Photo: William_Hogarth / Wikimedia Commons

What do Jimi Hendrix and George Friedrich Handel have in common? No, that’s not the beginning of a joke – and the answer is that the two musicians lived next door to one another – two hundred years apart, of course. Forty years after Hendrix’s death, the two are brought together by an exhibition in Handel’s home about Hendrix’s life.

Good neighbours

Jimi Hendrix lived in a house that adjoined the one once inhabited by Handel, but believed that he actually lived in the composer’s own home. Interested in the composer’s history, Hendrix bought records of Handel’s music and was also known to show interested music students around his home when they came looking for a Handel history lesson. Tours of a more official nature will now by taking place next door – and Hendrix will be the subject rather than the guide.

On show

The exhibition in Handel’s apartment features an impressive collection of interesting relics from Hendrix’s life. His electric guitars are on display, as are some handwritten lyrics, clothing items, and the singer’s death certificate. Organisers hope that the exhibition might raise enough money to restore the apartment to how it might have looked in Hendrix’s day, and open it as a permanent exhibition.

Two for the price of one

Exhibition organisers have another aim for the exhibition: in the past, many visitors to Hendrix’s home have wanted to learn more about Handel, too, and the hope is that the opening of the exhibition about Hendrix will generate more interest about the building other past inhabitant. If you’re a fan of either Handel or Hendrix, you can visit the exhibition until 7 November at 25 Brook Street in Mayfair, the Georgian home that is now officially known as the Handel House Museum.