San Colombano. Collezione Tagliavini

The Church of San Colombano is an ancient monastic complex founded, according to tradition, in 616. Deconsecrated in 1798, it now houses the Tagliavini collection of ancient musical instruments and the specialised library of the Bolognese musicologist Oscar Mischiati. Within the premises there is also the Oratory of San Colombano, renowned for its cycles of seventeenth-century frescoes.

The collection, which is unique in value and number of pieces, embraces many Italian and European schools and consists of seventy restored instruments, including clavichords, organs, harpsichords, spinets, pianos and a collection of wind and popular instruments dating back to the 16th and 19th centuries.

The oratory was built in 1591 and, a few years later, it was decorated with a cycle of frescoes inspired by the Stories of the Passion (Storie della passione) and the Triumph of Christ (Trionfo di Cristo) by a group of artists led by Ludovico Carracci, including Guido Reni, Domenichino, Francesco Albani.

The Complex of S. Colombano and the Tagliavini Collection are part of the cultural, artistic and museum itinerary of Genus Bononiae. Musei nella Città (Museums in the City).