RCM museum to recreate historical instruments using 3D printing

London’s Royal College of Music (RCM) Museum has been awarded a £33,000 grant to create 3D printed models of the historically important instruments from their collection. This will allow museum visitors and RCM students to engage with and play instruments when the original is too fragile to handle.

The museum will create 3D copies of ten instruments from its collection of 14,000 musical items, including the earliest guitar in the world (pictured above) and one of the earliest surviving clarinets as well as two recorders from the early 17th century. The museum expects to launch the 3D models in March 2024.

RCM museum curator Professor Gabriele Rossi Rognoni said: ‘Historic musical instruments offer a unique insight into the sounds of our past and are a vital learning resource for students… The ability to recreate these instruments in 3D will break the barrier currently posed by conservation concerns and the fragile nature of these instruments, allowing many more people to engage with our collection.’

The grant is given jointly from the Department for Digital, Culture Media & Sport (DCMS) and the Wolfson Foundation and forms part of a £4 million fund intended to improve displays, protect collections and improve exhibitions accessibility for younger audiences and visitors with additional needs at London institutions including the RCM.

The museum reopened in October 2021 after a £4.8 million redevelopment and is part of the conservatoire's £40 million campus remodel.The 3D printed instruments will offer visitors performances and tactile engagement with the museum collection in its accessible learning space.