Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Renfro Valley, Kentucky

Located in historic and popular Renfro Valley, just off I-75 in Kentucky, The Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and Museum showcases the many stellar musicians produced by the Bluegrass State. The Museum features individual displays on the Hall of Fame members, from Grandpa Jones to Dwight Yokum. Displays include costumes, instruments, sheet music, awards, and other memorabilia related to each musician. Additional displays allow visitors to compose music and learn about instruments. There are also displays representing musical settings from the front porch to the recording studio. Visitors walks through a timeline of Kentucky’s musical history, accompanied by music from each era. A short introductory film provides an overview of Kentucky’s musical past, and there is also an area, crafted to resemble a mountain glen, where visiting musicians can perform for guests. The Museum Junkies visited this site with an additional reviewer, Elizabeth’s mother, Daphne.
From a historian’s point of view: Michael thought the displays were laid out well, and the museum had a great sound overall. He would have liked a little more detail on some of the exhibits. The admission price seemed a little steep for the size of the museum.
From the educator’s point of view: Elizabeth liked the atmospheric settings throughout the museum and the many opportunities for hands-on learning. There were, however, not quite enough exhibits to interest preschool visitors, and Isabella was frustrated that she couldn’t reach buttons and bored while everyone else was reading display captions. This is a great museum for older children, though, with something for nearly every taste and interest.
From the eight-year-old’s point of view: Nathaniel liked the front porch display and the activities that allowed him to put together his own compositions and play with the music.
Our guest Junky, Grammy, also liked the museum’s layout which prevented backtracking, but felt like the labeling could have been more consistent and grammatical.
The Museum has a great website with useful information: http://www.kentuckymusicmuseum.com/