“At this time of thanksgiving,” invites President James Gandre in his message to the MSM Community, “we should all be grateful to our Founder and reflect on how her dreams and efforts have enriched our lives.” In addition to celebrating Dr. Schenck’s birthday (she would be turning 141), the annual occasion honors her incredible achievement: her work establishing a community-based music school, attracting other highly talented individuals to her cause, and nurturing the growth of what would become a world-class music conservatory — all while overcoming struggles and adversity.
“To say that MSM is a work in progress is an understatement,” explains President Gandre. “What we know as Manhattan School of Music did not dramatically open its doors to a brass fanfare and ribbon-cutting 106 years ago. The story of its start is much more complicated than that, and much more interesting.”
To further bring this origin story to life, MSM historian John Blanchard has marked this year’s Founder’s Day by publishing a deep-dive essay, titled The Day Our School Began. Mr. Blanchard has also refreshed the ongoing main exhibit in the Library and added a satellite one focused exclusively on the years 1913–1921; both exhibits thoughtfully illustrate the crucial developments and struggles of the School’s earliest times. (Read this essay here.)
In addition, President Gandre has recorded a video sharing his personal thoughts on Dr. Schenck available for viewing here.
The School's first home on East 105th Street, known then as the Neighborhood Music School
To this day, our Founder’s amazing spirit of community and love continues at MSM. President James Gandre
To this day, our Founder’s amazing spirit of community and love continues at MSM.
President James Gandre
AWARD-WINNING VIDEO: A 13-minute mini-documentary tells the story of Dr. Schenck and the founding of MSM.
Main exhibit in the MSM Library highlighting the efforts and career of Janet Daniels Schenck, Founder of Manhattan School of Music
SLIDESHOW (use arrows or SWIPE IMAGES W/ CURSOR): photos from the Archives of Dr. Schenck and the School's first campus at 238 East 105th Street
Dr. Schenck developed a community music school at the Union Settlement House on East 104th Street between 1913 and 1917, which became an independent endeavor by the Spring of 1918.
Known as the Neighborhood Music School, it became Manhattan School of Music in 1938. Dr. Schenck brought Pablo Casals and Harold Bauer onboard as Advisors and rallied donors to raise funds. She saw a small community school grow to become a college in the 1940s; receive full accreditation by and membership in the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools in the 1950s; and then outgrow its original home on the East Side, raising more money than any independent conservatory to relocate to MSM’s current campus on Claremont Avenue in the 1960s.
“Dr. Schenck championed so much in a time of United States history during which women were not granted the right to vote, making her accomplishments that much more meaningful and impressive,” says President Gandre.
More details on this central figure in MSM’s history can be found here on our website.
A scale-size architectural model of MSM's first home on East 105th Street on exhibit in the School's library
If you have questions about this inaugural tradition, wish to organize an activity in Dr. Schenck’s honor, or would like to share how you plan to mark this occasion, please be in touch with John Blanchard (MM ’89), Institutional Historian and Director of Archives, at jblanchard@msmnyc.edu.
A 1970 painting by John Koch of Dr. Schenck, part of the Founder’s Day exhibit in the Library
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