From the classrooms, practice rooms and rehearsal spaces to--most significantly--the 300-seat recital hall, the Perry and Marty Granoff Music Center was designed with exquisite attention to acoustical detail. The new 55,000-square-foot facility will allow Tufts students and faculty, along with the wider community, to learn, teach, create, perform and enjoy music in a way that has previously not been possible on campus.
The crown jewel of the $27 million building is the Distler Performance Hall, an acoustically separate "box-within-a-box" that was designed by architects Perkins + Will of Boston to be a showcase for live acoustic performances. The hall is "acoustically sealed"--meaning sounds from without will not interfere with performances, and sounds from within will not interrupt teaching or other functions elsewhere in the building. Even the ventilation and lighting systems have been designed to be silent--no humming, no buzzing, no blowing.
The Music Center will also house a growing world music collection on the lower level, including the West African drums used by associate professor David Locke's Kiniwe West African drum and dance ensemble and the Javanese gamelan, a collection of percussion and other instruments native to Indonesia.
About 1,500 students participate in music classes each year. During the 2005-06 academic year, there were 2,000 course enrollments in the department. Interest in musical performance also has been growing steadily. In 2000, the music department staged between 60 and 65 events a year; last year, it staged 106.
In addition to the performance hall, other features of the Granoff Music Center include:
* An airy, sky-lit atrium that can serve as a reception area
* A box office (a new feature for the music department)
* Three acoustically sealed classrooms, with 65, 35 and 25 seats, respectively
* 20 faculty offices
* A multimedia lab with computers
* Instrument storage areas, with special lockers for larger instruments
* Practice rooms, including rooms designed specifically for use by percussion and other loud instruments
* Rehearsal rooms, seminar rooms and ensemble spaces
* New quarters for the Lilly Music Library, a branch of the Tisch library that includes listening stations and high-density, compressible stacks.
* A two-story, acoustically separate rehearsal hall located beneath the Distler Performance Hall that can also be used for recitals.
* A lower-level connection to Cohen auditorium.
By Public Transportation
Take the Red Line (subway) to the Davis Square station. At Davis Square, cross to the bus terminal at the corner of College Avenue. Follow College Avenue through the traffic circle at Powderhouse Square, and along the athletic fields to your left (the total distance is about 3/4 of a mile). Take a left on Talbot Avenue. The Granoff Music Center is the first building on the left [see map]. There is a free shuttle that runs between Davis Square and Tufts University every half hour during the academic year (September through May). The shuttle schedule is available online at the Public Safety website. You can also take a bus (MBTA Bus #94 or #96) from Davis Square to the Tufts campus. Ask to get off at the intersection of College Ave and Talbot Ave.
By Car
Coming from the North
If you are approaching on Routes 1, I-95/128, or I-93, the recommended approach is via Route 128/I-95 south to its intersection with Interstate 93 south towards Boston. Follow I-93 to Exit 32, Medford Square. From the exit ramp, take the first right off the traffic circle, which is Route 60 west. At the second set of lights, bear left on Main Street and take an immediate right on to Route 16 west. Continue on 16 for approximately one and a quarter miles. An athletic field will appear on your right. Bear left through the next traffic circle and proceed up the hill on Powder House Boulevard. At the third traffic light (a blinking yellow), turn left onto Packard Avenue. You are now on the Tufts campus. Take your next right onto Talbot Avenue - the Granoff Music Center is the last building on the street on your right [see map]. Tufts concert patrons may park in the Cohen lot, next to the facility and across the street from the football field, after normal business hours (M-F 9 am to 5 pm).
Coming from the Northwest
If you are approaching on Route 2 East, continue on Route 2, past the junction of Routes 2 and 95. If you are approaching on Route 3, take Route 95 south to Route 2 east (Exit 29A). At the junction of Routes 2 and 16, bear left through a full traffic light on Route 16 east. Take Route 16 east through two full traffic lights. After you cross Broadway and pass the Foodmaster grocery store, you will see blue signs on the right for Tufts University as you enter a rotary. Follow the blue signs and take a sharp right (and first right in the rotary) up the hill on Powder House Boulevard. At the third traffic light turn left onto Packard Avenue. You are now on the Tufts campus. Take your next right onto Talbot Avenue - the Granoff Music Center is the last building on the street on your right [see map]. Tufts concert patrons may park in the Cohen lot, next to the facility and across the street from the football field, after normal business hours (M-F 9 am to 5 pm).
Coming from the West or Southwest
If you are approaching on Routes 90 (Massachusetts Turnpike) or I-95/128 take Route 95 north to Route 2 east (Exit 29A). At the junction of Routes 2 and 16, bear left through a full traffic light on Route 16 east. Take Route 16 east through two full traffic lights. After you cross Broadway and pass the Foodmaster grocery store, you will see blue signs on the right for Tufts University as you enter a rotary. Follow the blue signs and take a sharp right (and first right in the rotary) up the hill on Powder House Boulevard. At the third traffic light turn left onto Packard Avenue. You are now on the Tufts campus. Take your next right onto Talbot Avenue - the Granoff Music Center is the last building on the street on your right [see map]. Tufts concert patrons may park in the Cohen lot, next to the facility and across the street from the football field, after normal business hours (M-F 9 am to 5 pm).
Coming from the South/Boston or Logan Airport
If you are coming from the south, take Route 3 north to Route 93 north. If coming from Boston, take Route 93 north. If coming from the airport, follow signs to Route 93 via the Sumner Tunnel (not the Ted Williams Tunnel). Take Route 93 north to Exit 31. Follow the exit ramp to Route 16 west and refer to directions in the first paragraph. Continue on 16 for approximately one and a quarter miles. An athletic field will appear on your right. Bear left through the next traffic circle and proceed up the hill on Powder House Boulevard. At the third traffic light (a blinking yellow), turn left onto Packard Avenue. You are now on the Tufts campus. Take your next right onto Talbot Avenue - the Granoff Music Center is the last building on the street on your right. Tufts concert patrons may park in the Cohen lot, next to the facility and across the street from the football field, after normal business hours (M-F 9 am to 5 pm).