The Musical Instrument Museum (MIM) in Phoenix, Ariz., has an exciting new exhibition that it says any art, history, music, craftsmanship or global culture aficionado would find spectacular. “Rediscover Treasures: Legendary Musical Instruments” opened in November 2022, presenting 28 new instruments alongside exhibition favorites such as Jimi Hendrix’s Black Widow electric guitar. To better appreciate the magnitude of the guitar and string instrument collection within this exhibition, Antiques and The Arts Weekly connected with Richard D. Walter, PhD, curator for United States/Canada at MIM.

How did a boy from Elkhart, Ind., come to be an electric guitar expert and what was your path?

I was fortunate to grow up in a family that appreciated and supported musicianship, and schools that had strong music programs. I studied anthropology, archaeology and eventually ethnomusicology and folklore in graduate school. And I listened to a lot of Duane Allman and Clarence White along the way. The combination of loving anthropology and material culture with a genuine interest in music really summarizes why MIM is such a rewarding place to work. All of the curators and educators here draw on similar combinations of interests and experiences – e.g., art history, instrument making, performance and a host of multicultural studies and endeavors – and we are all constantly learning new things.

Didn’t you at one time own and operate a coffeehouse that presented live music?

Yes, a good friend from college and I opened a place called The Ruse in Lexington, Va. We were determined to create a nice place for live performances because the area was – and still is – so filled with talent. It was an unforgettable learning experience. Norman Blake playing on our little stage was a surreal highlight, and I still keep his discarded strings in my guitar case.

Do you have any personal musical chops?

I used to play more regularly and more publicly, but still love to pick up a banjo or mandolin at home and learn a new tune to keep my hands in some sort of shape. There are a number of talented musicians who work at MIM – some who play at a professional level – and it is great to work with people who relate to the collections and exhibits in a variety of ways.

An original 1958 Gibson Flying V electric guitar shown in the foreground has pride of place in the exhibition.

What do you believe MIM’s mission to be?

At its founding, MIM was envisioned to be an especially welcoming museum where musical instruments representing every country in the world would be displayed to the public. It is an immersive experience with thousands of authentic instruments and hundreds of video monitors introducing guests to diverse cultures and performance traditions. Between school tours, a very busy MIM Music Theater with incredible live concerts, public programs throughout the year and ever-changing exhibits, we try to reach audiences with diverse interests and are proud to see how many people have become frequent return visitors.

What are some of the featured guitars in “Rediscover Treasures”?

We have everything from literally the oldest known full-sized guitar – made by Portuguese luthier Belchior Dias, circa 1590 – to an outstanding 1995 Grit Laskin steel-string featuring his first use of colorful reconstituted stone inlay – which has become a real signature of his work. Other highlights from MIM’s permanent collection include an 1864 Spanish guitar by the legendary Antonio de Torres, Narciso Yepes’ personal 10-string classical guitar, and one of the very few surviving examples of Emilius Scherr’s “Patent Harp Guitar” (1830s) – the first patented American guitar design. We are grateful to lenders who have made available the first electric guitar played in a public performance – October 1932 – with Gage Brewer’s dance orchestra in Wichita, Kan., and instruments played by stars such as Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Prince. Of course, guitars are just one category of instrument in “Rediscover Treasures,” and people with an interest in stringed instruments will also find some of the most extraordinary examples of a Syrian oud, Japanese shamisen, Turkish tanbur, Apache fiddle, the earliest known Hawaiian ukulele and a pair of instruments by founding Cremonese violin master Andrea Amati. To say nothing of the historic flutes, drums, harps and so many other gems!

Tell us about the 1958 Gibson Flying V electric guitar that’s in the show.

There were only 81 original 1958 Flying Vs so it is always a treat to see an authentic one in person, and this is another of the generous loans in the exhibition. Just like humans, all of these instruments are unique, and this Flying V has a distinctive rosewood fingerboard with a streak of red grain running under the treble strings. The current owner originally had this very same guitar back in the early 1970s and was excited to recognize it and reacquire it many years later. In addition to making it available to MIM, he has also shared it with a number of top-rank guitarists to play out on tour or for studio recordings. It is a special Flying V.

A walk through the gallery will expose guests to 6,000 years of some of the most influential and iconic pieces of musical instrument history.

What’s the earliest instrument on view?

The oldest instrument in “Rediscover Treasures” is a small Chinese ceramic paigu drum dating to approximately 4000 BCE, and it is the oldest instrument in MIM’s permanent collection. On loan are amazing lyre fragments from the Royal Cemetery of Ur, circa 2550-2450 BCE. Also on display in the exhibition is one of MIM’s most recent acquisitions, an ancient and monumental Chinese bronze bell from the Fifth Century BCE.

I’m assuming none of the instruments are available for visitors to pick up and play. How do you tell the stories and the traditions they represent without performances?

Throughout the museum guests wear comfortable Sennheiser headsets that wirelessly connect with video content. For “Rediscover Treasures,” we invited experts from their respective traditions to share personal reflections on these historic instruments and in many cases to play them so we could all learn from their experiences. Not only is it crucial to help guests understand the real musical sound and function of the instruments, but it is an opportunity to make connections across distant generations or regions of the world. We also have a dedicated Experience Gallery where guests are encouraged to pick up and play an assortment of sturdy instruments!

Celebrity backstories always lend cachet to an instrument. But in some rare instances the intersection is not so great, and I’m thinking of Kurt Russell, who was supposed to break a prop guitar in Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, but he accidentally smashed the real 1870s one valued at $40,000 instead. Does MIM have any guitar shards in its collection?

We have typically avoided acquiring instruments that are in poor physical condition. There is a banjo from Roy Acuff’s collection that was damaged in the 2010 Nashville flood, and currently displayed in our country music exhibit where we mention that devastating event. Otherwise, a lot of the celebrity-owned instruments we have surely do illustrate years of normal wear and tear – which we love – but thankfully we have avoided “guitar shard” stories. That smashed Martin from the movie was heartbreaking.

A video monitor shows a demo of the Syrian oud, helping to illustrate how guests can better understand the sound of the instruments, etc.

This show’s predecessor opened in November 2021 and presented some 80 instruments. What was the reason to follow that up with this exhibition?

Since the opening of the initial “Treasures” exhibition, we continued acquiring quite a few more exceptional instruments and solidified some important institutional partnerships. The “treasures” theme had been so well-received that we saw an opportunity to reinvigorate the gallery with new content. The concept was thoroughly co-curated by our whole department, and we are all excited to present true masterpiece-level instruments from many different parts of the world. It is effectively a “best-of-the-best” exclamation mark to punctuate the diversity of instruments that are continually displayed throughout MIM’s galleries.

Phoenix is a great winter travel destination for Northeast “snowbirds.” Besides the exhibition and other museum attractions, what musical events are on tap in January and beyond?

Coming up in January and February we have signature weekend events, including “Celebrate Electronic Music” and “Experience Spain.” The MIM Music Theater is always adding incredible shows to the calendar, so it’s best to check our website www.mim.org for the most up-to-date events. For all of the people coming to the area for classic auto auctions, Arabian horse shows, baseball spring training or a trip to the Grand Canyon, we hope they also make time to visit MIM and take a close look at “Rediscover Treasures” while these world-class instruments are all in one place.

–W.A. Demers