ABBA’s stage costumes, mementos, and musical instruments are now on permanent exhibit in Stockholm in Sweden. The ABBA Museum is fully backed and endorsed by the band and will open to the public soon. In the future, this museum will be housing an exhibition that chronicles the history of popular music in Sweden as well as a Swedish Music Hall of Fame.
Full ABBA support
There were plans to open an Abba museum in 2008 but this plan did not push through. Abba member Bjorn Ulvaeus was at first a skeptic about being a “museum piece” while he still lives. This time, he has been involved from the get go and has offered direction every day during the final preparations. Ulvaeus said that all the band members were won over by the idea.
He told the press in a preview on Monday that in order to tell a story through such a medium, perspective is needed, and a certain distance. Thirty years after their heyday, he said that they now have perspective, and thus their approval and involvement in the project.
Awesome items on exhibit
Most of the exhibits were part of the Abbaworld exhibition, which toured Australia and most of Europe from 2000 to 2011.There are gold records, platinum records, and audio recordings of interviews with individual band members. The members of Abba also donated items from their personal effects to the museum.
There are many interactive exhibits that await visitors of this museum that is located in the center of Stockholm. Life-size holograms of the group will be projected while a fan sings alongside the band on a stage. Anyone who wants can audition to become the 5th Abba band member on a 1970s disco dance floor. And there is a helicopter similar to the on the “Arrival” album cover where museum visitors can sit inside and have their pictures taken.
Also featured are recreations of sets relevant to the band’s history. There is a duplicate of the cottage that the group used when they were writing songs (the original is on the island of Viggso). There are recreations of the band’s kitchen and recording studio as well. And a whole room in the museum is a comprehensive documentation of how the band members met and got together in the 1960s.
No reunion concert
Ulvaeus clarified that a reunion concert is not yet happening. He said that the closest fans will see Abba together again is in the museum. He is quick to dispel rumors that they are getting together again. The museum would have to suffice for fans of Abba who wish to immerse in a nostalgic experience.
Abba was composed of Benny Andersson, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, and Björn Ulvaeus. The name of the band is actually an acronym of the first letters of the band members. This Swedish super group is one of the most successful hit makers in pop music and disco from the middle of the seventies until the early ‘80s. The group has sold around 400 million albums worldwide. Their music has inspired the stage musical, “Mamma Mia!” that has now been seen by 50 million people. “Mamma Mia!” has also been made into an acclaimed and blockbuster film.
Photo Credit: ABBA
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