The  Museum of Popular Instruments  is a museum and Research Centre for Ethnomusicology in the Lassanis Mansion, Plaka, Athens, Greece. It displays about 600 Greek musical instruments from the last 300 years and has as many more in store.

The permanent exhibition is spread over three floors and divided into four sections, corresponding to the groups of determined by the material that is made to vibrate in order to produce sound, namely:

– Membranophones (ground floor): Toumbelekia (pottery drums),

daoulia (drums), defia (tambourines)

– Aerophones (ground floor): Flogeres – souravlia – mandoures (flutes)

tsabounes, gaides (bagpipes), zournades (shawms),

– Chordophones (first floor): Tambourades, laghouta (long-necked lutes), outia (short-necked lutes), quitars , mandolins, dulcimers etc.,

– Idiophones: koudounia (bells), massies (tongs with cymbals)

simandro (semanterion) etc.

The objects of the Museum and Research Center, as stated in the foundation charter, are as follows:

1) The collection, maintenance and display of popular musical instruments and generally of any material contributing to the research study and furtherance of Greek musical tradition,

2) The promotion of research and study in connection with ethnomusicological subjects, in addition to the identification and dissemination of traditional music,

3) The preservation, study, projection and dissemination by all available means of Greek folk and Byzantine musical tradition, both in Greece and abroad, and

4) The creation of a special ethnomusicological and audio-visual archive.