Open until 24 April 2022
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★★★★ ‘This fork embodies an entire saga’ – The Times
Tuning forks burst onto Europe’s music scene in the early 18th century. They enabled musicians to tune their instruments to an exact pitch for the first time.
This was Ludwig van Beethoven’s tuning fork, which you can see in our exhibition dedicated to the master composer. We don’t know where he got it from – but we do know who he gave it to. He gifted the fork to British violinist George Bridgetower in 1803. Their friendship – like many of Beethoven’s relationships – was short lived.
The fork changed hands several times over the following decades. Passed from musician to musician, the likes of Gustav Holst and Ralph Vaughn Williams were the latest owners of the artefact.
Listen to the tuning fork twang at over half a semitone higher than today’s standard pitch. Discover how the prongs signified the end of Beethoven’s relationship with Bridgetower. Piece together the scores that tell his story.
