Since its founding in 1964, Blair Academy at Vanderbilt has grown from a small music school in a house on 18th Avenue to a community institution serving more than 700 precollege and adult students every year. This year, the Academy is celebrating a proud tradition of 60 years of wide-ranging music education for all ages.
In its first year of instruction, Blair Academy offered private lessons with its 20 original faculty members and classes covering music theory, music history, and the recorder. The Academy has since expanded its offerings to include choral and orchestral ensembles, as well as private lessons in a wide range of instruments and courses for every age. In recent years, the Academy has continued to grow its course offerings, most recently adding Suzuki trumpet lessons and jazz studies to its programming.
“Blair Academy students come from all over Nashville, Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky and beyond to the Blair School of Music to receive instruction from internationally renowned teachers here at Vanderbilt,” said Mary Biddlecombe, director of Blair Academy. “Lessons, classes, ensembles, and more offer a place for students to belong and grow into the best musicians and people they can be.”
Two of Blair Academy’s most notable programs are its Youth Orchestras and Youth Choirs. Featuring eight student ensembles for musicians of all levels, Vanderbilt Youth Orchestras is recognized as one of the premier youth orchestra programs in the Southeast. Through its partnership with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and as a part of the Blair Academy at Vanderbilt University, VYO students are provided with unforgettable opportunities to learn and perform in state-of-the-art venues while interacting with professional instructors and musicians of the highest level.
The Vanderbilt Youth Choirs began in 1988 and has toured nationally and internationally, with performance tours of Budapest, Prague, Ireland, Costa Rica and, most recently, Italy in the summer of 2024. Youth Choirs students have the opportunity to study with the most significant pedagogues of youth vocal music education and learn in a classically based program that emphasizes healthy vocal production, music reading skills, and performance.
Blair Academy’s course opportunities for youth include Suzuki lessons, Kindermusik, jazz, music theory, music history, fiddle, and private lessons for various instruments. Adult offerings include the Vanderbilt Community Chorus, which recently toured and performed across Italy, and courses in songwriting, the business of music, and a songwriting course specifically geared toward veterans. Adults are also welcome to enjoy private music instruction from Blair faculty.
Registration is open now for fall 2024 Blair Academy courses and programs. Click here to view the brochure.