Potential + Access = Impact

Make your music matter

Longy is a conservatory whose mission is to prepare musicians to make a difference in the world. This social imperative is at the core of the school’s curriculum, encouraging students to become the musicians the world needs them to be. The school is committed to preparing its students to meet a changing musical landscape head-on, giving them the skills to perform, the ambition to teach, and the desire to expand access and opportunity within classical music. Every student is encouraged to live by Longy’s bold mission and actively serve the community around them. By weaving artistry and service together as an integral part of the curriculum, Longy is shaping a new future for classical music.

Teaching Artistry

Teaching artistry, a distinctive component of Longy’s graduate curriculum, prepares you to engage audiences anywhere—not just with music, but also with interaction, dialogue, and activities that provide context and create personal connections to the performance. You will be able to walk into any room full of people and make something exciting happen.

Music as a Healing Art

Through Longy’s Music as a Healing Art Initiative, you will learn how your music can provide comfort and healing to the most vulnerable among us. Classwork, performances, and partnerships with a myriad of care facilities will prepare you to bring your music to those who need it most. In addition, Longy is the only conservatory offering specialized training to become a Certified Music Practitioner®—opening new career pathways and expanding your professional portfolio.

Sistema Side-by-Side

Conservatory students learn about El Sistema from the inside out. Playing in our Sistema Side-by-Side ensembles, you will work as youth mentors in collaboration with faculty who were trained in Venezuela. You will also learn, first-hand, the rehearsal and mentoring techniques that have helped El Sistema become a worldwide phenomenon.

Watch: Your Music Matters

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

John Glennon Master of Music ’21 Music Education

“I have known I wanted to play the trumpet and teach music since I was quite literally 10 years old, so accepting this teaching position right after graduating from Longy is a dream come true!”

Sadie Gustafson-Zook Master of Music ’19 Jazz & Contemporary Music

Certified Music Practitioner Winner of the Creativity Foundation Legacy Prize

“As a master’s student at Longy, my transition into the Music for Healing and Transition Program was seamless! I felt supported by Longy faculty every step of the way. Training to be a Certified Music Practitioner felt like a natural progression.”

Tahanee Aluwihare Master of Music ’14 Vocal Performance

Mezzo-Soprano

Debuting with Opera San Jose this season, as Marcellina in Le Nozze de Figaro, after her Tri-Cities Opera debut as Anjana in Kamala Sankaram’s Miranda; the role of Dido in Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas with Boston Camerata; and Opera Idaho’s season premiere gala Opera in the Park. She has also worked with Opera Memphis, Charlottesville Opera, and City Lyric Opera, among others.

Nadia Shpachenko Undergraduate Diploma ’97 Piano Performance

Concert Pianist Professor of Music, Cal Poly Pomona

Nadia is a 2020 Grammy Award winner for her recording The Poetry of Places and the recipient of multiple Grammy nominations. “One of today’s foremost promoters of contemporary music.” (Textura Magazine)