Gordon College announced plans for the Adams Center for Music, a new performance venue and expansion intended to unify the college’s music programs in a single facility for the first time. | Photo Credit: Gordon College
What You Need to Know
- Gordon College announced plans for the Adams Center for Music, a new performance hall and expansion of its music facilities in Wenham, Massachusetts.
- The project is supported by a planned gift from Stephen and Denise Adams, according to the college.
- The college said it expects to break ground in summer 2026 and open the center in fall 2028.
- Planned features include a 500-seat performance hall, rehearsal and education spaces, and design elements emphasizing transparency and community connection.
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Gordon College announced plans for the Adams Center for Music, a new performance venue and expansion intended to unify the college’s music programs in a single facility for the first time.
The Wenham, Massachusetts-based college said the project—its most significant building effort since the Ken Olsen Science Center opened in 2008—will be made possible by a planned gift from arts and higher-education supporters Stephen and Denise Adams.
Under the current plan, Gordon said construction will start in summer 2026, with an opening targeted for fall 2028. The Adams Center for Music will adjoin the existing Phillips Music Center and is expected to bring choral and instrumental ensembles and other music programs into one consolidated location.
“This project reflects Gordon’s commitment to investing in the arts and expanding the reach and reputation of our music program,” said Gordon College President Michael D. Hammond, according to an article from Gordon College.
The college said Epstein Joslin + Picardy Architects will design the building. Plans call for performance and rehearsal space, including a 500-seat performance hall, a large ensemble rehearsal room and dedicated areas for choral and music education, along with views of A. J. Gordon Memorial Chapel and the campus landscape.
The announcement described “striking glass apertures” along campus pathways that will provide sightlines into key rehearsal and performance areas, a choice the college framed as a symbol of transparency and connection. It also said the performance hall will use wrap-around seating to create an immersive, communal experience, and that the stage will be built to accommodate programming ranging from large choral-orchestral works to chamber music.
“This is more than a building; it is a catalyst for transformation,” said Dr. Sarita Kwok, dean of the Adams School of Music and the Arts, according to an article from Gordon College.
Architect Alan Joslin, founding principal of Epstein Joslin + Picardy Architects, said the building’s “most eye-catching features” will be its “transparency and communal shaping,” with extensive use of glass intended as an invitation to engage with the arts.
Denise Adams said the planned facility reflects a belief that music deserves purpose-built environments. “This building reflects Stephen’s and my belief that music deserves spaces designed with the same care and intentionality as the art itself,” she said, according to an article from Gordon College.
Gordon also pointed to the Adams family’s history of investing in music education and positioned the project as part of a broader vision for arts programming and community engagement.