WORCESTER — Nick Adams is calling some new tunes as executive director of Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester at 10 Irving St. in All Saints Church.
While he’s had a career in music, when he officially took over at Pakachoag on May 1 it was his first time being in charge of a music school, he said.
“They’ve been doing great work for 40-plus years now,” Adams said of Pakachoag, which was founded in 1982. “On the other hand, I do think I bring some fresh ideas.”
Originally from Anderson, South Carolina, Adams was formerly a trombonist with the United States Air Force Heartland of America Band. Most recently he was executive director of Cantata Singers in Boston and oversaw its Classroom Cantatas program, a highly regarded education initiative in Boston Public Schools. His wife is an educator, musician and conductor and his two daughters are musicians, he noted. The family lives in Framingham.
‘I was a little choked up’
Adams has been doing plenty of listening at Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester since May 1, including attending end of academic year recitals by the music school’s various vocal and instrumental soloists and groups. Some of the tunes he’s been hearing have been distinctly moving.
In a blog Adams has started, “Note by Note,” he recalled one recital where a young student sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”
“Her mother, who was maybe 10 feet away, had her phone in her hand, recording and beaming with pride. She wasn’t just watching. She was witnessing. I’m no longer embarrassed to admit that I’m a little — OK, maybe a lot — sappy. I was a little choked up while taking it all in,” Adams wrote.
“It’s easy to think of music, at least its serious pursuit, as routine: another Tuesday, another practice log, another repetition. But every so often, the lights go up. A family leans forward. A student finds their artistry. And suddenly, the rainbow isn’t quite as far away anymore. It’s right there, in simple music shared with people who care.”
“Music,” Adams emphasized in an interview, “can change your life.” He sees Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester as “a community for all people where music can unlock your potential.”
What was first called Pakachoag Community Music School was founded by Pakachoag Church in Auburn in 1982 as part of a vision to offer something tangible to the community at a time when public schools were cutting their music programs.
The school was incorporated as an independent, nonprofit organization in 1989, and although Pakachoag Church remained supportive, the school became concerned about the lack of a lease and what the future was going to be. The school had also developed a relationship with All Saints Church in Worcester and in 2018 made the move there to lease 5,000 square feet of dedicated space on the second and third floors of its expansive facility.
The move puts the school right next to downtown Worcester, but it also has satellite locations in surrounding towns.
There are several music schools in the area, and all have felt the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in one way or another, along with the fluctuations of the economy.
‘An extraordinary group of people’
Currently, Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester has about 450 students altogether, Adams said, a number that has risen back to pre-pandemic levels after a fall brought about by the COVID-19 lockdown. Programs include early childhood Music Together, Suzuki Violin & Cello, private lessons both for children and adults, introductory keyboard and music literacy classes, theater with music, song writing, and small ensembles. Pakachoag has also been involved with programs with Worcester Public Schools, particularly nearby Elm Park Community School.
“It’s an extraordinary group of people,” Adams said.
Sarah Smongeski was executive director of the music school for 31 years until retiring in 2023. She was praised by the school for having “both visionary and financial skills that have steered Pakachoag through the move to Worcester and to financial stability.” Kristjon Imperio was interim executive director for 18 months (he is now director of worship and development/organist at Wellesley Village Church). The school said “we owe him a debt of gratitude for his generous, kind, and capable service.”
Adams has spoken with both and they have been supportive, he said.
Kallin Johnson was the school’s founding executive director in 1982. He left in 1986, but returned in 2006 as a member of the board of directors and is currently board president.
“Nick’s extensive background in arts leadership and his passion for music education make him the ideal person to guide our school’s continued growth and community impact,” Johnson in an announcement at the time of Adams’ appointment.
“The school’s commitment to accessible, high-quality music education aligns perfectly with my belief in the transformative power of the arts,” said Adams.
“I look forward to working with the talented faculty, dedicated board, committed students, and vibrant community to build upon the school’s impressive legacy and explore new opportunities for growth and innovation. Our goal will be simple: a musical organization of, for, and by its community.”
‘Our doors are wide open’
Adams said he is an example of how music can change your life. “Absolutely.” His family was not musical but there was an old piano in the house in Anderson that he would hit the keys on avidly. His parents enrolled him in Suzuki piano lessons and he went on to play the trombone. “I met my wife through music,” he said. He earned a bachelor degree in music education from the University of South Carolina and a masters degree in trombone performance from The New School in New York City.
In 2007 his wife got a job conducting with the Boston Children’s Chorus so they moved to the area.
“We’ve never left. We put down roots and stayed,” Adams said. He still plays the piano recreationally.
Adams was also previously executive director of Longwood Symphony Orchestra.
“I did know about this organization,” he said of Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester. He applied to be executive director in December.
“This is my first time in education exclusively it’s but something I’ve been near for a while,” he said.
The Cantata Singers is an ensemble which looks to push the boundaries of the choral tradition in Boston. In the Classroom Cantatas program, teaching artists guide students in writing their own cantatas through writing lyrics and developing melodies leading up to actual performance.
“It was really lovely,” Adams said of his involvement with the program. “It made me think that it (music education) would be a good fit for me.”
The Cantata Singers also have Community Sing events where musicians and non-musicians of all ages to come together and make music.
“I’d like to bring that here and see how it goes,” Adams said of Pakachoag having its own community singing happenings.
“I want to ensure that our doors are wide open and there really is a place for everyone here.”
‘Music should be a human right’
Adams said that coming on board in May and June, he walked in to “a round of recitals. I came into a very busy time, but it’s been a crash course in the big picture.”
The big picture for Adams when it comes to music is that “I believe that music, particularly in this environment now, should be vital part of health and wellness … Music should be a human right.”
He said he was at a conference recently at which the legendary soprano singer Renée Fleming talked about her new book, Music and Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness, which brings together essays from from leading scientists, musicians, educators, therapists, and physicians.
“Music is closely connected to health and wellness and I want Pakachoag to be a part of that,” Adams said.
