NEMPAC Begins to Transform Tileston Street Music Center

North End Music & Performing Arts Center (NEMPAC) will forge ahead transforming 48-50 Tileston Street, awarded to the 501(c)(3) by the City of Boston and Mayor Marty Walsh, into a state-of-the art music center.

Located in the North End, this 2,200 square foot public music center will offer community members both professional performances and opportunities to study creative movement, music, performing arts, theatre, and voice.

The expansion of NEMPAC’s campus will triple its Boston footprint, providing the space needed to launch programming innovations, as well as additional private and small group instruction rooms.

From community collaborative music nights for local musicians of all levels to adult practice hours, programming plans for Tileston Music Center will prioritize accessibility, engaging rising and professional artists alike.

Tileston Music Center will feature three floors equipped with acoustic doors and panels, STC-rated sound proofing, and recording technology:

· Third Floor: New Music Classroom and Rehearsal Space

· Second Floor: Two New Private and Group Instruction Studios | New Keyboard Lab and Music Technology Room

· First Floor: Multi-Use Accessible Ground Floor Community, Intimate Performance, and Reception Space

“The pandemic continues to underscore the critical role of the arts in strengthening and uniting communities,” said Sherri Snow, Executive Director at NEMPAC.

“Tileston Music Center is an opportunity for community members in the North End, Charlestown, and surrounding Boston neighborhoods to find hope and comfort together as one NEMPAC family through the transformative power of the arts.”  

As NEMPAC kicks-off its capital campaign, the original goal was set at $750,000. However, due to the pandemic and the need to secure the future for the arts going forward, NEMPAC has increased its goal to $1 million.

Key stakeholders and leaders in the City of Boston and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts made major gift commitments to The Next Act capital campaign to fund the start of this project and get the 501(c)(3) halfway towards its goal.

These major donors, several of which purchased the naming rights of the below rooms, include the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; Collin Yip, Managing Director of Rafi Properties; NorthEndBoston.com; Eamon C. O’Marah; Nolan and Jenelle Previte; William Caulder, 6M Development; Andrea & Arthur Waldstein, Mary O’Neill and Greg Krom & Family; and Carolyn and Andrew Lamb.

Naming rights are still available for Tileston Music Center’s third floor rehearsal and classroom space, pianos, and stairway plaques on the second and third floor’s original historic staircase.

· Mary O’Neill and Greg Krom & Family | 2nd Floor Private Instruction Room at Tileston Music Center

· Collin Yip | 2nd Floor Executive Director Office at Tileston Music Center

· Nolan and Jenelle Previte | 2nd Floor Keyboard Lab and Music Technology Room at Tileston Music Center

· William Cauldier | Private Instruction Room at Prado Studios

“NEMPAC’s leadership donors empower us to empower artists of all ages and abilities,” said Snow. “Their major gifts to The Next Act capital campaign, the most far-reaching undertaking since NEMPAC’s founding in 2001, exemplify their commitment to both Tileston Music Center and the longevity and succession of community-based programs and professional artists who contribute to the arts and culture of the City of Boston.”

In 2019, the City of Boston awarded NEMPAC a 15-year lease to transform 48-50 Tileston Street into Tileston Music Center. NEMPAC is coordinating with its design and build team, JJ Welch Contractors and Peterman Architects, to restore this historic building into an inclusive public music center.

“We are grateful to the City of Boston for awarding NEMPAC this unique historical building, formerly known as the Pauline Agassiz Shaw House, which will give us the ability to expand educational and performing arts programs,” said Dianne Royle, Board President at NEMPAC. “Mrs. Shaw was a political activist and cared deeply about the community. In 1881, she founded the North Bennet St. School and institutionalized kindergartens in Boston Public Schools.”

To donate to the public phase of NEMPAC’s capital campaign for Tileston Music Center, please visit: nempacboston.org/thenextact.