John Knowles Paine Concert Hall, located on the second floor of the Fanny Peabody Mason Music Building at Harvard, was completed in 1914 and named for Harvard's first Professor of Music. Paine Hall's design was realized with the professional expertise of acoustician Wallace C. Sabine, who was known for his contribution to the construction of Symphony Hall in 1900.
Paine Hall is wheelchair accessible by ramp and elevator to the second floor. A wheelchair lift provides access to the Paine Hall stage. An accessible bathroom is also available. Special seating to accommodate wheelchairs requires advance notice.
Public Transportation
Via Red Line
Take the red line to Harvard. Exit onto Massachusetts Avenue and head through Harvard Yard towards the Science Center. Go into the Science Center and turn left at the information desk (after the Greenhouse Cafe). When you exit the Science Center, Paine Hall will be immediately to your right.
Driving
Note: To use a GPS or mapping software, use the address "1 Oxford Street" to locate Paine Hall. The Hall does not have a street address, but this is the address for the Science Center, which abuts the Music Building.
Via Massachusetts Turnpike
Take the Cambridge/Brighton/Allston exit and follow the ramp signs to Cambridge. After the bridge over the Charles River, turn left onto Memorial Drive. At the second light turn right onto JFK Street. You will go through a few sets of lights before coming to Harvard Square. Continue through Harvard Square (past Out of Town News on your right), but stay in the left lane. The road divides; bear left (the sign says Massachusetts Avenue/Arlington). Then stay to the right and bear right at the next divide in the road (there will be a traffic light with right arrow). You are now on Massachusetts Avenue heading north. Turn right onto Everett Street. Follow Everett Street to the end and take a right onto Oxford Street. Paine Hall is directly behind the Science Center at the corner where Oxford Street becomes Kirkland Ave.
Parking
Free parking is sometimes available for Paine Hall concerts. The garage is on Felton Street, at the corner of Broadway and Felton in Cambridge (opposite Broadway Market). Free parking is not always available. Please check your concert listing. Metered parking is available on Oxford, Kirkland, and several other nearby streets. Additionally, paid parking lots are available in Harvard Square. Meters are in effect until 6pm, then they're free. All metered spaces are free on Sundays.
Walking
Via Oxford Street
As you walk up Oxford Street, the Peabody Museum is on your left. Up a bit, and on your right at the bend in the road, is the Science Center. Walk into the Science Center and take a right at the information desk. Go out the Science Center doors and up the wooden ramp to the Music Building. Walk through the building to Paine Hall, which is on the second floor.
Via Massachusetts Avenue
Paine Hall is at the back of a small quadrangle behind both the Littauer building and the small, white Gannett house directly opposite the Cambridge Common.
Via Science Center
You will find the Music Building if you walk directly through the Science Center (the building with the rock fountain out in front). Come through the front door and follow the hallway through the building to Paine Hall.
Via Sanders Theatre
Follow Oxford Street past Sanders Theatre. Enter the Science Center on your left and walk through the Science Center towards a large construction site. When you exit the Science Center you will see a wooden ramp that leads to the Music Building's front door. Come through the front door and follow the hallway through the building to Paine Hall.