SUPPORT OUR FIFTEENTH ANNIVERSARY
As we mark our 15th anniversary in 2025, we invite you to join us in supporting our vision of a world in which classical music is embraced as an integral component of professionally delivered social services in sheltering environments.
SAVE THE DATE FOR OUR 15TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT
Saturday, November 15, 2025
Each month, Shelter Music Boston performs live classical chamber music concerts at community partners—homeless shelters, recovery centers, low-income housing sites, and programs for children throughout Greater Boston. The transformation in our audiences is immediate and palpable. After a recent concert at an emergency shelter for women who are unhoused, one listener told us, “Music helps my depression and anxiety. I felt happier and loved the music.”
At Shelter Music Boston, we know our work is a lifeline for people who are managing complex challenges. Generous donors like you make this impact possible, and we cannot do this important work without your partnership. Our musicians reached more than 1,400 audience members through 101 live concerts in 2024, and we aim to reach even more people this year.
​​​"I forgot that I was homeless for the last hour."
Can we count on you to join a Leadership Giving Circle today?
Sponsor the Artistic Director's position for one year
Sponsor the Children's Program Artistic Manager position for one year
of Transformation
Fund an interactive music project for a family or adult shelter
of Dignity
Fund ten concerts at a family or adult shelter
Fund five concerts for a women's shelter
Fund three concerts for men in recovery for substance use disorder
Support the purchase of musical instruments and arts supplies for the Children's Program
Provide funding to purchase musical scores for the concerts in 2025
Our Story
"Since I first picked up the violin as a nine-year old, the instrument has been my calling: the beauty, emotional expressiveness, and depth of the music are infinitely rewarding. I have played professionally for over 40 years in the great concert halls of the world and on 30 commercial recordings.
​In December 2009 I read in the New York Times about violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins, who plays in homeless shelters in Manhattan. Immediately I realized that we need this in Boston; that I would create a sustainable nonprofit organization to be staffed by professional musicians who would deliver concerts as a social service. Soon, I had lined up concerts, two per month, at the Shattuck Shelter and Kitty Dukakis Treatment Center in Jamaica Plain, MA.
The first concerts were a revelation: never had I experienced such a level of appreciation for my art from an audience. Performing in environments of great need is a natural evolution of the role classical music should fill in modern society. To have a positive impact on the life of one person experiencing homelessness by playing my violin is to honor classical music and the dignity of all people."
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—Julie Leven, SMB Founder, Executive and Artistic Director Emeritus
15 Years of Shelter Music Boston: A Timeline
May 2010
First concerts at Kitty Dukakis Treatment Center and Shattuck Shelter