Berklee College of Music facts for kids
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Former names
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Schillinger House Berklee School of Music |
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| Motto | Esse quam videri (Latin) |
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Motto in English
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To be, rather than to seem |
| Type | Private music college |
| Established | 1945 |
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Academic affiliations
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Professional Arts Consortium |
| Endowment | $338.8 million (2020) |
| President | Jim Lucchese |
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Academic staff
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522 |
| Students | 8,448 (fall 2023) |
| Location |
Boston, Massachusetts
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U.S.
42°20′47″N 71°5′13″W / 42.34639°N 71.08694°W |
| Campus | Urban |
| Colors | Red and gray |
| Mascot | Mingus the Jazz Cat |
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Berklee College of Music is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the biggest independent college in the world for studying modern music. Berklee is famous for teaching jazz and modern American music. It also offers classes in many other styles like rock, hip hop, reggae, salsa, heavy metal, and bluegrass.
Since 2012, Berklee has also had a campus in Valencia, Spain. In 2015, Berklee College of Music and the Boston Conservatory joined together. The combined school is now called Berklee, and the conservatory is The Boston Conservatory at Berklee. Students who have graduated from Berklee have won many awards. They have won 310 Grammy Awards and 108 Latin Grammy Awards. They have also won 34 Emmy Awards, seven Tony Awards, and eight Academy Awards.
Contents
The History of Berklee College of Music
Starting as Schillinger House (1945–1954)
In 1945, a musician named Lawrence Berk started a school called Schillinger House. This school was the beginning of Berklee. It was located in Boston. At first, the school focused on a special way of teaching music called the Schillinger System.
Most music schools at that time taught only classical music. But Schillinger House was different. It taught jazz and music for radio, theater, and dancing. Many early students were professional musicians. Some were even soldiers who had returned from World War II. The school started with fewer than 50 students. By 1949, it had grown to more than 500 students.
In 1954, the school added more classes, like music education. Lawrence Berk changed the name to Berklee School of Music. He named it after his 12-year-old son, Lee Eliot Berk. This new name showed that the school taught a wider range of music.
Growing as Berklee School of Music (1954–1970)
Lawrence Berk believed that students should learn from real musicians. He often hired working musicians to teach at the school. Many famous musician-teachers joined Berklee during this time. These included trumpeter Herb Pomeroy and drummer Alan Dawson. This idea of learning from experienced performers continues today.
In the mid-1950s, more students from other countries started coming to Berklee. For example, Japanese pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi came in 1956. Producer Arif Mardin came from Turkey in 1958.
In 1957, Berklee started using technology in music education. They released a series of recordings called Jazz in the Classroom. These albums featured student compositions and performances. Many students on these albums later became famous jazz musicians. This series helped students learn about composing, arranging, and performing. Later, it also helped students studying music engineering and music business.
Berklee gave out its first bachelor's degrees in music in 1966. During the 1960s, Berklee's classes began to include new popular music styles. These included rock and roll, soul, funk, and jazz-rock fusion. In 1962, Berklee offered the first college-level major for guitar. The guitar department became the largest music major at the school. In 1969, classes in rock and popular music were added. These were the first college-level courses of their kind.
Becoming Berklee College of Music (1970–Present)
The school became Berklee College of Music in 1970. In 1971, it gave its first special doctorate degree to Duke Ellington. Vibraphonist Gary Burton joined the teachers in 1971. He helped make jazz-rock fusion a key part of the school's classes. From 1985 to 1996, Burton helped create new majors. These included music synthesis and songwriting. He also helped the school use more technology in teaching.
New classes in the 1970s included the first college major for electric bass guitar in 1973. The first jazz-rock ensemble class was offered in 1974.
In 1979, Berklee's founder, Lawrence Berk, retired. His son, Lee Eliot Berk, became the new president. Under his leadership, the school continued to grow. Berklee offered the world's first college degree program for film scoring in 1980. In 1986, the world's first college major in music synthesis was offered. This was followed by the first college songwriting major in 1987. New instrument majors also included the first college hand-percussion major in 1988.
More and more international students have come to Berklee. In 2010, about 24% of all students were from outside the U.S. By 2013, this number grew to 28%.
In 1991, Berklee started City Music. This program helps young people in Boston learn music. In 1993, Berklee also started working with music schools around the world. New majors in Music Business & Management and music therapy were added in the mid-1990s. In 2003, the school began offering classes online through Berklee Online. A hip-hop course was added in 2004.
In 2004, Lee Eliot Berk retired. Roger H. Brown became the college's third president. Under Brown, more students enrolled. It became harder to get into Berklee. More students also stayed and graduated. In 2006, mandolin and banjo were accepted as main instruments for the first time. The college also started programs like Africana Studies and the Berklee Global Jazz Institute. In 2013, Berklee Online started offering online degree programs. In 2014, the Berklee Institute for Creative Entrepreneurship (Berklee ICE) opened. It helps students start new music businesses.
In 2016, Berklee College of Music and The Boston Conservatory officially merged. Berklee College of Music was renamed Berklee. The Conservatory became The Boston Conservatory at Berklee.
In 2020, Erica Muhl was announced as the new president. She started her role in 2021. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the college taught classes online. In 2021, they moved to a mix of online and in-person learning. In 2021, Berklee announced a new Bachelor of Arts program in Music Industry Leadership and Innovation. This program started in the fall of 2022. It is the first Bachelor of Arts degree in the college's history.
