The Peabody Institute of the

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

is a private music and dance conservatory and preparatory school in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. Founded in 1857, it became affiliated with Johns Hopkins in 1977.

History

Philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

and

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

George Peabody (1795–1869) founded the institute in 1857 and opened it in 1866 with a bequest of about $800,000. This sum, from his personal fortune, was amassed initially in Massachusetts and later augmented in Baltimore (where he lived and worked from 1815 to 1835). It vastly increased through banking and finance during following residences in New York City and London, where he became the wealthiest American of his time. Completion of the white marble Grecian-

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...

west wing, the original building housing the institute, designed by Edmund George Lind, was delayed by the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. It was dedicated in 1866, with Peabody, having traveled across the North

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, speaking at the ceremonies on the front steps in front of the

Washington Monument The Washington Monument is an obelisk on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States, victorious commander-in-chief of the Continen ...

circle before a large audience of notaries and citizens including hundreds of assembled pupils from the Baltimore City Public Schools. Under the direction of well-known musicians, composers, conductors, and Peabody alumni, the conservatory, concerts, lecture series, library and art gallery, along with the "Peabody Prizes" (an annual awarding of gold, silver and bronze medals with certificates and cash to top graduates of the city), attracted a considerable national attention to the Institute and the city's growing culture. Under strong academic leadership, the Peabody evolved into an internationally renowned cultural and literary center through the late 19th and the 20th centuries, especially after a major expansion in 1877–1878, with the completion of its eastern half housing the George Peabody Library with five stacked tiers of wrought iron balconies holding book stacks(shelves), surmounted by a beveled glass skylight, one of the most beautiful and distinctive libraries in the U.S. The 1878 east wing on East Mount Vernon Place, containing the affiliated George Peabody Library, joined the other rows of townhouses, mansions, art gallery, clubs, hotels, and churches around the

which developed into the

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

neighborhood on the former estate of Revolutionary War commander John Eager Howard. The institute grew from a local academy, with an art and sculpture gallery, public lecture series, and the extensive reference library which, although non-circulating, predated the first public library system in America. The library was created and endowed in 1882 by Peabody's friend

Enoch Pratt Enoch Pratt (September 10, 1808 – September 17, 1896) was an American businessman in Baltimore, Maryland. Pratt was also a committed active Unitarian, and a philanthropist. He is best known for his donations to establish the Enoch Pratt Free ...

. In turn, both Peabody and Pratt inspired the expansive philanthropic efforts of Scottish-American steel tycoon

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...

. In 1955, Peabody inaugurated a

sacred music Religious music (also sacred music) is a type of music that is performed or composed for religious use or through religious influence. It may overlap with ritual music, which is music, sacred or not, performed or composed for or as a ritual. Reli ...

department led by Arthur Howes, which is now defunct.
Its

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

department, founded by composer

Jean Eichelberger Ivey Jean Eichelberger Ivey (July 3, 1923 – May 2, 2010) was an American composer who produced an extensive and diverse catalog of solo, chamber, vocal, and orchestral works as an innovator and "respected electronic composer." Early life and ed ...

in 1967, was the first in any American conservatory, and remains the home of two historic Moog modular synthesizers from its first decade in operation. In 1978, Peabody began working with Baltimore's

under an affiliation agreement.
In 1985, the institute officially became a constituent school of Johns Hopkins. Peabody is one of 156 schools in the United States that offers a

Doctorate of Musical Arts The doctor of musical arts (DMA) is a doctoral academic degree in music. The DMA combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization (usually music performance, music composition, or conducting) with graduate-level academic study in su ...

