Description

The Grainger Museum at the University of Melbourne is the only purpose-built autobiographical museum in Australia. Created by Australian composer and pianist, Percy Aldridge Grainger (1882-1961), it is home to a diverse collection of art, photographs, costumes, musical scores and instruments.
The modernist building was designed by the university’s architect John Gawler of the firm Gawler & Drummond, with input from Grainger. The building officially opened in December 1938, providing limited access to researchers and musicians. It was another two decades before the public had regular opportunity to view displays and selected collections.
The museum has enjoyed a long association with the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, including housing the Conservatorium’s electronic music experimentation studio from the late 1960s, and managing a culturally significant and growing archive of scores by Australian composers in addition to Percy Grainger’s own oeuvre.
Significant conservation works were undertaken 2003-2010 by heritage architects Lovell Chen. Museum archives and the majority of the collection are now stored off-site locally, and are available to researchers via booked visits and digital access. The Grainger Museum also offers a regular program of performances, residencies and temporary exhibitions from the collection.

What's On

Responding to Percy Grainger’s experimental practice, Interactive Composition and Animation students at the University of Melbourne are collaborating on a multimedia installation throughout the museum. The creatives will also participate in a panel moderated by PhD Candidate Madeline Roycroft, Teaching Fellow at UoM’s Museums and Collections Department, to discuss their collaborative journeys.