Splendid wrought-iron gates facing the Fontanka River guard the entrance to the Sheremetyev Palace (built 1750–55), now a branch of the State Museum of Theatre & Music , which has a collection of musical instruments from the 19th and 20th centuries. The Sheremetyev family was famous for the concerts and theatre performances they hosted at their palace, which was a centre of musical life in the imperial capital.
Upstairs, the rooms have been restored, although the management can't quite seem to decide whether it's a museum of instruments or a palace: the rooms, while impressive, have never fully recovered from years of neglect under the Soviets, when the building was used to house the Arctic & Antarctic Institute. The instruments on display are impressive though, including pianos belonging to Tchaikovsky, Glinka and Nicholas II. The ground floor is given over to an enormous collection of more instruments, but it's only visitable on a Russian-language guided tour on Thursday, Saturday or Sunday.
