The Museum of Musical Instruments (MIM) in Brussels is celebrating 25 years in the historic Old England building this June. It will mark the occasion on 22 June alongside music enthusiasts during the Music Festival.
The MIM began in February 1877 as part of the Royal Conservatory of Music, aimed at displaying historical musical instruments to students. Initially, it housed collections belonging to Belgian musicologist François-Joseph Fétis and a donation to Leopold II by Rajah Sourindro Mohun Tagore.
The museum's first curator, Victor-Charles Mahillon, significantly expanded the institution, growing its collection to 3,666 pieces, including 3,177 original instruments, by 1924.
A second major development phase began after 1957 under curator Roger Bragard, who increased the budget, redesigned exhibition spaces, employed guides and scientists, and further enriched the collections.
The continuous expansion of its collection and the need for suitable conservation conditions led to the museum's relocation to the Old England building on 10 June 2000, following extensive renovations and a ten-month move.
Now, 25 years later, the MIM boasts 12,279 instruments, an increase of 3,343 since its Mont des Arts opening, according to museum communications director Marc Janssens. Recent acquisitions include around 700 pieces collected from 1965 to 2000 by Dutch collectors Eva and Ton Stolk, which were added in 2022.
Part of the Royal Museums of Art and History, the MIM attracts an average of 115,000 to 120,000 visitors annually, Janssens notes. At its opening in 2000, visitor numbers were closer to 140,000. The Art Nouveau building, designed by architect Paul Saintenoy in 1899, employs around 50 staff.
