Andrea Kalyn has been named the 17th President of The New England Conservatory of Music. She will be the first woman ever to hold this position, beginning her tenure in January 2019.
Kalyn comes to the conservatory (NEC) after more than a decade at Oberlin College and Conservatory, where she first served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and, later, Dean of the Conservatory and Professor of Music. She also directed Oberlin’s Creativity and Leadership entrepreneurship program for seven years, and played a major role in creating a new major in jazz voice, establishing the Oberlin-Como Piano Academy, developing the department of Pedagogy, Advocacy, and Community Engagement, and forming partnerships with Steinway & Sons and the Shanghai Conservatory.
Kennett F. Burns, Chair of the NEC Board of Trustees, said that Kalyn’s experience and collaborative spirit make her the ideal person to fill the role of NEC’s President.
“Andrea emerged as the resounding choice because of her qualifications: her deep commitment to music excellence, her relationship with faculty, and her sense of responsibility to music education and the world at large,” Burns said. “We are thrilled with her appointment as the next President of NEC and know she is the right person to lead NEC into the future.”
Kalyn’s appointment, which follows an intensive three-year search, comes at a pivotal moment for NEC. The conservatory, with a student body that numbers approximately 2,700, celebrated its 150th anniversary last year, and has ambitions to continue growth as an innovative and inclusive institution.
In a statement, Kalyn said, “Recognized worldwide for its excellence and commitment to great artistry, New England Conservatory of Music has a striking capacity to foster the development of highly imaginative individuals singularly equipped to navigate and shape a dynamic and multi-dimensional artistic world, to facilitate innovative and fruitful relationships among creators, performers, and audiences, and to design and establish within the broader community programs that foster musical engagement and creativity.
“It is with the utmost honor, energy, and dedication that I look forward to the opportunity to work with NEC’s exceptional faculty, staff, and board of trustees towards the education of generations of alumni who will shape the profession, and indeed the very future of music.”
