Musical Instruments is now available as an enhanced e-book for the iPad! Featuring 23 video and 25 audio clips that bring the Museum’s collection to life, this e-book allows readers to discover how many of the 100 instruments in the book sound and to see how they are held when played. The audio and video clips feature expert musicians performing on such rare and historical instruments as a French tenor trombone, a modern South Indian lute (veena), an Appalachian dulcimer, a Dutch oboe, a Javanese gamelan and a Gibson lap steel guitar. The e-book offers a vivid encounter with a rich collection, enhanced to provide an accessible and fascinating introduction to the artistry and significance of musical instruments around the world. The works of art included in the publication span centuries and cultures to offer a brilliant array of instruments as producers of both aural and visual delight. They are remarkable not only for the myriad sounds they produce, but also for their varied and often extraordinarily beautiful appearance. Musical instruments are among the most meaningful artifacts produced by humankind, a marriage of technology, artistry, symbolism, religion, and entertainment. As objects of both cultural expression and sculptural craft, these are among the most exquisite and intriguing instruments ever created.

Darcy Kuronen is Head and Pappalardo Curator of Musical Instruments at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

“Strongly recommended…Superbly enhanced with 140 full color illustrations, Musical Instruments provides the reader with a full and comprehensive introduction highlighting the artistry and significance of musical instruments and their impact upon human civilizations” (Wisconsin Bookwatch).

“Ranging from an ancient Greek trumpet to a modern lap steel guitar, over 100 examples represent a wide array of centuries and cultures” (Book News).