Tanglewood Opens New Linde Center For Music And Learning

Today, June 28, at 9 a.m., a special public ribbon-cutting ceremony took place in celebration of the official opening of the Linde Center for Music and Learning-a major new four-building complex, summer home to the Tanglewood Learning Institute, Tanglewood's first new programming initiative in decades, also launching this summer as part of the 2019 Tanglewood season, June 15-September 1. One of the most anticipated events of the 2019 music season. the event featured speeches from a cross-section of the administration, builders, and funders who made the new complex and programming initiatives possible. Further details are available at www.tli.org.

An estimated 400 friends, donors, community leaders, BSO officials and members of the press attended today's official opening. Speakers included Susan Paine, Chair, Board of Trustees, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Inc.; Joyce Linde, Trustee, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Inc. Chair, TMC/TLI Initiative Committee; Mark Volpe, BSO President and CEO, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Inc.; William Rawn, Founding Principal, William Rawn Associates, Architects; Edwin Barker, Principal Bass, Boston Symphony Orchestra; and Anthony Fogg, BSO Artistic Administrator and Director of Tanglewood. Representing the Commonwealth of Massachusetts were Representative Smitty Pignatelli; Aide to Senator Adam Hinds, AJ Enchill; and Patrick Carnevale, the Director of the Western Massachusetts Office.

The Linde Center's opening weekend, June 28-July 1, will also feature free Tanglewood Learning Institute open houses (June 29, 9 a.m.-12 noon, June 30, 1-5 p.m., and July 1 2-4:30 p.m.) and a festive range of special events and musical performances for the public to enjoy. Click here for more details on the free open houses.

The first fundamental expansion in programming in many decades, the offerings of the Tanglewood Learning Institute-more than 140 activities-reflect today's wider cultural shift towards learning and participatory activities that complement the concert experience. These programs have been designed to encourage thought-provoking conversations as they explore ways to better understand the world through the lens of music and break down traditional boundaries between performer and audience. Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, soprano Renee Fleming, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, BSO Music Director Andris Nelsons, and playwright Tom Stoppard, are among the many luminaries joining Tanglewood for these expansive programs. Complete program details of the first summer season of the Tanglewood Learning Institute are available at www.tli.org.

The new multi-use buildings of the Linde Center also reflect a major paradigm shift for Tanglewood. Starting in fall 2019 they will play an essential role in establishing Tanglewood for the first time as a year-round facility, offering TLI programming and event rental and concert use by the BSO, the Tanglewood Music Center, as well as the Berkshire community and beyond. The Tanglewood Learning Institute also plans to offer programs in Boston beginning in fall 2019, as well as a series of online learning programs to be unveiled in 2020. Further details about the Linde Center for Music and Learning are below.

With an average annual attendance of more than 300,000 visitors, Tanglewood is an economic driver of more than $103 million annually which is expected to grow significantly with the addition of this new year-round resource.

More on the Linde Center for Music and Learning-A New Four-Building Complex
The Linde Center's open air ensemble of four buildings gathers around a majestic 100-foot tall red oak tree, with a serpentine covered walkway connecting each building and framing views and paths through the landscape. It includes the state-of-the-art Studio E (70 by 50 feet) performance and rehearsal space which can seat up to 270 patrons; the Gordon Family Studio (40 by 35 feet) and Volpe Family Studio (32 by 24 feet); and light-infused Cindy's Café with 150 seats (plus room on the patio for approximately 50 more seats) and designed as a hub for visitors, TMC Fellows and faculty, BSO players, and TLI participants. Tanglewood's first year-round venue with both heating and air conditioning, the Linde Center embodies a strong commitment to environmental stewardship while also providing needed rehearsal space for the Tanglewood Music Center and Tanglewood Festival Chorus, among other BSO-related rehearsal and concert activities.

The Linde Center is designed by William Rawn Associates Architects, led by William Rawn and Cliff Gayley, and is the largest building project at Tanglewood in 25 years, since the construction of Ozawa Hall, also designed by William Rawn Associates. It is named the Linde Center for Music and Learning in recognition of leadership gifts made by Joyce and Edward H. Linde and their family. Reed Hilderbrand served as the project's landscape architects. Consigli was the general contractor that built the new complex, and Skanska was the Owner's Project Manager. Kirkegaard Associates, led by Joseph Myers, served as the project's acousticians. Kirkegaard Associates were also the acousticians for Ozawa Hall.

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