A London Museum Just Turned Its Giant Exhibition Hall Into an Instrument Visitors Can Feel

Tate Modern in London has filled its Turbine Hall with horns, drums and hanging fabric that can make music. Some of the instruments use air from a motor, while others work with microphones and computer software.

Hyundai Motor and Tate announced the exhibition on October 12. It’s called Hold, and it opens to the public on October 13.

Artist and composer Tarek Atoui brought together instruments from several countries for the installation. A ceremonial brass trumpet from Uzbekistan hangs above the Turbine Hall ramp with two horns made using a 3D printer.

Those two horns were made with a mixture of sugar and bamboo dust. Atoui worked with London architecture studio Arthur Mamou-Mani to make them.

Even the Hanging Fabric Makes Music

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At the far end of the hall, visitors will see gongs, drums, stones and pieces of fabric measuring 20 meters long. Atoui worked with Japanese fashion company Issey Miyake on the textiles.

In an interview with The Art Newspaper, Atoui explained that the fabric is made from Japanese washi paper and cotton. He used a special charcoal paint that allows it to conduct a low electrical current, which is then used to make bass sounds through synthesizers.

The installation also includes shengs, which are mouth organs found in China and Southeast Asia. Air from a computer-controlled motor passes through the instruments.

Microphones pick up sounds from the instruments and other activity inside the hall. Software processes those recordings and plays them back as part of the music.

Visitors Can Sit or Lie Down Inside the Installation

Atoui made the instruments with the Turbine Hall’s acoustics in mind. The large drums and horns use the echoes inside the building, while the hanging fabric responds to air movement.

There are also stone instruments and warm lights, with visitors invited to sit or lie down and look up at the installation. Musicians will perform inside the space during the exhibition’s six-month run.

Atoui’s studio lists performances on October 16 and 17 at 7 p.m. The exhibition is free and runs through April 11, 2027. Tate Modern is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, with extended hours until 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.