degree. It houses two libraries: the historical George Peabody Library (originally the Peabody Institute Library) established when the Institute opened in 1866, renowned for its collection of 19th-century and other rare books; and an additional music reference academic library, the Arthur Friedheim Library (named for the Russian-born pianist/ conductor), that includes more than 100,000 books, scores, and recordings. The conservatory was later supplemented by a preparatory school and auditorium. "Peabody Prizes" are awarded to top high school graduates beginning the following year at commencement exercises and continued for 122 years as an annual tradition with public announcements to city media. Additional structures along East Centre Street and Saint Paul Street, including a parking garage and two dormitory towers, were constructed in 1971. During the early 1990s, several remaining townhouses on East Mount Vernon Place to the east intersection with St. Paul were acquired and rebuilt, along with other townhouses with distinctive iron scrollwork balconies facing North Charles Street to the south. This enabled The Peabody to round out its tight campus of attached buildings to the entire city block bounded by Charles (Washington Place), Monument (Mount Vernon Place), St. Paul, and Centre Streets. The Peabody campus is included in the

Mount Vernon Place Historic District Mount Vernon is a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, located immediately north of the city's Downtown Baltimore, downtown. It is named for George Washington's Mount Vernon estate in Virginia, as the site of the city's Washington Monument (Balt ...

, which was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

and designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

District in 1971. The main building on Mount Vernon Place, built during 1857-1878, was designated a Baltimore City Landmark on October 14, 1975.

Preparatory

Peabody Preparatory offers instruction and enrichment programs for school-age children across various sites in Baltimore and its surrounding counties: "Downtown" (Baltimore, main campus), Towson,

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

( Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts) and Howard County (in cooperation with three schools).

Notable alumni

Tori Amos Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos; August 22, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She is a classically trained musician with a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Having already begun composing instrumental pieces on piano, Amos won a full ...

, singer, songwriter, pianist; the youngest student ever admitted to the institute. * Dominick Argento, composer * James Atherton, tenor * Zuill Bailey, cellist * Manuel Barrueco, guitarist * Carter Brey, cellist * Frances R. Brown, college president * Petrit Çeku, guitarist * Angelin Chang, pianist * George Colligan, pianist/trumpeter/drummer/composer *

Tony Conrad Anthony Schmalz Conrad (March 7, 1940 – April 9, 2016) was an American video artist, experimental filmmaker, musician, composer, sound artist, teacher, and writer. Active in a variety of media since the early 1960s, he was a pioneer of both ...

, violinist and composer * Charles Covington, pianist * Viet Cuong, composer * Gemze de Lappe, dancer * Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick, operatic soprano * Ruth Wales du Pont, socialite, philanthropist, and classical composer * Joshua Fineberg, composer * Virgil Fox, organist * James Allen Gähres, conductor (music) *

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...

, composer * Hilary Hahn, violinist *

Michael Hedges Michael Alden Hedges (December 31, 1953 – December 2, 1997) was an American acoustic guitarist and songwriter. He was known as a virtuoso who used unorthodox playing techniques, and much of his output was classified as new age music. Hedges ...

, guitarist * Michael Hersch, composer * Margarita Höhenrieder, pianist * Camara Kambon, composer and pianist * Kim Kashkashian, violist * Fred Karpoff, pianist and artist-teacher * Kevin Kenner, pianist * Maxim Kozlov, cellist and educator * Custer LaRue, soprano * O'Donel Levy, guitarist * Richard Leibert, organist *

David Meece David Meece (born May 26, 1952) is an American contemporary Christian musician who enjoyed success in the mid-1980s and into the early 2010s, with more than thirty Top 10 hits, including several No. 1 songs. Education Meece grew up in Humble ...

, pianist, singer, songwriter * Su Meng, guitarist * Sylvia Meyer, harpist; the first female member of the

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930 by cellist Hans Kindler, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The NSO regularly ...

* Thomas F. McNulty, a president of the WWIN-FM

and a member of the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

from 1942 to 1946 * Jessye Norman, operatic soprano * Piotr Pakhomkin, guitarist * Rebecca Pitcher, actress; primarily known for playing Christine in the Broadway adaption of '' The Phantom of the Opera'' * Awadagin Pratt, pianist * Lance Reddick, actor, musician * Ilyich Rivas, conductor (music) * Jake Runestad, composer * Lillian Smith, author of ''

Strange Fruit "Strange Fruit" is a song written and composed by Abel Meeropol (under his pseudonym Lewis Allan) and recorded by Billie Holiday in 1939. The lyrics were drawn from a poem by Meeropol published in 1937. The song Protest song, protests the Lynch ...

