The national blues museum will create a new interactive exhibition to contextualize blues music's development-from classic vaudeville and acoustic blues to jump and electric blues

The National Blues Museum in St. Louis, Missouri was awarded a $685,346 Project Grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the Museum Grants for African American History and Culture (AAHC) program (CFDA 45.309). The grant will fund the creation of a new interactive exhibition at the museum to contextualize the development of blues music, from classic vaudeville and acoustic blues to jump and electric blues. The exhibition will highlight the geographic subgenres of blues music and associated innovations in music theory and technology. Museum staff will work with an exhibition design contractor to produce interpretive visuals, geographic elements, musical examples, audio, historical texts, and primary source material for the exhibition. Additionally, museum staff will receive professional development training on historical interpretation and the use of primary sources to form a historical narrative. The project period is from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026.

The exhibition will also highlight blues music's geographic subgenres and the associated innovations in music theory and technology. Museum staff will work with an exhibition design contractor to produce physical products for the exhibition to include interpretive visuals, geography, musical examples, audio, historical texts, and primary source material. Staff will receive professional development training regarding historical interpretation in a museum setting and the use of primary sources to form a historical narrative.