Founded by Almeda Adams in 1912 as part of the Settlement movement to welcome new immigrants to Cleveland through the common language of music, The Music Settlement provides early childhood education, music instruction, and music therapy to people of all ages and levels of experience in Northeast Ohio. 

Our venues include a campus at University Circle, Ohio City's BOP STOP at The Music Settlement live-music and education venue, and a new campus being constructed on Detroit Ave. between W. 25th and W. 28th in Ohio City.

The mission of The Music Settlement is to create a community where artistic expression belongs to everyone by serving those who seek personal growth through the arts.

Our vision is to be a welcoming and dynamic community school that serves the entire community, rich and poor alike, through excellent programs in music and arts instruction, music therapy, and early childhood education.

Our Core Values:
Excellent: In all aspects of The Music Settlement’s Operations, design, planning, and interaction we strive to achieve results that exceed expectations.
Accessible: The Music Settlement and its offerings are available to all.
Creative: The Music Settlement is innovative in its offerings, outcomes, and processes.
Community-focused: The Music Settlement is attentive and responsive to the needs of its community.
Enriching: The Music Settlement’s programs and offerings help individuals grow and strengthen the community and region.
Responsible: The Music Settlement is a reliable steward of the community’s trust and resources and operates in a sound and sustainable manner.

The Music Settlement is a community where artistic expression belongs to everyone.

Almeda Adams, The Fortnightly Music Club, and prominent Clevelanders --including the Blossom, Drury, Ferris, Otis, and Mather families-- founded The Cleveland Music School Settlement in 1912. Miss Adams legally incorporated the Settlement as a place for “both children and wage earners” to receive the best musical instruction at a modest price, to provide scholarships to talented but impoverished students, to foster the love of music, and become a factor in the musical life of Cleveland. 

In 2008, we shortened our name to The Music Settlement.

Many of our music students have grown to become professional musicians, while others become lifelong arts aficionados. Children who start their education in our Preschool and Day School programs go on to enjoy terrific academic success. Many of our Music Therapy clients have been coming to The Music Settlement for decades, resulting in a therapeutic consistency that benefits all. 

Famous Alums of TMS include singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman, “The Soloist” Nathaniel Ayers, Jamie Laredo, and Melvin Ritter, former St. Louis Orchestra concertmaster who left us a 1749 Amati violin and Kittell bow worth more than $500,000 in his will. Many of our faculty are also musicians of the “World’s Favourite” Cleveland Orchestra.