Swallow Hill Music’s Yale Avenue headquarters as seen from the outside.
Swallow Hill has been awarded a Shuttered Venue Operators Grant by the Small Business Administration in the amount of $2,175,000.
With this amazing influx of dollars the 42-year-old music nonprofit organization will be able to set aside funds for its long-term safety net, invest in new on-line capacities, innovative programs and in its physical structure.
“This award will be transformational for Swallow Hill,” CEO Paul Lhevine said. “I am thrilled to share this news.”
Swallow Hill closed its school doors in March 2020 and canceled the remainder of that year’s concerts in accordance with COVID-19 restrictions. Since then, their dynamic staff and teachers created an online music school that has hosted more than 600 students from 20 states and 4 countries and put 40 teachers back to work. And Swallow Hill’s creative concert team produced 180 live stream concerts with artists from 29 states and as far away as New Brunswick, Australia, Ireland, and British Columbia. These virtual shows inspired more than 200,000 Facebook views.
This summer the organization has produced a string of successful Evenings Al Fresco at Denver Botanic Gardens and has recorded record turnouts at their Shady Grove Picnic Series at Four Mile Historic Park. Swallow Hill will reopen its music school doors at its Yale Avenue location in September.
Lhevine says, “At the heart of Swallow Hill is an amazing community that continues to come out in person and online in droves supporting our work – It is because of our community that we’re able to put teachers together with students and performing artists together with audiences.”
The SBA award comes at a time when Swallow Hill is rebuilding its staff. In recent months they have a new Concert Director, Alicia “Bruce” Trujillo; a new Marketing Director will be announced soon; and three new customer service associates. The organization is currently interviewing three more positions to add to our Development, Concert and Community Outreach teams.
Tracy Zabel, Chair of Swallow Hill Music’s Board of Directors, echoed Lhevine’s excitement and the positive impact the grant will have on Swallow Hill’s future. “After such a tumultuous year, it is exceptional to receive a gift of this magnitude. During this phase of reemergence, we are so excited for the opportunities these funds provide and, above all, incredibly thankful for the community that sustained us to this point.”