I've been lucky enough to visit the Austrian capital of Vienna many times, but I still have a soft spot for a museum I visited during my very first stay: the Haus Der Musik (House of Music), or Sound Museum. Although it's situated right in the middle of Vienna, it's not easy to find unless you're looking for it, but I really recommend that you do look for it!

As you can probably guess, some of the famous musicians and composers of Austria get a mention at the Haus Der Musik. You'll find them on the third floor with interesting and colorful displays about such people as Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn, Strauss and Schubert - a lot of big names!

But while the displays about their life and work are definitely worth a look, one of the highlights of the whole museum is here: the Virtual Conductor. On a large screen you can see a video of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and by picking up the "virtual baton", you can actually conduct them! I watched a young boy in front of me seemingly effortlessly and randomly waving his arm around and watching the orchestra play, and I presumed this whole virtual conducting thing was easy. I was wrong. If you don't conduct with good rhythm and at an appropriate speed, the musicians will start to grumble and complain and eventually stand up and walk out on you. I needed a bit of practice before my symphony sounded vaguely like it should.

The Sound Museum part of the Haus Der Musik comes into play on the second floor. It's a really interactive part of the museum with lots of hands-on sound-related exhibits. I especially remember the exhibit which simulated various sounds in acoustically different places - for example, outdoors, in a concert hall, or in a small room. My most memorable experiment here was discovering what it would sound like to listen to a cow in a cathedral! There are also an interesting array of other sound experiments which teach you more about how sound actually works.

If your ears are still open to further stimulation, you can also try the Brain Opera on the fourth floor. It's one of those exhibits where you can get involved in creating sound, noise and music yourself. Haus Der Musik also has other displays on the first floor, including a screening of a Vienna Philharmonic performance.

If you go: Haus Der Musik is found at Seilerstätte 30, and is marked on all good tourist maps. The daily opening hours are from 10am - 10pm - its late evening hours make it a great museum to fit in at the end of the day when everything else is closed.