We have always believed great musicians come from all backgrounds—it is the variety in our experiences that allows us to create powerful art. It is why Longy is committed to antiracism. We accept students based on their passion and potential, on their desire to use their music to change the world. But despite our open doors, structural problems run deep in the world of classical music: homogeny, pedigree, and exclusion. These tropes cause immeasurable harm to our field. We must do our part to dispel them.

We will remove the barriers that prevent a musician from accessing training and development. We will amplify the voices of those who have been suppressed, supporting them in their convictions and fostering greater understanding among us all. We will uproot the inequity that keeps us apart in ways both seen and unseen. We will lead by example, showing our students what the world of classical music can be, and giving them the tools to build it.

The goal for our Access to Equity Campaign is a total of $270,000. I am delighted to report that, with early leadership giving and support through the Gala Celebration, we have reached our goal. With these funds we will:

• Provide Equity Scholarships for students with the deepest financial need. Longy already provides 97% of its students with financial aid. Equity Scholarships will remove the barrier determining whether a deserving student attends Longy at all.
• Underwrite a School-wide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion process to propel Longy forward in creating a sustainable, equitable conservatory.
• Launch a Fellowship program that offers generous scholarship support and professional experience with Longy’s Artistic and Social Change team.
• Continue building Longy’s signature social change programming such as Sistema Side-by-Side, providing school children with high quality music education, and the Music as a Healing Art Initiative, training students to serve the most vulnerable in our community.

Please consider making a gift to support the Access to Equity Campaign. You will give a new generation the opportunity to hone their talents and tell their stories. They will bring music to those in need, and, in doing so, truly make a difference in the world. The world needs music more than ever, and so we need you more than ever.

At Longy we believe our students’ potential counts.

Whether they found music at age 2 or 22, there’s a place for them at Longy. All lived experiences and skills are welcome here—a conservatory where all kinds of musicians succeed. Longy invests in musicians who will make a difference in the world by removing barriers to their conservatory education. For example, when we award scholarships, we look at the breadth of the student’s potential both artistically and personally.

In 2020, Longy increased its financial aid from $4.8M to $5.4M. Even with very generous financial aid packages, some students need to have 100% of their tuition covered to make their conservatory education possible

You can make access for equity real with your contribution of $10,000 for a named Equity Scholarship. Help us close the gap between a student’s dream and achievement

Equity Scholarships will be awarded in Spring 2021 and announced in Fall 2021.

$10,000 Named Equity Scholarship

$5,000 Co-Named Equity Scholarship

At Longy, we know music has the power to incite change.

All Longy stakeholders are invested in a yearlong Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) process to pave a path forward in equitable conservatory education. Supported by experts in the field, Longy will engage in faculty, staff, and board development to achieve the following outcomes.

• Ensure employees have the skills and resources to foster a School culture that honors all students’ lived experiences.
• Root out and remove barriers in recruitment and retention of students and faculty of color underrepresented in classical music.
• Continually examine and expand repertoire studied and performed, with emphasis on inclusion of composers and artists of color, women, and queer individuals.
• Invest in power-shifting among Longy’s leadership and staff to reflect our increasingly diverse student body, as well as the communities that we serve through our social change programs.

With your help, Longy will reimagine the conservatory model and the classical music canon. In doing so, we—all of us—will thrive.

At Longy, we prepare musicians to make waves. We find students who are passionate about social change and give them the tools they need to impact communities and change lives.

This newly launched fellowship program will help students explore and amplify their aspirations through professional experience in artistic planning/production and social change program planning and administration. Given the breadth of the School’s artistic and social change programming, students will gain firsthand knowledge and critical skills to create meaningful change through music. Fellows will be mentored by socially engaged musicians from Longy’s extended family to provide guidance from their own experience.

We have seen our alumni at work and know the power of their impact. Help us show the next generation of students how much their music matters.

Donors have the opportunity to sponsor or co-sponsor a fellowship, which will be awarded in Spring 2021 and announced in Fall 2021.

$10,000 Named Artistic and Social Change Fellowship

$5,000 Co-Named Artistic and Social Change Fellowship

This year-round program pairs children ages 6-18 from El Sistema-inspired music education sites across Massachusetts with Longy conservatory students for rehearsals and extraordinary performances. Through this innovative program, Longy is enriching the lives of children, preparing conservatory students to build meaningful lives in music, and addressing a pressing need for high-quality music education for young musicians who may not otherwise have access.

Your gift to Sistema Side-by-Side will have an impact:

$5,000 Co-sponsor a Longy Teaching Assistant
Sponsor a faculty teaching artist for Side-by-Side and the El Sistema Summer Academy

$2,500 Fund the cost for one child to participate in the year-long Sistema Side-by-Side program

$1,000 Fund two full scholarships for children with financial need to participate in two weeks of musical immersion and inspiration at Longy’s El Sistema Summer Academy

$500 Fund a full scholarship for El Sistema Summer Academy
Sponsor the Summer Academy Young Mentor Program, where youth leaders are compensated for mentoring younger children in the Summer Academy

For many, music is a calling. Musicians can relieve suffering, bring comfort, and give respite. We train our students so that they can use their talents to make a difference in the world by helping those in need. Our class, Music as a Healing Art, explores the human response to music and its therapeutic capabilities. Longy’s Certified Music Practitioner® program, in conjunction with Music for Healing and Transition Program, Inc.™ (MHTP), prepares musicians for the art and science of live therapeutic music—for individuals in hospital, hospice, and other healthcare settings.

Your gift toward Music as a Healing Art will have an impact:

$5,000 Sponsor a year-long residency at a partner site

$3,800 Provide a full Scholarship for Certified Music Practitioner® Certification

$2,000 Provide a partial Scholarship for Certified Music Practitioner® Certification

$1,000 Underwrite one module for one student at Longy and MHTP summer program leading to Certified Music Practitioner ® Certification

$500 Keyboard for use in partner sites that lack piano on site