If you are a native or new resident of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, you are encouraged to go and experience Les Paul’s House of Sound at Discovery World, one of the gem’s of our city.
Neighboring the Calatrava Art Museum, Discovery World is located on 500 N Harbor Dr. in Downtown Milwaukee. For less than twenty dollars visitors have the opportunity to explore the wondrous world of the “Wizard of Waukesha”, among other great things of interest, up close and personal.
Before I get to ahead of myself, some may be wondering who is this man? Les Paul was an inventor of the solid- body electric guitar back in 1941. Getting ready to put the guitar into production with Gibson Guitar in 1952, Leo Fender beat Paul to the punch by mass producing the Broadcaster guitar just a couple years earlier.
Atribute to a legend, this exhibit not only introduces the pioneering process Paul went through to craft this ground breaking instrument but how this artist stayed beautifully grounded to his work proving this was not a job but a contribution to America’s musical ether. The exhibt does well to showcase Pau’s life and inventions such as the Plaster of Paris filled guitar, metal clothes hanger crafted Harmonica holder to the makeshift microphone. Some truly remarkable exhibits include the famed, Paulverizer and The Log to the Railroad Track guitars, both of which lay beautifully in display among the other timeless pieces of memorabilia.
So if you have respect for not only musical engineering at its finest but a rich musical tradition of Wisconsin you will be among friends at the House of Sound, where works and magic of the Wizard await.