Through a combination of frequent performance and meaningful academic work, Longy provides students with the tools they need to face the challenges of the music world. The hallmarks of a Longy education include:
Our mission: Longy strives to prepare musicians to make a difference in the world, and we seek students who want to communicate with the greater community through their music and artistry.
Collaboration: Our students work in close collaboration with some of the world’s finest teachers. The ideal Longy student thrives in our supportive atmosphere of musical excellence and is an active participant in their education, learning from their faculty mentors and pushing themselves to examine their art and talents in new ways.
Personal Attention: Thanks to Longy’s small size and intimate atmosphere, the faculty and administration are able to focus on the individual needs of each student. We are committed to providing the care and attention our students will need to flourish.
Breadth of Education: Longy’s curriculum is based on a broad, liberal approach to advanced musical study. For example, a student pursuing the Master of Music degree will not only receive substantial private instruction and participate in any number of performing ensembles and solo recitals, but will also study improvisation, pedagogy, Dalcroze Eurhythmics, chamber music, history, theory, and participate in Longy’s Mind/Body department.
Performance Opportunities: Longy’s size allows all students to have frequent opportunities for performance. In addition to solo performance and participation in large ensembles, chamber music is a vibrant part of a Longy education.
Location: The advantages of Longy’s supportive learning environment and rigorous curriculum are enhanced by the benefits of being at the heart of a large and culturally-rich city. Boston and Cambridge offer an endless variety of stimulating opportunities, musical and otherwise, so that practice and classroom work are enhanced by one’s surroundings.
The Longy School of Music is a conservatory located near Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is one of the four independent degree-granting music schools in the Boston region along with the New England Conservatory, Berklee College of Music, and Boston Conservatory. The Longy School also serves as a community music school with preparatory programs for children and high-school age musicians, and classes for non-professional adult musicians. As of the 2007-08 academic year, the conservatory has 223 students, with a further 925 students enrolled in its preparatory and continuing education classes.
Longy follows the French conservatoire model, where faculty masterclasses are emphasized over individual private lessons and academic coursework.
34% of Longy's students are from countries outside the United States. In 2007, Longy's acceptance rate was listed as 60%. Of those admitted, 41% ultimately enrolled.
The Longy School was founded in Boston in 1915 by Georges Longy, a French-born oboist and graduate of the Paris Conservatory who had joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1898. Upon his retirement in 1925, his daughter, Renée Longy-Miquelle, succeeded him as Director. She recruited several of Georges Longy's Boston Symphony colleagues as faculty members and established Dalcroze Eurhythmics as an important part of the School's curriculum.
The School moved across the Charles River to Cambridge in 1930, and in 1937 took up residence in the stone mansion at One Follen Street, originally built in 1889 by railroad baron Edwin Hale Abbot. During that time, the Longy School had a close relationship with Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges. Many of Harvard’s most talented music students, including Elliott Carter and Daniel Pinkham crossed the Cambridge Common to study with Longy’s performance faculty. (See also the List of notable alumni). Between 1938 and 1944, the pedagogue and theoretician Nadia Boulanger taught advanced courses in harmony, composition, and counterpoint at the Longy School and established a tradition of focus on music theory and composition that continues to characterize the school to the present day.
Learn more about Bachelor’s Degree Programs
A program that prepares individuals to master the piano, organ, or related keyboard instruments and performing art as solo, ensemble, and/or accompanist performers. Includes instruction in piano and keyboard pedagogy, ensemble playing, accompanying, service playing, repertoire, keyboard and pedal skills, recital, and personal style development. See more Piano and Organ Schools
A program that focuses on the knowledge and skills associated with personal music appreciation, the playing of a musical instrument, singing or recreational composition. See more Music Schools
Learn more about Master’s Degree Programs
A program that generally prepares individuals to master musical instruments and performing art as solo and/or ensemble performers. Includes instruction on one or more specific instruments from various instrumental groupings. See more Music Performance Schools
A program that focuses on the study of the principles of sound manipulation as applied to the creation of music, and the techniques of creating and arranging music. Includes instruction in aural theory, melody, counterpoint, complex harmony, modulation, chromatics, improvisation, progressions, musical writing, instrumentation, orchestration, electronic and computer applications, studies of specific musical styles, and development of original creative ability. See more Music Theory and Composition Schools
A program that prepares individuals to master the piano, organ, or related keyboard instruments and performing art as solo, ensemble, and/or accompanist performers. Includes instruction in piano and keyboard pedagogy, ensemble playing, accompanying, service playing, repertoire, keyboard and pedal skills, recital, and personal style development. See more Piano and Organ Schools
A program that prepares individuals to master the human voice and performing art as solo and/or ensemble performers in concert, choir, opera, or other forms of singing. Includes instruction in voice pedagogy, diction, vocal physiology and exercise, expressive movement, repertoire, recital, and personal style development. See more Voice and Opera Schools
A program that prepares individuals to teach music and music appreciation programs at various educational levels. See more Music Teacher Education Schools
Learn more about Certificate Programs
A program that generally prepares individuals to master musical instruments and performing art as solo and/or ensemble performers. Includes instruction on one or more specific instruments from various instrumental groupings. See more Music Performance Schools
A program that focuses on the study of the principles of sound manipulation as applied to the creation of music, and the techniques of creating and arranging music. Includes instruction in aural theory, melody, counterpoint, complex harmony, modulation, chromatics, improvisation, progressions, musical writing, instrumentation, orchestration, electronic and computer applications, studies of specific musical styles, and development of original creative ability. See more Music Theory and Composition Schools
A program that prepares individuals to master the piano, organ, or related keyboard instruments and performing art as solo, ensemble, and/or accompanist performers. Includes instruction in piano and keyboard pedagogy, ensemble playing, accompanying, service playing, repertoire, keyboard and pedal skills, recital, and personal style development. See more Piano and Organ Schools
A program that prepares individuals to master the human voice and performing art as solo and/or ensemble performers in concert, choir, opera, or other forms of singing. Includes instruction in voice pedagogy, diction, vocal physiology and exercise, expressive movement, repertoire, recital, and personal style development. See more Voice and Opera Schools
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| Percent of Students International: | % |
| On-Campus Housing Available: | Yes |
| Freshman Students Required to Live on Campus: | No |
| Application Fee: | $ 100.00 |
| Formal Demonstration of Competencies: | Required |
| High School Diploma or Equivalent: | Not Required |
| High School GPA: | Required |
| High School Rank: | Not Required |
| High School Record: | Required |
| Recommendations: | Required |
| TOEFL: | Required |
| Test Scores: | Recommended |