WORCESTER CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY INC
Be engaged
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Concert Series
We perform fifteen concerts per season in Worcester and the surrounding towns in Worcester County. Our concerts are accessible and affordable including free admission for children under 17. We provide free tickets to area senior centers.
Community Engagement
Annual free family concert and free senior citizen concert. Music on Main free community concert series.
ChamberFest Music Camp
The WCMS Chamber Music Camp is a non-competitive, intensive chamber music program for strings, woodwinds and pianists age 12 and up,including adult amateurs. Located at Clark University in Worcester, MA, our program is tailored to suit both college and community level
student.
Neighborhood Strings
Launched in 2012, Neighborhood Strings is a new initiative of the Worcester Chamber Music Society that offers free music lessons in string instruments to youth from the Main South neighborhood. Neighborhood Strings seeks to connect the musicians of the WCMS with urban youth, forming deep ties that transform the lives of the students, the musicians, and ultimately the public face of the community through music.Our focus is not just on the child as a musician, but the child as a contributing member of society.
The program seeks to provide affordable, high-quality arts education; to be open and easily accessible to
the neighborhood; to foster family involvement; and to have sustainable public
value.
Students (ages 6-15) receive weekly private or or small group lessons during after-school hours, with most students attending 2-3 times a week. Students receive instruments on loan and are expected to
practice at home. The lessons culminate in “performance parties” which
gives the students the chance to demonstrate their achievements and involve the
entire family. We help connect students with additional college-age mentors or “practice
buddies.” from Clark University and Holy Cross College.
Since year two, the program has offered a teen leadership group, the “NS Club.” The club targets youth 6th-grade and older and invites them to attend a weekly session that includes discussion of civic issues and chamber music. The club also cultivates social rapport and a sense of buy-in.
Through established partnerships with Clark University, Woodland Academy and the Learning First Charter School, WCMS targets students in the Main South and Downtown neighborhoods and provides internship opportunities for Clark students interested in music education and community development.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
Chamber Music America - Member 2006
Chamber of Commerce 2010
External reviews

Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
To deepen the quality and professionalism of our musical offerings and to advance further the creation of art for the benefit of the greater Worcester community.
To continue to make our concerts and community programs accessible to serve our diverse community.
To expand our reach and depth through our educational programs to support the under-served youth of Worcester and further advance our visibility within the community.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We have seen an increase in diversity and community partnerships through our unique concert offerings, expanded community concert series and partnerships with other Worcester cultural institutions.
Education is a key component of the society's work. Our program seeks to transform the lives of immigrant, refugee and underserved urban youth (ages 6-15) living in the Main South and Downtown neighborhoods of Worcester throughout the school year. We provide free instruments, music programming, a teen club, performance opportunity, and intensive mentorship 2-3 times a week.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Worcester Chamber Music Society is a highly regarded musical organization, whose members are Grammy nominated and have performed with ensembles such as the London Symphony Orchestra, Handel and Haydn Society, Boston Symphony Orchestra to name a few. Our experienced teaching artists are compassionate educators who are committed to the highest educational standards and best practices to reach underserved youth.
Our community partnerships continue to grow. Through these relationships, we are better able to grow our audiences, keep our concerts affordable, and expand our outreach. In addition, we have an active Board of Directors, with established committees that serve to support the work of the organization.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In fifteen years, we have grown from four concerts a year to seventeen, serving all of Central Massachusetts. Our Neighborhood Strings program now serves fifty students at two sites in Worcester. Our Chamber Music Camp continues to grow and provide a healthy source of earned revenue.
Looking forward, we hope to expand our Neighborhood Strings program to serve the many kids currently on our waiting list. To do this, we will need expanded support from sources beyond Worcester. We are seeking active partnerships with social service agencies to enable us to support our youth and their families beyond music-making.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
-
How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
-
Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
-
What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don't have any major challenges to collecting feedback
Financials
Unlock nonprofit financial insights that will help you make more informed decisions. Try our monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights?
Learn more
about GuideStar Pro.
Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
WORCESTER CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY INC
Board of directorsas of 12/13/2020
Ellen More
University of Massachusetts Medical School
Term: 2020 - 2023
Jeffrey Paster
Cheri Carty
Bay State Savings Bank
Gary Keilson
Reliant Medical Group
Elisabet Mandon
University of Massachusetts Medical School
Ellen More
Retired
Conrad Voellings
Retired
Jeffrey Paster
Retired
William Kadish
Ann Molloy
Mountain and Dearborn LLC
Gbeton Somassee
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Esther-Faith Tendon
Ascentria Care Alliance
Janet Amorello
UniBank
Nicole Dow
Dow Shoes
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
-
Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/26/2020GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.