'' * Ana Vidović, guitarist * André Watts, pianist * Hugh Wolff, conductor and director of orchestras at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

. * Eliza Woods, composer and pianist * Marie Kunkel Zimmerman, soprano * Igor Zubkovsky, cellist

Notable faculty

* Diran Alexanian, cello * Manuel Barrueco, guitar *

Oscar Bettison Oscar Bettison (born 19 September 1975) is a British-American composer known for large-scale chamber and large ensemble works. He has been described as possessing "a unique voice". His work has been described as having "an unconventional lyrici ...

, composition * George Frederick Boyle, piano *

Garnett Bruce Garnett Bruce (born 1967) is an American opera theatre director, director. Bruce began his training as a choirboy at the Washington National Cathedral while he attended St. Albans School (Washington, DC). After earning a Bachelor of Arts in Englis ...

, opera *

Elliott Carter Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American modernist composer who was one of the most respected composers of the second half of the 20th century. He combined elements of European modernism and American " ...

(1946–48), composition *

Thomas Dolby Thomas Morgan Robertson (born 14 October 1958), known by the stage name Thomas Dolby, is an English musician, producer, composer, entrepreneur and teacher. Dolby came to prominence in the 1980s, releasing hit singles including "She Blinded Me ...

, Music for New Media * Du Yun, composition * David Fedderly, tuba *

Lupe Fiasco Wasalu Muhammad Jaco (born February 16, 1982), better known by his stage name Lupe Fiasco ( ), is an American rapper, record producer and Music education, music educator. Born and raised in Chicago, he gained mainstream recognition for his gue ...

, hip-hop * Leon Fleisher, piano * Virgil Fox, organist * Elizabeth Futral, voice * Denyce Graves, voice * Richard Franko Goldman, Director (1968–1977), President (1969–1977) * Asger Hamerik, Director (1871–1898) * Michael Hersch, composition * Ernest Hutcheson, piano * Sean Jones, jazz * Richard Johnson, jazz *

, composition, electronic music * Katharine Lucke (1875-1962) - organ, composition * Nicholas Maw (1935–2009), composition *

Anthony McGill Anthony McGill (born 5 February 1991) is a Scottish professional snooker player. He is a practice partner of retired snooker player Alan McManus. McGill turned professional in 2010, after finishing fourth in the 2009/2010 PIOS rankings. He ...

, clarinet * Gustav Meier, conducting * Edward Palanker, clarinet * Amit Peled, cello * Marina Piccinini, flute * Joel Puckett, theory and composition *

Kevin Puts Kevin Matthew Puts (born January 3, 1972) is an American composer, best known for his opera ''The Hours (opera), The Hours'' and for winning a Pulitzer Prize in 2012 for his first opera ''Silent Night (opera), Silent Night'' and a Grammy Award i ...

, composition * Hollis Robbins, humanities * Martin Schmidt, computer music * Berl Senofsky, violin * John Shirley-Quirk, voice * Robert van Sice, percussion * Barry Tuckwell, horn * Frank Valentino, voice * John Walker, organ * Warren Wolf, jazz * Eliza Woods, piano * Chen Yi, composition (1996-1998)

In popular culture

In the 1980 novel '' Jacob Have I Loved'' by

Katherine Paterson Katherine Paterson (née Womeldorf; born October 31, 1932) is an American writer best known for Children's literature, children's novels, including ''Bridge to Terabithia (novel), Bridge to Terabithia'' (1977), which won the Newbery Medal in 197 ...

, the character Caroline Bradshaw attends a summer program at Peabody in order to further her training as a singer.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Schools and departments of Johns Hopkins University Universities and colleges in Baltimore Music schools in Maryland Universities and colleges established in 1857 Mount Vernon, Baltimore Music of Baltimore 1857 establishments in Maryland Historic district contributing properties in Maryland Mount Vernon Place Historic District Baltimore City Landmarks