With approximately 2,000 students passing through its doors every week, the Peabody Preparatory is Baltimore's premier community school for the performing arts. It is open to students of all ages and levels of ability with offerings ranging from early childhood classes for infants to the Adult and Continuing Education (ACE) program for adults. Instrumental and dance instruction begins as young as four years, and most classes are available to adults.
Since its founding in 1894 by May Garrettson Evans, the Preparatory has offered the resources and opportunities necessary for the full development of its music and dance students while simultaneously serving the national arts community as a trendsetter in quality arts education. Our renowned faculty influence the national arena through their own performances, speaking engagements, teacher training, masterclass direction, and competition adjudication. Our certificate and outreach programs have garnered national recognition and are replicated by schools from coast to coast.
Our strong reputation has attracted the interest of international visitors and has prompted students from around the world to join the Baltimore community in order to seek their arts education at the Preparatory. Our students continue to win acclaim in local, national, and international competitions and many go on to study at the world's most prestigious institutions. Illustrious alumni of the Preparatory include composer Philip Glass, singer James Morris, choreographer Martha Clarke, pop-singer Tori Amos, jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut, composer Camara Kambon, and violinist Hilary Hahn.
The Preparatory has a unique, twofold mission. It offers gifted children and adolescents the opportunity to realize their highest potential as leaders of the next generation of performing artists. In addition, it provides an education in music and dance to all members of the community who desire it, regardless of age, professional intention, or previous training. This dual mission is based upon the notion that every individual has the capacity for artistic expression at some appropriate level of understanding and skill.
