella Fitzgerald, The Carter Family (June et al), Patsy Cline, Pearl Bailey, and many more. Each area is curated to each artist or act. Once you make your way through the hall of fame, you head downstairs and through some rooms that show older pianos/organs. You think because you are seeing this the the museum is winding down and you need to prepare yourself to head back outside. But, there is like one more surprise before you exit the museum.You enter the Wayne Newton exhibit. And it is as over the top as you would think it is. This may be one single room, but wow, they packed a lot into this room including his car that was intended for Marvin Gaye. Before you pop out you can stand in an opera dress and take a selfie.With that, I give you review 2,800. It has taken me a while to get here, and with a setback in my reviews where some of them were combined (I would have been there sooner) I am happy to give you this review, and I can't think of a better establishment for it to be reviewed for.

The Virginia Musical Museum is inside the Parker Piano Outlet store! We walked in & were met with a small sea of beautiful pianos. That alone was a sight to see. A younger (than we are) info-filled dear man named Nick, was a terrific host! We began to explore the museum through a room that had a laughing Mary & antique pieces of furniture that brought to life snippets of the lives those pieces had lived. Nick periodically came up as we continued through the addition that holds the 2 floors of artifacts, from amazing organs to the RCA doggie (only 1 of 4 left). There were also elegant dresses worn on stage by Ella Fitzgerald, June Carter Cash..., musical instruments, photographs & more. (Nick has a good story of a handful of the extraordinary pieces he seemed to genuinely enjoy sharing with us.It isn't a huge museum; more of a bunch of collections in one place, but I highly recommend going to the Virginia Musical Museum where you'll be glad you spent about an hour or so of your time. PS. There are many good places nearby for lunch!

What a treasure! I visited here on Friday, and learned a lot that I did not know about music and our talented Virginia Musical Artists. The Curator was awesome! Very knowledgeable. I highly recommend!!!!!!!!

My son is a musician, so this is right up his alley. All sorts of items from the vast history of music. It's not very big, so you can spend a little or a lot of time, depending on your interest level. We went thru in about an hour and a half. The collection is diverse and in well kept condition. Explanations are thorough and informative. The section on famous/influential Virginia musicians is very well done. Admission cost is fair. No gift shop, per se, but postcards and t-shirts for sale at moderate prices. If you are a musician or music lover, or just interested in something unique and off-the-beaten-path, this place is for you! I would like to see more drumming and percussion items added to the collection, since my son is a drummer and would have loved to see more of those. But that doesn't diminish the experience. Very friendly staff.

This is a great small music museum has quite a few very unusual instruments and recording devices. Also has a lotta history of local artists posters artifacts clothing cars , something for everyone.Staff is wonderful and very helpful. There are audio devices that explain every instrument to you.If you're looking for the rare and unusual this is a great find. Expect to spend 1 to 3 hours.

Can you identify a hurdy-gurdy? I thought I knew (similar to an organ grinder), but was surprised to see this.

What do you do in 98 degree weather in Williamsburg ? Go to this museum and the AC was on. Very laid back, interesting if you take the time to read and listen on the "virtual" tour boxes, talk with each other about the various Virginia celebrities with artifacts there. Some of the pieces have astounding use of technology for their times !You can also browse through the pianos they have (this place also serves as an outlet) and play what you like. If you get a chance to chat with the proprietors you can have very interesting conversations.I rated 4 out of 5 because it is not for everyone. Kids and younger ones who don't listen to anything but contemporary music would most likely be bored, but we found it very interesting to reminisce and discuss what we saw.PS Don't forget to have someone take your picture while standing behind Queen Elizabeth's dress !

We were fortunate enough to tour the museum with the proprietor Buddy Parker. Buddy and his wife Peggy have amassed a neat collection of Musical instruments, Jukeboxes, Music Boxes and memorabilia. One of the highlights is a car that was owned by Virginia's own Wayne Newton. You can see the passion that they have for musical artifacts and the rich history of music in Virginia. Whether you have a small amount of time or a good bit of time any time you invest in this wonderful museum is quite worth it in my opinion!

My family and I were visiting Williamsburg, VA from Bluffton, SC. My daughter who is a Music Major and plays the violin, piano and guitar found this place via Google. When we pulled up, the building looked quite small and we weren't sure what to expect. When we walked in there was a wide selection of exquisite Grand Pianos. We asked about the museum and the gentleman told us it was in the back. There was a nominal fee to enter. We started to walk toward the back and BOOM!! We were blown away by the array of vintage instruments and artifacts. We were honored to have the owner there to walk us through the two-story museum to demonstrate some of the instruments and give us the history of each special piece. What an extraordinary knowledgeable gentleman and what a vast array of instruments, pictures, newspaper clippings and original letters handwritten by the artists showcased. We could not believe how big the museum was because again, the building looked quite small. We spent over two hours there! My husband, daughter and I enjoyed every minute of our visit there and we highly recommend this museum, not just to people interested in music and musical artists, BUT TO EVERYONE.

My wife and I walked in expecting to see a few exhibits and walked out over an hour later agreeing to come back when we had more time. Headsets guide you through a walking tour that moves as quickly or as slowly as you like. Besides learning about musical instruments ranging from harps to record players, we learned about Virginia's musical artists and saw things ranging from a Papier-mâché model of RCA's dog Nipper to Wayne Newton's car. This is well worth the $10 admission price (lower for seniors, children, and military members).