THE EXPERIENCE
Visitors travel on escalators up through the towering silos to a panoramic observation deck overlooking Toronto's harbour. Descending into the museum, visitors experience a breathtaking tour of Canada and its music in four 360º CircleSound Theatres. The cinematic tour of Canada's sights and sounds anchor exhibit floors celebrating local music heroes and famous sons and daughters from every era and region.
metronome music museum
Toronto, Canada
escalator ride to exhibit floors
glen gould playing niagara falls in a 360º theatre
METRONOME includes a unique museum experience that features an immersive tour of Canada and its music, offices for the music industry, music themed restaurants, National Music Education Centre, 800-seat concert theatre, music related retail outlets, music themed boutique hotel and the Canada Malting Museum of Industrial Archeology and Transportation.
a celebration of canada's music in the historic 1928 silos
(Click on any image to enlarge)
FEATURED EXHIBITS
The Festival of Nations
AN OLYMPIAN FEAST OF GLOBAL CULTURE
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The United Nations considers Toronto the most ethnically diverse city in the world. It is the ideal setting for a celebration of global cultural heritage and METRONOME CANADA's raison d'etre makes it the perfect home for the "Festival of Nations".
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The inspiration for the "Festival of Nations" is a world champion Canadian who started Toronto's waterfront renewal with Harbourfront, helped create the Canadian music industry with content quotas for radio, and tenaciously fought for multiculturalism in Canada. This dramatic celebration of a city's multicultural achievement is inspired by Pierre Elliott Trudeau (1919 - 2000).
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Countries are invited to exhibit the best of their culture for six months in a 6,000 sq. ft. floor area. Each participant curates their exhibit and presents a one-week showcase during the opening. Highlights are web-cast and subsequently added to the permanent programming.
CircleSound Theatres
THE MAGICAL MUSIC TOUR
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The visitor is plunged into an immersive tour of Canada's sights and sounds.
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Four 360º theatres with 12 channel surround sound create awe and wonder, delivering a panoramic experience of Canada and its music. The 360º films are created by award-winning Canadian film directors.
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The attraction is "Powered by Panasonic". METRONOME CANADA's Lead Sponsor plays the principal role in the delivery of the design concept. The 360º films are exhibited with multiple Panasonic 3DLP Projectors.
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Each CircleSound film is preceded by an exhibit featuring artists talking about their music and their region on screens circling the room. The intimate presentations contrast with the multi-media experiences to follow.
Dream Catcher
HONOURING CANADA'S FIRST NATIONS
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Music-themed 35 ft. totem pole in the centre silo can be seen from ground level and escalators.
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Multimedia projections of First Nations' paintings and contemporary First Nations' music play in surround sound.
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Drum circle hologram in a 12 ft. glass cylinder in a silo (traditional five drummers playing one large drum).
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Inukshuk Circle of Friends. (Inukshuk: Inuit word meaning "image of man's spirit").
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Five traditional 6 ft. rock sculptures gathered around a bonfire.
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Projections of Canada's northern regions accompanied by traditional Inuit and Metis chanting and music.
Inside Gould & Peterson
SPECTACULAR ARTISTS IN CIRCLES OF SOUND
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Photographs and film footage of Glenn Gould and Oscar Peterson projected in-the-round to the sounds of a grand piano circling the listener.
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The visitor experiences being inside the sound board of a grand piano with Glenn Gould and Oscar Peterson at the keyboard.
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"Inside Glenn Gould" is part of the Ontario exhibit. The Quebec exhibit features "Inside Oscar Peterson". Two dramatic exhibits honouring musical icons fascinated by sound and recording technologies.
Centre Stage
YOU ON STAGE IN THE SPOTLIGHT
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The visitor experiences being at centre stage in many of Canada's renowned theatres and performance venues.
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Each 360" environment is revealed sequentially as still images are projected in a circular array continuously replaced by images of the next venue.
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Sounds include an orchestra tuning, standing ovations from a variety of audiences, announcers creating anticipation before a performance, etc., driving interest in attending a performance. Featured performance venues change annually.
