Education
Third Street Music School marks a noteworthy milestone
BY GABE HERMAN
With Lower Manhattan seemingly
in constant flux, Third Street
Music School Settlement has
managed to be a fixture going back to the
late 19th century and continues to grow
its programming and music education
outreach.
The Music School was founded in 1894
by Emilie Wagner in the basement of a
church on Rivington Street, offering people
a quick bath and ten-minute music lessons.
It would move to Third Street in 1901,
and move to other locations before settling
into its current building, a former
nurses’ hospital at 235 East 11 St. in
1972. The school is celebrating its 125th
anniversary this year, including with a big
gala on May 6.
“Third Street’s history really speaks to
who we are today,” said executive director
Valerie Lewis, who noted the goal to create
an oasis of sorts and a sense of community,
while expanding its reach. “Today we’re
welcoming in people from all communities,”
she said, which includes the five
boroughs and areas outside the city as well.
The early decades of the institution
included social services along with musical
programs, such as medical services
and marriage counseling, but shifted away
from social services during the New Deal,
Lewis noted, to focus on providing access
to students so that no one is turned away
because of money. This year, over $1.5
million will be given in financial aid and
tuition subsidies, Lewis said.
“Over the years, Third Street has grown
and evolved in a variety of ways,” Lewis
said, including dance programs, jazz, preschool,
and having students ranging in age
from 9 months to 96 years old.
The school has three primary programs,
one being the music and dance school,
including programs after school and on
weekends, and ensembles. There is also the
preschool, with about 125 students, which
goes back decades and had composer
Philip Glass in its first class. And Third
Street Partners sends teachers to schools
and communities, reaching over 3,000
students in over 25 public schools. Third
Street Music School itself has about 2,000
students.
Since Lewis came to the school six years
ago, there have been building renovations
to update performance spaces such as a
concert hall, and a recital hall on the lower
level. And the school’s growth led to the
school now operating seven days a week,
Third Street Music School has offered music instruction since its founding in 1894.
This photo includes Third Street’s oldest piano, which dates back to 1 Continued on p. 19 901 and is still in use today.
18 March 5, 2020 Schneps Media