Baldwin Wallace’s Conservatory of Music was founded in 1898 and quickly became a nationally renowned school for music. Yet, some individuals believe there is a disconnect between members of the Conservatory of Music and other BW students. 

The presence of the conservatory in Berea allows for the city’s community and BW students to have unique access to classical music that otherwise would not be so readily available and affordable.  

Joe Tarantowski, professor and director of broadcasting at BW, has worked with the Conservatory of Music in the past and has also been living in Berea for over ten years. He said that while the conservatory is there, many people do not really make full use of it being so close. 

“[The conservatory] does give people the opportunity to see really wonderful things, but they don’t take advantage of it,” Tarantowski said. 

Size may play a factor as far as the perception of the conservatory goes locally. Maire Pasquinelli, music education alumna and Berea local, worked in admissions for the conservatory over the summer during her time at BW and said that she would “estimate about 75” students are admitted into the conservatory each year.  

Margaret Raupp, vocal performance alumna and Berea resident, said that the very nature of having a conservatory, as opposed to a school of music, was to have a very small and select group of students. 

“Conservatories at their core are a very closed off thing,” Raupp said. 

Students have seen this firsthand on campus, as certain groups and classes are only offered to music majors. Additionally, Raupp observed that conservatory students are not often around other areas on campus. 

“We don’t have classes anywhere else,” Raupp said. “We are only within our little con [conservatory] circles, and there’s such a disconnect.”  

The degree of separation between conservatory students and their peers exists outside campus too. 

“I think it’s a bigger question of perception, because over the time I’ve been here, there’s been a lot of dissension… between the town and the faculty members for a variety of different reasons,” Tarantowski said. “That [tension] gets heightened a little bit when you get this idea that the conservatory is elite. I think that the students and residents feel that it is.” 

On the other end of the spectrum, conservatory students have expressed that they feel unwanted by residents of Berea. Whether it’s parking signs that restrict them or a lack of support from the city, some conservatory students feel undesired by the community. 

“It’s almost like we’re more of a service,” Pasquinelli said. “We’re making money for the town and providing them entertainment.”