SiloSonic
HOLOGRAPHIC LASERS & POLYPHONIC SOUNDS
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Visual and sonic events inside a 60 ft. tubular concrete chamber.
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A music-themed laser show in a round theatre viewable from floor level and a platform at 45 feet. (designed by Canada's Howard Ungerleider, one of the world's leading laser designers.
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Music composed and produced by Canada's Don Garbutt for a 3-dimensional polyphonic experience. Sound effects and music moving through the diagonal axis of a circle with the listener in the centre of a 24-channel speaker array.
IN AUDIO CANADIANS DID IT FIRST
CanTech
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A celebration of Canada's role in the development of audio and broadcast technologies.
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Highlights include Alexander Graham Bell's wax cylinder player (1880); Emile Berliner's gramophone (1886); XWA (the first radio station-Montreal, 1920); Edward "Ted" Rogers' AC radio tube (1925); world's first synthesizer "Electronic Sackbut" by Hugh le Caine (1945); world's first automated recording console, "The Olive"; origins of MIDI, the McClavier; among many others.
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Exhibit features artifacts and reproductions of Canadian technical ingenuity using interactive demonstration technologies.
THE PERFECT ECHO CHAMBER
SiloSphere
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An original 105 ft. silo at the 1928 art deco-influenced Canada Malting site, left untouched. Viewing from ground level and a platform at 60 feet.
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The acoustics of the cylindrical cement structures can't be simulated on a computer, nor can they be found in nature. The echo created here is perfect.
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Experimental performances and recordings occur in this space.
First Radio Station
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XWA (now CFCF) in Montreal became the world's first radio station in 1920. The origin of Marshall McLuhan's Global Village theories was radio.
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Exhibit features artifacts of early radio and a re-creation of XWA in one half of the silo and an operating modern radio station in the other half as part of Quebec exhibit. Radio station broadcasts live during hours of operation.
Digital Music Garden
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Interactive kiosks featuring biographical information, music samples, photos, etc. of Canadian musical artists.
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The hub of the exhibit is in two round rooms at ground level featuring projected images of Canada's lush vegetation.
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Content is also available in each of the regional exhibits and on the website.
Guitar Heaven
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Canada has produced some of the world's leading guitar makers including Jean Larrivee, William "Grit" Laskin, Linda Manzer (pictured), Lado, among others. A functioning workshop in a silo is part of the Atlantic Canada exhibit.
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Guest instrument makers (luthiers) are invited to do 6-month instructional residencies with finished instruments on display and for sale in the ground floor retail area.
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A permanent video exhibit showcasing Canadian guitar icons Lenny Breau, Domenic Troiano, Liona Boyd, Alex Lifeson, Jeff Healey, Joni Mitchell, among others.
3D EXHIBIT FLOOR SECTIONAL BY MARTIN PILCHNER
Floor Plans
"I'm delighted with the plan for METRONOME MUSIC MUSEUM. I think you'd be wise to stress that the endeavour will be the recipient of the Berliner memorabilia and archival artifacts from the Emile Berliner Collection".
– Oliver Berliner (grandson of Emile)
CANADA MALTING MUSEUM
of Industrial Archeology and Transportation
Featuring working scale models of CN trains from the prairies, Canada Steamships on the St. Lawrence Seaway and the Canada Malting Silo Complex in their heyday. Connected to the world's only brew pub that makes beer from its own malt.
THE RIVERBOAT
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The Riverboat was the iconic epicentre of an extraordinary musical community in Toronto’s Yorkville in the 1960’s. It was the birthplace of the careers of Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and many others. The floating exhibit features artifacts and replicas of Café El Patio, The Mynah Bird and Penny Farthing sharing one food and beverage service.
RHAPSODY
The music themed rooftop restaurant above the 1928 silos features a spectacular view of Toronto's waterfront.
FUJKIN'S MUSIC VISION
ARGUS
Music themed furnishings by Istvan Fujkin complement a wide range of intimate live musical performances.
Istvan Fujkin's patinated bronze sculpture ARGUS stands on guard for Canada's culture at the entrance to METRONOME. His majestic music themed totem pole in the centre silo is circled by escalators to the exhibits.
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