The Marilyn Horne Museum And Exhibit Center

If you are in the area, this is worth your time. A well curated museum to a treasure of the opera world. I enjoyed the presentation and the taped asides from Marilyn herself!

Bright and clean lovely coffee shop located inside the Marilyn Horne Museum Exhibit Center. Has many of the things a full scale Starbucks does (pastries, sandwiches, and cookies), along with a very pleasant lady working at the counter. I stopped in for a flat white and she was pleasant and the coffee was delicious.

HIDDEN ARTS CULTURAL GEM ALERT!! : D : D : D My husband and I were in Bradford PA for a quiet weekend getaway, and initially headed here to relax in the cafe. We figured that since it is a Starbucks, they'd have WiFi for some laptop work. When we arrived, we were immediately sidetracked by all of the other things in this wonderfully renovated space! Which are all FREE! The Marilyn Horne Museum and Cafe is located on the first floor of one of the UPitt buildings. The museum is free admission. Marilyn Horne is an opera icon who originally hails from Bradford PA. I personally know very little about opera, and was entirely unfamiliar with here music or contributions to the field. But the museum did an excellent job of enlightening me on her illustrious career in a very interesting and entertaining way. The museum is small, essentially one loop of exhibits, with a theater towards the middle that plays a documentary about Marilyn's life. But if you take your time going through it, you can easily spend an hour or more here. The museum exhibits are bright and easy to read. Many have multimedia elements, like video and audio recordings. There are also a couple interactive exhibits and games. I liked the tips on how to get the most of your own opera voice. We didn't belt it out, but I'm sure it would have been okay if we did. Opera in all forms is celebrated here. ; In addition to the museum, the first floor also includes the Starbucks café, and a lovely gift shop. The gift shop is well organized, with all of the attention to detail that any major museum gift shop would have. We picked up a CD of Marilyn's most known recordings. Neither my husband nor I are typically opera listeners, but we are all around music lovers. (Well, except country, of course, hehe . Marilyn's accomplished life so wonderfully curated in the museum had us wanting to hear more, and share her music with our kids at home. We also had the opportunity to chat with the museum director for a while, Matthew. He was beyond knowledgeable about Marilyn, about some general Bradford PA history, and about the building itself that the museum is in. He encouraged us to explore some of the building's authentic charms. I hoofed it up to the fifth floor to poke around the original ballroom space, which is slated for revitalization. The hope is it will someday be used as a grand performance space. The potential is definitely there, so once it gets to that point, I'm in! The original parquet floors and art deco chandeliers are stunning. It will be a sight to behold once it is all restored and functional again. Let me close with saying again that I know nothing about opera. I am not an opera fan. I've never been to an opera. But I love learning about regional history and arts contributions. And I love when someone's passion for sharing knowledge is so vibrant, and accessible, and well done, no matter what the actual content of that knowledge may be, that you can't help but be swept up by that love of sharing learning, too. The Marilyn Horne Museum is just that. You don't have to love opera to take something away from this space. Bravo to the makers of this lovely contribution to this community. I look forward to visiting again with our kids! : D

This is an awesome museum, and a fitting tribute to a wonderfully gifted and talented lady. Beautifully put together. Also, check out the foyer on the right side of and behind the elevator.

What a great little gem found in the former oil city of Bradford, Pennsylvania! All for free too!Stop in to learn of former world star, Marilyn Horne born in Bradford and her travels in the Opera. The Museum has a great little cafe and gift shop for you to explore as well. If you're in a hurry, you can make the rounds in less than an hour. The longer you stay, the more there is to discover.A newly installed exhibit in the first floor lobby area about Henry Lewis, Horne's spouse explores the artists life. Definitely worth a trip if you're in the area!