2007. On April 1, 2010, the Boston Globe reported that Longy was in negotiations to become a graduate school of Bard College. President Zorn began preliminary talks with Bard's president, Leon Botstein in July 2009. The merger with Bard College in June 2011 established a Master of Arts in Teaching in Music degree program, located in Los Angeles, California. The program is based on the tenets of the Venezuelan movement of social empowerment through music education known as El Sistema. The Los Angeles Philharmonic is also a partner in the MAT program, with hands-on teacher training taking place at the LA Phil's premier El Sistema-inspired site, Heart of Los Angeles (YOLA).<ref>Johnson, Reed (4 October 2011). "L.A. Phil, Bard, Longy launch El Sistema-based music initiative". Los Angeles Times</ref> The Master of Arts in Teaching in Music was created in association with Take a Stand , a partnership between Longy, Bard, and the LA Phil that was formed to promote and support the El Sistema-inspired music education movement throughout the US. Facilities Zabriskie House Longy's original home in Cambridge is the Edwin Abbot House, a well-appointed landmark building originally designed by Longfellow, Alden, and Harlow. As is the case with the firm's designs for Cambridge City Hall, the house's extensive Richardsonian detailing, and winding open stair, recall two of the partners' previous work in the office of legendary Boston architect, H. H. Richardson. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places. The structure now holds rooms for teaching, administration, performance and practice. Following the construction of Pickman Hall in 1970 (see below), Longy began a program in the 1990s to add facilities and renovate existing ones. The program included construction of the Bakalar Music Library, which opened in 1992; acquisition and restoration of the Rey-Waldstein Building; and renovation and expansion of the Edward M. Pickman Concert Hall. The Rey-Waldstein Building In 1998, Longy purchased a new building at 33 Garden Street to add further performance and practice space as well as classrooms and offices. Originally built in 1905, and renovated by Longy in 2005, the historic structure is now named in honor of Margaret Rey and H.A. Rey, the creators of Curious George, along with longtime supporters of Longy, and Margaret Rey’s parents, Felix and Gertrude Waldstein. In 2006, the Cambridge Historical Commission recognized Longy with a Preservation Award for the quality of its restoration and renovation, designed by Wolf