Neighborhood Sound Lab
Access to synthesizers, classes, and a community of people learning together, one Philadelphia neighborhood at a time.
The Neighborhood Sound Lab is a new project by Bowerbird designed to provide access to synthesizers, education in how to use them, and a community of people learning together.
During an initial pilot year, the project will take place at three partner locations: Esperanza Arts Center, Asian Arts Initiative, and Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture. Each iteration includes a publicly accessible, well-equipped synthesizer studio and a program of classes, workshops, and community events.
Through this program, Bowerbird is testing the viability of and public interest in a more permanent synthesizer-centered resource, such as a Philadelphia Synth Library.
Programs
Open studio · Free, all experience levels welcome
Community Synth Studio @ AMLA / Esperanza
Tuesdays, 3 to 6pm
Wednesdays, 3 to 9pm
Thursdays, 3 to 6pm
October 21 through December 17, 2026
Classes, workshops and events
Tue, Oct 20 · 6:30pmIntro to Synths: Orinoco Signal FlowTaught by Eugene LewAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20
Oct 27 to Nov 17Synth Foundations (Four-Part Course)Taught by Eugene Lew and Carolyn Zaldivar SnowAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $25 – $50
Thu, Oct 29 · 6:30pmExploring Wave Shape and PerceptionTaught by Juan CastrillónAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20
Thu, Nov 5 · 6:30pmStudio OrientationFacilitated by Carolyn Zaldivar SnowAMLA Studios at Esperanza · Free
Thu, Nov 12 · 6:30pmSynth Skills: One Oscillator EnsembleTaught by Chris PowellAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20
Thu, Nov 19 · 6:30pmSynth Skills: Rhythmic Explorations and CombosTaught by Chris PowellAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20
Tue, Dec 1 · 6:30pmIntro to Synths: Wired for SoundTaught by Carolyn Zaldivar SnowAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20
Tue, Dec 8 · 6:30pmExploring FilteringTaught by Juan CastrillónAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20
Tue, Dec 15 · 6:30pmExploring Accent, Cycle and RepetitionTaught by Juan CastrillónAMLA Studios at Esperanza · $10 – $20More classes and events are added all the time. Check back soon.
Stay in contact
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Background
There is a gap between curiosity about electronic music and the ability to act on it. The equipment is costly, the knowledge tends to circulate among people already connected to schools, studios, or established scenes, and there are few public places to sit down with an instrument and ask questions. The Neighborhood Sound Lab is built to close that gap, with instruments anyone can use, instruction from Philadelphia musicians, and time to experiment without committing to a purchase.
Plenty of people are curious about synthesizers and have no practical way to act on that curiosity. Buying an instrument means choosing before you know what you like. Learning alone means relying on online tutorials instead of having someone who can answer a question while your hands are on the machine. Finding others who share the interest means knowing where to look. The Neighborhood Sound Lab addresses all three by putting instruments, instructors, and other people in the same room.
Synthesizers are an unusually good entry point into making music, since they ask for curiosity rather than years of training, and they reward experimentation over instruction. What they require is access: to the instruments themselves, to people who know them, and to others learning at the same time. The Neighborhood Sound Lab does this in neighborhoods around the city rather than in one fixed location.
Team
Questions and comments
Have a question about our classes or how the studio works? Is there a topic you would like to see taught, or a teacher you would recommend? Is there a piece of equipment you would like to use? Would you like to teach a class yourself? Do you have equipment you would like to donate? Does your organization or neighborhood space want to host the Neighborhood Sound Lab? Would you like to volunteer, or bring a class, school group, or community group to the studio? Have you taken a class or used the studio and want to tell us how it went? Email us at SoundLab@bowerbird.org.
Credits
Major support for NEIGHBORHOOD SOUND LAB has been provided by the William Penn Foundation with additional support from The Presser Foundation.
