70 years of Museum Speelklok

Museum Speelklok is celebrating its 70th anniversary and has been the cheerful heart of Utrecht all these years! The museum is marking the occasion with a festive programme. On Friday 9 October, city carillonneur Malgosia Fiebig will kick off the celebrations: she will conclude her carillon concert at the Dom Tower with the Speelklok song. This day will also see the opening of a photo exhibition featuring unique, historical images spanning 70 years of Museum Speelklok. On Saturday 10 October, the first 70 visitors will be treated to cake.

The birth of a new museum

The history of Museum Speelklok began in 1954 with a group of enthusiasts who believed that the barrel organ, as an important part of Dutch heritage, deserved greater recognition. In 1956, the exhibition ‘From Music Box to Pierement’ opened. Thousands of people visited the exhibition over the course of eight days. This enormous success led to the opening of a museum dedicated to self-playing and live-performing musical instruments.

Museum Speelklok was founded and has always been based in the centre of Utrecht. Starting in a small space in the Catharijneconvent and moving to Achter den Dom, the museum settled at its current location in the medieval Buurkerk in 1984. The internationally acclaimed museum attracts 100,000 visitors of all ages from the Netherlands and all over the world every year.

From three clocks to 1,500 musical instruments

What began with three Flötenuhren rapidly grew into a collection of 1,500 musical instruments, including important pieces of Dutch heritage such as the famous barrel organ ‘De Arabier’ and masterpieces such as the majesticl ‘Clay clock’ from c. 1738, featuring music by Händel. In 2025, the ‘Porcelain Piano’ was acquired, the first piece in the collection by a contemporary artist who drew inspiration from the museum’s collection.

Exhibitions of international standing

Over the past 70 years, Museum Speelklok has presented numerous exhibitions that have attracted the attention of the public and the press. One of the highlights was ‘Royal Music Machines’ in 2006, featuring international masterpieces. In 2011, a request came from China to restore imperial Chinese clocks. This led to the exhibition ‘Sing Song: Treasures from the Forbidden City’. In 2018, music-making robots from all over the world came to Utrecht for the exhibition ‘Robots Love Music’.

An accessible and contemporary museum

The live music makes the museum accessible and connects it with a wide variety of groups. In addition to the popular daily musical guided tours,  Museum Speelklok has organised many events centred on the collection over the years. Artists such as Colin Benders, Wende Snijders and Izaline Calister performed here; during the school holidays, children’s theatre is regularly staged; and there were dance performances by, amongst others, the Illusionary Rockaz Company.

Since this year, a new, interactive presentation, ‘Music Machines & Me’ has opened, across the entire upper floor, where visitors can get hands-on and make their own music machine. Director Marian van Dijk says:“Museum Speelklok has struck gold with its unique combination of music and technology. Since 2016, we have been building a contemporary museum ‘where machines make music’, and thanks to ‘Music, Machines & Me’, this has become visible and tangible. We hope that this will encourage people to embrace mechanical technology.”

70th anniversary celebration

On Friday 9 October, carillonneur Malgosia Fiebig will bring her concert at the Dom Tower to a festive close with the ‘Speelklok song’ in honour of the 70th anniversary of the Museum Speelklok. A photography exhibition featuring a selection of remarkable, historical images will also open that afternoon. This will be open to the public free of charge from 10 October. On display will be photographs of guided tours, changing exhibition spaces, collection exhibits and famous visitors over the years. And on Saturday 10 October, the first 70 visitors to the museum will also be treated to cake.

Archive photo: Curator Jules Jongenelen giving a guided tour to children, c. 1965
Street organ ‘De Arabier’, Pierre Verbeeck, Antwerp (c. 1925) / Gijsbert Perlee, Amsterdam (c. 1948)
Photo: Music Machines & Me (c) Studio 38c