San Francisco Conservatory of Music

When the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) was founded in 1917 as the Ada Clement Piano School, the school's four pupils were taught by a staff of five in a remodeled home. In 1923, the school transitioned into the West Coast's first music conservatory and began offering courses in orchestral instruments, theory, composition, and voice. In the century since its founding, SFCM has changed locations twice, grown from four students to 480 students each year, and produced successful alumni shaped by talented professors.

Despite the many changes that the school has undergone, SFCM remains driven by its core mission: to educate the whole person, with an interconnected curriculum that breaks down barriers between the intellectual, artistic, professional, and individual. SFCM fulfills this mission not only through its world-class undergraduate and graduate-level academics but also through its pre-college division and continuing education program. Through this diverse work, SFCM fosters skills and passion for the art of music in learners of all ages.