25-Year-Old Bettendorf Grad is New Sound Conservatory Owner
Ben Tinsman has packed a lot into his 25 years of life so far.
The 2018 Bettendorf High alum graduated a year early from the University of Iowa; got married at 21; became a company vice president at 22, a new father three months ago, and is the proud new owner of the growing Sound Conservatory in downtown Moline.
The music school, retail music store and performance venue in the old Carnegie library at 504 17th St., has been transferred from business founder, teacher and pianist Andrzej Kozlowski, to Tinsman, a veteran musician himself.
“Over the past three years, Sound Conservatory has grown into the region’s largest music academy, a respected name in piano retail, and a vibrant performance venue that has welcomed internationally renowned musicians, comedians, and artists of all kinds. What began as a vision has become something much larger, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built,” Kozlowski (who plans to move to Europe to focus more on performing and composing) posted on Facebook July 1.
Charlotte Blu performed at a Library Sessions concert at Sound Conservatory, April 27, 2025.
“I’m deeply grateful for everyone who supported this dream—from our students and families to the performers, educators, and staff who brought it to life,” he said. “I wish Ben every success as he leads Sound Conservatory into its next exciting chapter. It’s been my passion and focus since opening the doors in March 2022, and I know it’s in good hands.”
It’s almost as if Tinsman’s whole life has been building to this timely duet of musical skill and business acumen.
He’s played piano since age 8 (taking lessons through high school and college), and picked up the trumpet in 5th grade, eventually joining the Quad City Youth Symphony during his high school years. An avid singer, Tinsman went from being an Iowa All-State high school singer to participating in the University of Iowa’s graduate choir during his undergraduate years.
He has worked as vice president of finance for Twin State Technical Services since 2022 and holds a bachelor’s in finance from the University of Iowa, with a minor in music. Before joining Twin State, he worked as a finance analyst for a Muscatine-based manufacturing firm.
Tinsman is training his replacement at Twin State (which has about 60 employees) and will split his time between there and Sound Conservatory. Ben’s sister Emily is a former Miss Iowa, and works as education programs coordinator at Hoyt Sherman Place in Des Moines.
Tinsman married Courtney McClaine in July 2021, and had their first child (daughter Becca) in late March 2025.
Ben graduated college a year early, in 2021, mainly because of music. He entered Iowa with already about 20 college credits, including AP music theory he had at Bettendorf.
Because of COVID, Tinsman’s whole last year at Iowa was online, mainly classes he had Tuesdays and Thursdays, and he didn’t have an in-person graduation, choosing to celebrate at home.
“I moved back here in January 2021; there wasn’t a reason for me to be in Iowa City,” he said Wednesday, already engaged to his now-wife, Courtney, a 2017 BHS grad who graduated University of Northern Iowa in 2020. He worked the rest of the week at Twin State his last year of college.
Ben and Courtney got married (at age 21) July 3, 2021 (after being together five years) and she gave birth to their first child, daughter Becca, in late March 2025. Courtney works for Heart of America Group.
Filling a niche in the QC
Tinsman said Sound Conservatory really fills a niche following the closure of Foster Family Music in Bettendorf and West Music moving out of Moline.
“What Sound Conservatory does is really unique, selling pianos, having that awesome performance space, and that really helps feel good about being there,” he said. “It is a community of musicians there, and that’s something really cool and unique about the store.”
Tinsman bought his first piano there in fall 2023, and tried it out with some Chopin, which formed an instant bond with Kozlowski, since the Polish piano wizard (1810-1849) is both their favorite composer.
Tinsman, who majored in finance and minored in music at University of Iowa, performing at Sound Conservatory.
“He asked me if I ever considered teaching, and I said I had a full-time job. It would be something kind of cool to do,” Tinsman recalled. He began teaching at Sound Conservatory by February 2024. His students have been between ages 5 and 40.
“There’s quite a wide range; I like both,” he said of kids and adults. “I think it’s even more cool seeing some of the adults come in and try it out, whether it’s for the first time or they want to keep going on it.”
Piano can help as a stress reliever, or just a fun hobby.
“Sometimes, students were semi-forced by parents to start it,” Tinsman said. “There’s a lot of benefit to learning piano or really any instrument. I think it’s really cool what Sound Conservatory does – it’s in a nice location, there’s spacious lesson rooms, pianos are looked after, and it’s kind of a cool community to be part of. It’s a nice hub for music teachers and students. It was just something I knew I wanted to be part of. It’s a joy being around there and you want to share that with as many people as possible.”
There’s a difference between playing an instrument and being able to teach it to others. He got some advice on how to teach from his sister Emily, who majored in music education and taught in Des Moines public schools.
Tinsman pictured at Sound Conservatory, which moved in fall 2023 from downtown Rock Island to the 1903 former Moline Public Library at 504 17th St.
“I love it, especially now having a daughter,” Tinsman said. “I think about that with these kids, and what I want for her growing up.”
“I think the older you get, the more you see the value that’s there,” he said. “I probably didn’t totally see it as a kid, and now I’m so thankful I did take lessons and kept it up.”
“I can be going into my 60s, 70s, 80s, and keep it up – that’s the beauty of it,” Tinsman said of piano. There’s a lot of demand in this area for lessons, especially piano, he noted.
Plans for future
Since summer 2024, Sound Conservatory has presented a wide variety of entertainment – from classical, jazz, and local singer-songwriters, to improv comedy and magic.
“I think it provides a really nice space for specific types of performances,” Tinsman said.
He was honored when Kozlowski asked him about taking over the business.
“Andrzej has done a fantastic job and it’s something I’m hoping to expand upon, and when I heard about the opportunity, I immediately was like, ‘Wow, this could be something really special.’ I’d love to take my shot at it.”
“Don’t get me wrong, it is scary,” Tinsman said. “The one nice thing is, it’s not all from scratch. They have a lot of things already in place. They have a lot of students; the name is already out there, they have a good reputation. A lot of it is figuring out the finer details, figuring out how I may want to run things.”
Ben Tinsman (left), a 2018 Bettendorf High alum, is taking over Sound Conservatory in downtown Moline from founder Andrzej Kozlowski, a Juilliard-trained pianist.
“I’ve learned a lot and I’ve had some really good mentors,” he said, noting his father has been a big help already, and his father-in-law is an entrepreneur, building his own company.
Tinsman has been amazed at what Kozlowski has accomplished, and noted he doesn’t have his depth of skills regarding piano restoration, repair and moving. At Kozlowski’s farewell performance June 22, Tinsman called him a “musical Superman.”
“He’s done it all,” he said. “I have the drive to help this business succeed. I have a great team of people. Everyone has been super supportive – wanting me and the business to succeed, with no bigger supporter than Andrzej. I couldn’t be happier with that.”
Tinsman said he wasn’t sure what his day-to-day schedule will be with Sound Conservatory and Twin State. He expects to hire someone to handle the events at the Moline venue, ideally at least once a month, and likely more.
“Part of what makes it unique is that performance aspect,” he said. “I want to keep building up the teacher base, and as many different instruments as we can.”
Sound Conservatory has never struggled to get students – it serves more than 300, in piano, guitar, violin, clarinet, flute, cello, brass, voice, and composition.
Tinsman hopes to continue the “Keys of Unity” program with donated pianos at downtown Moline business, but he’s not sure about the proposed mezzanine level for the performance space.
“That is a really cool idea,” he said. “That’s probably down the line. I need to get my feet wet before I try something like that. In a perfect world, that would be really cool.”
For more information on Sound Conservatory, click HERE.
