The Westminster Conservatory of Music is moving from its home on the former Westminster Choir College on Walnut Lane in Princeton to Rider University’s Lawrence Township campus this summer.
The Conservatory is the community music school of Rider University, and formerly of the Westminster Choir College before the choir college merged with Rider University in 1992. It has offered music lessons to children and adults since its inception in 1970.
Beginning Aug. 1, the Conservatory will offer private instruction in piano, recorder and voice at the Rider University campus. Current Conservatory students may continue to take lessons at the new location, but lessons on instruments other than piano and recorder will not be offered in the fall, officials said.
Pre-registration for current Conservatory students starts in July. Registration for new students from the greater Lawrence Township community will begin in early August. Lessons are expected to start around Sept. 14.
The Honors Music Program, the Westminster Community Orchestra and Opera Outings program also will move to the Rider University campus on Aug. 1.
The Honors Music Program is a pre-college program for talented classical young musicians from ages 8 years old to 18 years old. They attend classes on Saturdays and also take a 45- or 60-minute weekly private lesson. They take courses in music theory, ear training, music history and jazz.
The Westminster Community Orchestra is made up of adult amateur musicians. They present concerts.
The Westminster Conservatory Opera Outings program provides trips to the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center for Saturday matinee performances, officials said. Attendees travel on a motorcoach from the Rider University campus. There is an optional pre-opera lecture about one week before the Saturday matinee performance.
Relocations are not new.
The Westminster Choir College itself was relocated from Princeton to Rider University’s Lawrence Township campus in 2020. The Municipality of Princeton has since acquired the former Westminster Choir College campus through eminent domain and is considering its future uses.
Moving the Conservatory to the Rider University campus is part of broader operational and programmatic restructuring efforts aimed at preserving its core offerings while also creating a closer alignment with Rider’s new Westminster College of Media and Performing Arts, officials said.
