We miss our young visitors, and while we can communicate only online, we are announcing a competition!

Those who have already been to our museum and those who are planning to come,  most probably know that many amazing musical instruments are stored in our museum, an orchestrion being one of them!

Its name derives from the word orchestra - several musicians playing various musical instruments. Several musical instrument are presented in orchestrion as well! Moreover, an orchestrion is designed to reproduce musical compositions recorded on paper music roll automatically.

A great variety of orchestrions with different combinations of musical instruments is presented in the museum Collection exposition.

The Hupfeld Orchestrion (street organ) consists of a piano and a top-mounted unit of three common violins powered by a circular bow.

The Vose & Sons Piano Company orchestrion (piano orchestrion) is made in the form of a classical piano, combining a metallophone with twenty-five plates and brass cymbal at the top. Percussion instruments are fixed in the lower part: a snare drum with two beaters, a large drum with three beaters and a tambourine.

The orchestrion "Western Electric Piano Company" (orchestrion model  O) is made in the form of a cabinet. A xylophone and a piano mechanisms are placed inside; large drum with three beaters, a drive mechanism in metal casing with paper music roll, a snare drum and a castanet are inside.

A figure of a young man with an accordion in his hands is presented inthe musical automaton "Accordeo-boy". Percussion instruments - a big and a snare drums, a cymbal and two wooden blocks are mounted on the pedestal.

We invite you to become real inventors and come up with your own Orchestrion! It is up to you to define how it will look, what and how many instruments is will be comprised of. Exercise your imagination and ingenuity! Draw, craft and design! Share your ideas in social media and mark museum Collection! Prizes await the best inventors!

Send the scan of your idea image or its photo in high resolution to e-mail info@mus-col.com, share the images in social networks with the hashtag #we inventinstrument and mark our museum @sobraniemuseum.

The best works will take part in the New Year exhibition of drawings!