The Four Hour Day was co-founded in 2015 by father-and-son team Gabe and Tyler. Gabe’s background as a machinist, instrument builder & craftsman joined Tyler’s experience in music, education and restoration, and the place was born.
The guiding principle behind this project was creating a warm & welcoming spot for the hands-on practice of music. Through our lessons studio, gatherings, concerts and events, we try and promote the idea that music is for everyone.
The shop’s namesake is Gabe’s utopian novel, detailing a future where we work cooperatively & collectively and everyone need only work four hours a day. The book is available as a free PDF! If you read and enjoy it, Gabe would love to hear from you.
The Four Hour Day is housed in a historic converted rowhouse in Baltimore’s NE Arcadia neighborhood, at 4305 Harford Rd. Gabe and Tyler spent eighteen months rehabbing the building, which had lain derelict for at least a decade. While we had a lot of fun falling through the roof, getting covered in plaster dust and endlessly spackling, we’re glad that part’s over and we get to enjoy the shop, studio and home now.