Seattle, WA - Experience Music Project Review and Information

The Experience Music Project is a popular attraction located in downtown Seattle Center, in Seattle, Washington. Seattle, as with many West Coast cities, is renowned for its liberalness, as well as its immense support of art, as such, it seemed only suitable to build this project in Seattle. The Experience Music Project (referred to as the EMP) is an interactive museum of music history, including a large collection of artist memorabilia. The project was initially funded by Paul Allen, a Seattle resident who was a co-founder of Microsoft Corporation, and who is a large supporter of the arts.

The architecture of the building itself is quite unique, and is distinguishable from all other buildings in the Seattle area. The building was designed by Frank Gehry, and he utilized many of the same concepts that he did when constructing the Gugenheim Museum, the Gehry Tower, and the Disney Concert Hall. Gehry has often suggested that his inspiration for the design of the Experience Music Project, was from looking at pictures of broken guitars, as the structure strongly resembles a broken guitar. Frank Gehry was largely criticized by Seattle residents for the construction of his abstract building, as many contend that the design is an "eye-sore" to the downtown area. In fact, Forbes Magazine once included the building in its list of the "10 Ugliest Buildings" in the world.

As previously stated, aside from the abstract building structure, the museum is renowned for its immense collection of music memorabilia. One of the exhibits featured in the museum is an area dedicated to music of the Pacific Northwest, in which a history of Bing Crosby, The Kingsmen, Heart, the Presidents of the United States, Sir-Mix-A-Lot, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, the Pudz, and the Queensryche are included. Additionally, there is a Jimi Hendrix theater, a Guitar Gallery, and then the interactive Sound Lab and On Stage area. These two areas offer museum-goers the opportunity to participate interactively, by taking instrument lessons, recording singles, performing on stage, and more. This is a unique concept, and I have never seen any other music museum offer an equivalent area.

While I'm not a huge music enthusiast, my family and I thoroughly enjoyed this museum. The admission price is pretty hefty ($20 I believe), however if you look online, you can find coupons to get reduced admission. The music history part was interesting, but the real attraction that drew me to the museum was the interactive music part. My family simply had a blast playing the variety of instruments, recording our own songs (and then listening to them afterwards), and then performing on-stage in a real stage setting. If you visit this museum, make sure to dedicate atleast 3-4 hours towards the museum, so that you can fully participate in the interactive part. If music history isn't your cup-of-tea, perhaps you can skip straight to the interactive part. Ultimately, as I said before, my family thoroughly enjoyed this museum and we will definitely be visiting it again next time we go to Seattle.