Bates Collection of Musical Instruments

The Bates Collection of Musical Instruments is one of the most magnificent collections of musical instruments in the world. It has over 2000 immaculately maintained instruments from Western orchestral music traditions, all the way from the renaissance period, through the baroque, classical, romantic and up to modern times.

The Bate Collection consists of the original Philip Bate Gift of European Orchestral Woodwind Instruments, plus many other instruments given and lent by Philip Bate throughout his life; the Reginald Morley-Pegge Memorial Collection of Horns and other Brass and Woodwind Instruments; the Anthony Baines Collection; the Edgar Hunt Collection of Recorders and other instruments; the Jean Henry Collection, the Taphouse Keyboard Loans; the Roger Warner Keyboard Collection; the Michael Thomas Keyboard Collection; a number of instruments from the Jeremy Montagu Collection; the tools and other bow-making equipment from William Retford's workshop, as well as a small collection of Bows formed in his memory, the Wally Horwood Collection of books and recordings, and a great many other instruments acquired by purchase, and gift.