Woodwinds & Brass
Longy Woodwinds & Brass students are prepared to change the face of classical music—and their communities.
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Stand out in small ensembles.
- Experience the agency to choose what you play and how to play it.
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Hone your teaching artistry in ways that contribute to the community.
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Nurture your entrepreneurial spirit.
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Practice side-by-side with faculty in Longy’s full symphony orchestra, Orchestra IS.
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Learn from faculty who are active performers and leaders of innovative organizations.
Woodwinds & Brass Spotlight
DÍJÍ KAY (GPD 2023), Woodwinds & Brass
“When I started the application process and saw that Longy had removed pretty much all the traditional gatekeeping, I thought, ‘This is a special place.’”
CHLOE SWINDLER, Brass Faculty
“The way we teach must also reflect what real life will be like after school. No two musical careers are identical. If I could go back, I would enroll myself here, so I could have that experience earlier.“
Course Highlights
Create Your Own Gigs
Go get your gig. Seriously, go get one. Anywhere except on Longy property. In this course, you’ll be guided through the process of creating a concert from beginning to end.
Woodwinds and Brass Department Seminar
The department seminar will afford you the opportunity to gather with your lung-powered colleagues to present both works in progress and those nearing the completion of preparation. Based loosely on the Paris Conservatory masterclass, students are encouraged to coach their peers, share their experiences, and participate in true collaborative learning.
Customize Your Curriculum
Create your own opportunities, find new audiences, and make a living in unexpected ways by customizing your curriculum from a catalog of project-based courses you can’t find anywhere else. Our faculty mentors and experienced career coaches will be there to guide you.
More Highlights
Studio Lessons:
Collaboration with a faculty mentor is the cornerstone of conservatory education at Longy. Together you will explore your unique artistic and professional goals while expanding technical and musical insight.
Masterclasses and Seminars:
Through workshops, masterclasses, discussions, and presentations, frequent opportunities with faculty and guest artists offer insight regarding interpretation, repertoire, analysis, and performance practice. Recent guests have included Martin Katz, Amanda Forsythe, Justin Austin, Tamara Wilson, and Nicholas Phan. Through a special partnership with Celebrity Series of Boston, emerging artists in its Debut Series present exclusive workshops and master classes with Longy students throughout the year.
Pedagogy:
We believe that teaching should be a form of heightened, enlivened communication. Rather than focusing solely on acquiring technical skills, we seek to draw out your latent expertise and help you communicate authentically.
Chamber Music:
Georges Longy’s belief in the power of collaboration inspires the central role of chamber music in our conservatory. Students will work closely with faculty coaches every semester and explore ensemble playing through coursework, informal readings, and community collaborations.
Orchestra IS:
Longy’s Orchestra IS brings together our complete student body of winds, strings, and brass players to perform diverse repertoire adapted to the ensemble’s makeup. With Longy faculty sitting side-by-side with the students, and led by guest conductors, the aptly named Orchestra IS is both the name of our symphony orchestra and an invitation to fill in the blank. What IS an orchestra? What CAN an orchestra be?
Ensemble Uncaged:
Ensemble Uncaged is Longy’s premier contemporary music ensemble dedicated to the performance of works by living and recently deceased composers. We honor the familiar, invite the unknown, and challenge the conceptual limits of concert music in the 21st century.