Lawson, C. (2025) Introduction: tracing conservatoire values past, present, and future. In: Inside the Contemporary Conservatoire: Critical Perspectives from the Royal College of Music, London. Routledge. ISBN 9781032251066 (hardback) 9781032251059 (paperback) 9781003281573 (e-book)
Abstract
All modern conservatoires originated from the radical developments initiated during the foundation of the Paris Conservatoire in 1795 in the wake of the French Revolution. Although its influence spread throughout Europe and beyond during the nineteenth century, no satisfactory system of professional music education yet existed in Britain some 90 years later. This chapter begins by setting out the origins of the Royal College of Music’s original three core values of access, advocacy, and excellence, reflecting on the social context at the time these values were established and comparing this with the society of today. How has the realisation of these values in practice evolved from 1882 to the present, and what internal and external factors have shaped this evolution? To what extent are these values still relevant today and are they applicable to all conservatoires, nationally and internationally? This introductory chapter lays the groundwork for defining institutional purpose today and outlines the scope for renewal.
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