The Villa-Lobos Museum was born as a federal public institution on June 22, 1960, during the administration of President Juscelino Kubitschek. The argument used by Clóvis Salgado, then Minister of Education and Culture, to justify the creation of a museum dedicated to the figure of Villa-Lobos, was based on the artistic quality of his work and his work as an educator. With the support of intellectuals, musicians and politicians linked to the memory and artistic heritage of Brazil, Arminda Villa-Lobos – the composer’s second wife – in 1961 assumed the direction of the Villa-Lobos Museum and dedicated herself to the mission of preserving and disseminating the composer’s legacy. Until her death in 1985, Arminda directed the museum and laid the foundations of the institution, in her mission to protect the memory of Heitor Villa-Lobos and to spread the musical heritage of what was considered, still in life, the greatest composer of the Americas.

Under the custody of the institution, there is a significant portion of collections that are supported by paper: handwritten and printed scores, correspondence, textual documents, photographs, concert programs, clippings from national and international newspapers and posters; in addition to the sound collection and collections of musical instruments, visual arts, tributes and personal objects, among others. The most complete musical collection on the composer, including almost all of his originals, is preserved in the Villa-Lobos Museum.

Since 2009, the Villa-Lobos Museum has been part of the Brazilian Institute of Museums (Ibram). In compliance with Normative Instruction No. 3, of May 25, 2018, it prepared its Museological Plan 2018-2021. The elaboration of this document, a fundamental management instrument for the achievement of the institutional mission, is the result of the collective effort of the Villa-Lobos Museum team, which mobilized in the diagnostic and planning stages for the construction of objectives and work goals.

Old projects were revisited and new projects were proposed, evaluated in the light of the policy context of the museum sector and in line with the Museum Statute, the National Museum Policy and the National Museum Sector Plan (2010-2020).

Location talks!

Villa Lobos Museum

Age Verification

Villa Lobos Museum

Login

Sign up for