MESS Studio Tour

Discover the instruments that shaped electronic music history and continue to shape its future.

This guided tour takes you through MESS’s historically significant collection of rare instruments ranging from a theremin built by Theremin himself (circa 1933-4) to Australian innovations like the Fairlight CMI, an instrument which revolutionised global music making.

Led by MESS Artistic Director and Co-founder Robin Fox, you can expect to hear the stories behind the sounds: the utopian manifestos printed in vintage synth manuals, DIY movements that democratised modular synthesis, and the Australian-made instruments whose profound contributions to electronic music history we are privileged to preserve and share.

The instruments aren’t kept behind glass, so this is your chance to see them up close, understand how they work, and experience first hand the philosophy that inspires MESS to bring people together through music-making.