Effective Date: April 27, 2026
The Global Conservatory ("TGC", "we", "us", or "our") is an online conservatory that delivers private lessons, group classes, masterclasses, certificates, and degree-track programmes to students worldwide. We take privacy seriously because we work with musicians of every age — including minors — and because the information that flows through a conservatory is uniquely sensitive. This Privacy Policy explains, in plain language, what we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, who we share it with, and the rights you have over it.
This Policy applies to theglobalconservatory.com, our admissions and faculty application portals, our customer accounts, and our masterclass and lesson platforms (collectively, the "Services"). By using the Services, you agree to this Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Services.
1. Who This Policy Covers
- Students (adults and, with parental consent, minors)
- Parents and legal guardians who enrol minors
- Faculty applicants and active faculty members
- Visitors to our website
- Institutional partners, donors, and event hosts
2. Information We Collect
2.1 Information You Give Us Directly
- Identity & contact: name, email, phone, country, time zone, billing and shipping address.
- Account credentials: username, password (hashed), security questions.
- Student profile: instrument, level, age range, prior training, repertoire interests, programme of study, audition recordings, written statements.
- Parental/guardian information (when the student is a minor): legal guardian name, contact details, written consent on file.
- Faculty profile (for applicants and active faculty): biography, CV, instrument, qualifications, video samples, banking details for payouts, government-issued identification used for tax compliance.
- Health and accessibility information that you voluntarily disclose so we can provide reasonable accommodations.
- Payment information: processed by our payment processors (Shopify Payments, Stripe). We do not store full card numbers on our own servers.
2.2 Information We Collect Automatically
- Device and connection: IP address, browser, OS, device type, time-zone, language preference.
- Usage: pages visited, lessons booked, masterclasses watched, time spent, navigation paths, referrer.
- Cookies, pixels, and similar technologies (see Section 9).
2.3 Information from Third Parties
- Sign-in providers (Apple, Google) when you choose to sign in through them — we receive only the basic profile data they share.
- Payment processors and tax authorities (verification, fraud prevention).
- Background-check providers for faculty (where required by law or local regulation).
- Public references submitted with faculty applications.
2.4 Information from Lesson Sessions
Lessons, masterclasses, and ensemble rehearsals occur on third-party video platforms (such as Zoom). Audio, video, and chat from these sessions may be recorded for quality assurance, faculty review, archive access for the participating student, and educational improvement. You are notified of recording at the start of each session and may decline. Where a minor participates, recording is governed by the parental-consent on file. Recordings of minors are never shared outside the lesson participants and TGC's authorised review staff without separate written consent.
3. How We Use Your Information
- To create and operate your account, deliver lessons, and grant access to enrolled programmes.
- To process payments, issue receipts and certificates, and pay faculty.
- To match students with appropriate faculty, levels, and programmes.
- To monitor and improve lesson quality, prevent abuse, and protect minors.
- To communicate with you about your bookings, programme updates, and policy changes.
- To send marketing where you have opted in (you can opt out at any time).
- To comply with legal obligations, including tax, accounting, and regulatory reporting.
- To enforce our Terms of Service and to resolve disputes.
4. Special Protections for Minors
Children under the age of 13 may use the Services only with verifiable parental or guardian consent, and only through a parent-managed account. Children between 13 and 18 may register only with parental consent.
- We do not knowingly collect personal information from a child under 13 without verified parental consent.
- We collect the minimum necessary information to deliver the lesson or programme.
- We do not display targeted advertising to minors.
- We do not sell or rent personal information of minors.
- Parents and guardians may review, correct, or delete a minor's information at any time by contacting info@theglobalconservatory.com.
- Recordings of lessons involving minors are accessible only to TGC review staff, the participating faculty member, and the parent/guardian on file.
5. How We Share Information
We share information only as necessary to deliver our Services or comply with the law. Specifically:
- Service providers: Shopify (storefront and payments), Stripe, Zoom, email delivery providers, analytics providers, customer support tooling — each bound by a data-processing agreement.
- Faculty: the student's first name, instrument, level, and lesson goals (as needed to deliver the lesson). Sensitive contact information is shared only when both parties consent.
- Parents and guardians of minors: the minor's lesson schedule, recordings, and progress notes.
- Legal and regulatory: tax authorities, court orders, lawful government requests, safeguarding authorities where there is a credible risk to a child or an adult at risk.
- Successors: in the event of a merger, acquisition, or restructuring, with notice to affected users.
We do not sell your personal information. We do not allow faculty or third parties to contact students or parents off-platform without prior written consent.
6. International Transfers
The Global Conservatory operates internationally. Your information may be processed in jurisdictions other than your own, including the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Singapore. Where required, we use contractual safeguards (Standard Contractual Clauses) to ensure equivalent protection.
7. Your Rights
Subject to local law, you may have the right to:
- Access the personal information we hold about you.
- Correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
- Delete your information ("right to be forgotten"), subject to legal retention requirements.
- Restrict or object to certain processing.
- Receive a copy of your information in a portable format.
- Withdraw consent at any time (without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing).
- Lodge a complaint with your local data-protection authority.
To exercise any of these rights, email info@theglobalconservatory.com. We respond within 30 days.
8. Data Retention
- Active accounts: while the account exists, plus the minimum statutory period after closure.
- Lesson recordings: typically up to 12 months, then deleted unless required for an active certificate or degree audit.
- Financial records: 7 years (tax compliance).
- Faculty payout records: 7 years.
- Marketing preferences: until you opt out, plus a suppression record so we don't contact you again.
9. Cookies and Tracking
We use cookies and similar technologies to keep you signed in, remember your preferences, measure performance, and (with your consent) personalise content. You can manage cookie preferences through the cookie banner on our site or your browser settings. Strictly necessary cookies cannot be disabled because they are required to deliver the Services.
10. Security
We use industry-standard administrative, technical, and physical safeguards: encryption in transit, access controls, faculty background checks where required, vendor due diligence, and regular security reviews. No system is perfectly secure; if we ever experience a breach affecting your personal information, we will notify you and the relevant authorities as required by law.
11. Marketing & Communications
We send transactional messages (booking confirmations, programme updates, invoices) at all times. Marketing messages are sent only with your consent and you can opt out from any marketing email or SMS by following the unsubscribe instructions inside the message, or by emailing us.
12. Third-Party Sites and Plugins
Our Services link to third-party sites and integrate with third-party tools (Zoom, YouTube embeds, payment processors). Their privacy practices are governed by their own policies; we encourage you to review them.
13. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Policy from time to time. The "Effective Date" at the top will be revised when changes are made. Material changes will be communicated by email and a notice on the Services. Continued use after the Effective Date indicates acceptance.
14. Contact Us
If you have questions, requests, or concerns:
- Email: info@theglobalconservatory.com
- Web: theglobalconservatory.com/contact
- Postal: The Global Conservatory · 74-78 Stanley Street, Flat 5 · Singapore
We respond to all privacy inquiries within two business days.