Music is filling the Boston Public Library (BPL) in a whole new way this year. With support through the Boston Public Library Fund (BPLF), the Library has launched its first-ever Children’s Musician-in-Residence program — bringing live, interactive music directly to children across the city to create opportunities for playful learning, creativity, and community connection.
Leading the program is Phoebe Neilsen, a music educator and preschool music specialist from Brighton. Designed as a one-year residency, the program supports an early-career musician while offering programming across all 25 branches and the Central Library. The residency is made possible by the LEGO Group, through a two-year, $1 Million partnership that increases access to creative play.
Classes are tailored by age, from movement-based sessions for preschoolers to lyric-writing workshops for older youth. Phoebe’s approach is simple but powerful. “When you create space for music performances in a relaxed setting, kids become completely present,” they shared. “That’s when the learning happens!”
At the Shaw–Roxbury Branch, Children’s Librarian Brittany Pendleton was thrilled to offer a new program that incorporates the power of play. “Music is such an important early literacy tool. Through rhythm, repetition, and call-and-response, children are building language skills without even realizing it.”
Phoebe’s session at Shaw-Roxbury was an instant hit. Opening with Jack Johnson’s “Upside Down,” children ages 0–5 jumped up and began to dance — uninhibited, expressive, and fully engaged. “They were locked in,” Phoebe recalled. “It was pure joy and a real highlight of my time in this role so far.”
“Thanks to the LEGO Group, the Children’s Musician-in-Residence program is expanding access to playful learning in the City of Boston,” said Maggie Levine, the BPL’s Youth Programs Librarian. “It’s exciting to know that more children and families are discovering new ways to learn and express themselves, free to all.”
To find out more about the programs offered by the Children’s Musician-in-Residence, visit bpl.org/events.