The Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, a 128-year-old nonprofit and the largest provider of music therapy in New York City, offers programs that help clients tap into parts of themselves that were sometimes hard to bring out.

The organization plans to increase its efforts after recently announcing an expansion to a new 12,000-square-foot campus at One Prospect Park West.

Currently operating at capacity in its historic Victorian mansion, leaders say the new location, just blocks away, will allow them to double their music therapy clients over the next few years.

“We provide music education, music therapy to about 7,000 New Yorkers here out of our home in Park Slope and about 90 partnership sites around the five boroughs,” said Chad Cooper, BKCM’s executive director.

What to expect once the expansion is complete

The new space, which is expected to open next year, will feature 13 acoustic studios, a performance hall, and community space. It will also house a future Music Therapy Institute that will operate nationwide, according to Music Therapy Director Toby Williams.

“We partner with public schools, private schools, homeless shelters, memory care units, and we send therapists in and develop programs that are community-based, culturally responsive,” Williams said.

Leaders say the $16 million project was made possible, thanks, in part, to funding from Billy and Alexis Joel’s foundation to advance clinical creative art therapies.

“We really want to help them accomplish that because the outcomes from these patients, and you see what music therapy does for them, is incredible,” said Alexis Roderick Joel, co-chair of The Joel Foundation.

Why music therapy is so important to many  

Music therapy has transformed the life of 21-year-old Danielle Bioh, who is visually impaired, teaching her to experience beauty that cannot always be seen.

“After I come out of music, I’m pretty much happy because I got to do something I’ve always loved,” Bioh said.

Hannah Hershman, the conservatory’s lead music therapist and community coordinator, said a price tag cannot be put on what music therapy offers.

“Because it’s an evidence-based practice, we know that it’s not just emotional benefits, but research shows a meaningful deep impact in physical, emotional, mental and social well-being,” Hershman said.

For Bioh’s mother, Cynthia Robinson-Bioh, the impact of music therapy is tangible.

“They were able to develop her as a person, her confidence, her willing to speak up for herself, which is a big part or a challenge for those with disabilities because so much of the world doesn’t see them,” Robinson-Bioh said.

Bioh reflected on her own journey, saying, “I was a very shy child, and just looking at people or trying to talk to them directly made me very uncomfortable.”

Over the years, growing her vocal range and her passion for music has helped her learn to advocate for herself and others.

“Using my voice for advocacy is just really something personal to me,” she said, adding she’s now found her voice and the courage to use it every day.

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