Even in peak condition, pipe organs are like gardens: they need tending. In a garden, maintenance involves watering, weeding, pruning, and training. For any pipe organ—including The Longwood Organ—such care translates into tuning, cleaning, and periodic mechanical adjustment. Just as with any garden or exhibit at Longwood, the goal is to have the organ in peak tune and mechanical condition at all times.

Our imaginative fountain choreographers utilize cutting-edge technology and artistic finesse to create astonishing performances.

When it comes to fireworks at Longwood, our legacy runs deep—or, rather, sky high.

Christmas at Longwood: gorgeous floral displays? Check. Beautiful, elegant decorations throughout the Conservatory? Check. Hundreds of thousands of lights sparkling in our outdoor gardens? Check. Music of the season? Check, check, and double check. Anyone who has visited Longwood Gardens or who has learned a little bit of our history will know that music and the performing arts have always been an important part of our Gardens.

Lost in the Meadow . . . those four words can conjure up very different meanings. Maybe you actually got lost in Longwood’s Meadow Garden, or perhaps another meadow. Maybe that phrase has metaphoric meaning, that you lose yourself while surrounded by beauty and nature. Whatever the case, Lost in the Meadow is the title of a new play being developed right before our very eyes—in our very own Meadow Garden. In the spring of 2011, a year after Longwood Gardens and People’s Light & Theatre agreed to partner to create a new play, teams of playwrights and set designers gathered for an immersive weekend, seeking to absorb everything they could about our Gardens. The playwrights were here to develop ideas for a new play inspired by Longwood. After concepts were developed, board members and staff representatives from both organizations heard the playwrights “pitch” their ideas. Out of those pitches, we decided to give one team the green light to start writing and designing. We were ready to proceed!

Since winning the Longwood Gardens International Organ Competition, Sheen has performed around the U.S., in the UK, Spain, and will tour Singapore, Australia, and Canada later this year. But one of his favorite concerts was his May 2014 return to Longwood, offering him the chance to play The Longwood Organ again. “I adore it,” Sheen said about the 10,010-pipe instrument. “It is like no other organ,” he said. Sheen readily admits that the Longwood Organ is still daunting to program and play, even after his hours playing it, but notes the organ is romantic and orchestral and well suited to the kind of music he enjoys playing.