College Presidents
| No. | Presidents | Term of office |
|---|---|---|
| Founder | Lawrence Berk | 1945–1979 |
| 2 | Lee Eliot Berk | 1979–2004 |
| 3 | Roger H. Brown | 2004–2021 |
| 4 | Erica Muhl | 2021–2023 |
| - | David Bogen | 2023–2024 (interim) |
| 5 | Jim Lucchese | 2025– |
Important Changes and Safety
In 2017, Berklee worked to improve its policies to prevent bad behavior. The college has taken steps to create a safer environment for everyone. This includes training courses and making sure leaders are diverse.
Academics at Berklee
Berklee College of Music is officially recognized by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE). The college was one of the first to offer online bachelor's degrees in 2002. It started offering master's degrees online in 2018. These included programs in music production and music business.
How to Get Into Berklee
Getting into Berklee mainly depends on an audition, an interview, and your school grades.
For the 2017–2018 school year, about 33.8% of students who applied to Berklee College of Music in Boston were accepted. For the Boston Conservatory, it was 38%. For Berklee Online, it was 66%.
Berklee offers three times for new full-time students to start: fall, spring, and summer. Students can choose which semester they want to begin.
As part of applying, students must do a live audition and interview. This helps Berklee see what students are good at. It also helps the school see if students will do well in Berklee's busy environment. Berklee considers all applicants for both admission and scholarships during this process. Since 2014, some auditions have been done online using high speed internet.
Student Population
As of the 2021–2022 school year, Berklee had 7,943 students. This included 7,177 undergraduate students and 766 graduate students. About 42% of undergraduate students were female, and 58% were male. For graduate students, 46% were female and 54% were male.
Students from 97 different countries made up about 25% of the student body. The top five countries students came from were China, Canada, India, Brazil, and Colombia. In addition to students in Boston, 1,895 students took online courses through Berklee Online in 2021–2022.
Campus Buildings and Spaces
Berklee started at 284 Newbury Street in 1945. In 1966, it moved to a bigger building at 1140 Boylston Street. In 1972, Berklee bought the Fenway Theatre and the Sherry Biltmore Hotel. The theater was renovated and opened as the 1,227-seat Berklee Performance Center in 1976. The old Biltmore Hotel became classrooms, practice rooms, and dorms. It also holds the library, which was renamed the Stan Getz Library and Media Center in 1998. The 150 Massachusetts Avenue building also has the Berklee Learning Center. When it opened in 1993, it was the world's largest computer learning center for music.
The Genko Uchida Center opened in 1997. It has offices for admissions, scholarships, and financial aid. It also has rehearsal rooms, classrooms, and the 200-seat David Friend Recital Hall. At 939 Boylston Street, Café 939 is a student-run music club. It hosts student performers and other acts.
As of 2014, Berklee had 25 buildings in Boston. These buildings included 40 recording studios and 9 music synthesis facilities. The studios for the Berklee Internet Radio Network (BIRN) are also on campus. A new Liberal Arts building opened in 2010. It houses departments like Liberal Arts and Music Business.
In 2011, Berklee announced plans for three new buildings. The first, a 16-story building at 160 Massachusetts Avenue, opened in 2014. It has 370 dorm rooms, a cafeteria, a performance center, and recording studios. This building won an award in 2015 for being one of the best residential projects.
Berklee València Campus
Berklee València is the college's first campus outside the U.S. It is located in the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía. This building is part of a big project called the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia, Spain.
Special Programs in València
Berklee's campus in València offers special programs in modern music. These include workshops and seminars. They cover areas like performance, flamenco, film scoring, and music business. It also has a two-week summer performance program.
BerkleeNYC Campus
BerkleeNYC is the college's campus in New York City. It is located in the Power Station studios. This campus offers a one-year master's degree in Creative Technology.
Boston Conservatory at Berklee
In 2016, Berklee and Boston Conservatory announced they would merge. Now, they are part of one big organization called Berklee. This includes Boston Conservatory at Berklee, Berklee College of Music, Berklee Online, and Berklee Valencia.
Berklee Online
Berklee Online is the online school of Berklee College of Music. It helps students around the world learn from Berklee's classes.
Berklee Online offers online music courses and certificate programs. It also has online bachelor's degree programs. These are taught by Berklee teachers and music experts. The school also provides free online music resources.
From 2005 to 2012, Berklee Online won awards for its online courses. Since it started, Berklee Online has taught over 30,000 students from 144 countries.
Some former Berklee Online students are members of famous music groups. These include Nine Inch Nails, Dave Matthews Band, and Train.
Online Degree Programs
In 2013, the online school started accepting applications for its 120-credit online degrees. These included a Bachelor of Professional Studies in Music Production and one in Music Business. In 2014, Berklee Online added three more degree majors. These were Electronic Music Production and Sound Design, Music Composition for Film, TV, and Games, and Interdisciplinary Music Studies. The Interdisciplinary Music Studies major lets students create their own program. Since then, the college has added more online bachelor's degrees. These include Guitar, Songwriting, and Songwriting and Producing Music. Berklee is one of the first music schools to offer accredited online bachelor's degrees.
Scholarly Publications
Since 2005, Berklee has published the Music Business Journal. This journal shares articles about the music industry.
Alumni
See also
In Spanish: Berklee College of Music para niños
- Real Book
