Joe seems to get a lot of flak on this site from people who claim that he isn't nice to people who…read morearen't interested in buying a guitar. I did buy a guitar, so I can't comment from that perspective, but I will say that when I went into the shop to check out a model I was interested in, there were some high school kids playing around on a guitar and they clearly weren't going to buy and Joe let them play. I thought Joe was a nice guy. Straightfoward but helpful. He knows his stuff and clearly loves guitars. Anyway, I bought a guitar at Performance Music Center and my experience was good. I bought a G&L Doheny Tribute model and it is a lovely guitar. The only issue is that the initial one I purchased had a factory problem (one of the potentiometers didn't work correctly, which was probably indicative of a wiring problem). I realized this once I got back home with it and played around with it. Anyway, I took it back to the store and they were VERY apologetic. Joe raised hell with the G&L people and they sent a replacement one. Joe was nice enough to let me hold on to the defective model to play with until the new one arrived, which was a nice gesture and offered a discount on gig-bags as a further apology. Once the replacement guitar came in, it worked great. All in all, I am giving the review 4/5 stars because they really should have caught the mistake when they were setting the guitar up, though I also sympathize because a wiring error is something that you would expect the guitar manufacturer to catch in quality control, especially one like G&L, but still... That being said, if I could do it all over again I would still work with the Performance Music Center and I will be back. In fact I already bought an amp from them. One thing worth mentioning that is pretty cool is that if you buy a guitar from them, they will do free tune-up/setups for the life of the guitar. That's an amazing value. So anyway, I'll be back to them within the year to take advantage of that service. If the setup service proves to be as good as promised then I will upgrade the review to 5 stars. Anyway, overall I would say that it is a store and owner than know their business and are passionate and knowledgeable about their brands. They worked with me to correct any errors along the way and I look forward to continuing with them in the future.

I arrived in town early before school so I had a little extra time to check out local business. I…read moretried a few guitars and a tube amp. A few days later I went back and got kicked out as soon as I walked in the door. I will NEVER go back there. And I have spent an ungodly amount of money on guitars and amps elsewhere.

Came here to purchase a music stand per recommendation of my family friend. The gentleman who…read moreassisted me was very knowledgeable and gave me real advice without being pushy or trying to upsell me, rather just educate me to help me make the right purchase. I didn't get his name but he was very kind. They also have music lessons here and sell instruments, and everything in between. Right in the heart of downtown Woburn with free, 2 hour street parking.

Great people, always satisfied with service. Great product line, if it's not already in the store,…read morethey can get it for you fast. I highly recommend National Music for all your needs.

The Music Shop is a great neighborhood music store focused on lessons with a retail and repair…read morebusiness on the side. We have taken guitar and piano lessons here for the last two years and could not be happier. The teachers are engaged and interested in teaching kids things that enhance their skills and keep them interested. The range of music you hear them teaching demonstrates their commitment to the student - not their own interests. I wish my parents sent me to this kind of place growing up instead of learning to read music for "Mary Had a Little Lamb". Bad enough for piano, imagine it for a kid that wanted to learn rock guitar. The space was recently spruced up and has a nice vibe. If you are interested in lessons for guitar, bass, uke, drums, piano and a few other instruments this place is definitely worth checking out.

Rock 101 band got super big, like two of every instrument and super chaotic. We asked if they were…read moregoing to split it in two; first they blew us off and then they were sort of actively rude about our followup. After six weeks or so of our kid complaining that he only actually played for ten minutes per session, we sadly quit; owner Mark Abruzzese then wrote us a nasty email where he managed to insult us and our kid. It all felt really scammy tbh.

My 15 year old daughter had such a great experience at School of Rock (Burlington) summer camp last…read moreJune. She said the teachers are super nice and Mark, the owner who is also a music teacher, is awesome. Now she's in the performance program and is really enjoying that too! My daughter has enjoyed performing her entire life but since Covid it's been a real challenge getting her back into it. I am so grateful that School of Rock has changed that for her! If you are shopping for an innovative, fresh approach to learning music in a musically prolific environment that is "excitable and friendly" (my daughter's sentiments) you've gotta try this school. You will be so glad you did!

Came in for strings. What a shop. So many beautiful, high quality guitars. Price for strings was…read morereasonable and I'll be back. Wish they had lessons.

I went in to buy a new Martin acoustic, but the staff's bored snarkiness made me think they learned…read moretheir social skills in high school, and stopped there. The good news is I bought exactly the guitar I was looking for, the bad news (for them) is that I bought it at a different guitar store that had much better service.

I have been talking piano lessons with Lilit Endeman at stage music center in Winchester for a…read moreyear and a half now . And I can say that I do not regret signing up ! She is talented ,patient, professional and makes you enjoy each and every lesson. I Highly recommend her to anyone who is passionate about music .

I do not have enough words to express my gratitude to this music school. Teachers there are so…read morepassionate about their job and they know how work with kids! Highly recommend this place!

A friend told me about Guitar Stop so I brought in my acoustic which had a bad case of fret buzz. I…read morethought it needed an entire setup (I'm still very much a beginner player). However, Jeanne made a minor adjustment to the truss rod and fixed my lousy stringing error and the buzz was gone. This cost me $5. I returned to the store the next day and Annette was extremely helpful and very patient with all my questions about a new electric guitar. I ended up purchasing my first electric with a great amp. They even include a free gig bag and six picks! Very cool. Overall, I'm very pleased with this family-owned store and will visit them again for my guitar needs. Thanks for reading and rock on!

I had a strange experience there with a guitar repair…read more Ten years ago I bought an acoustic guitar with a pickup at GuitarStop. A few months ago the pickup stoped working. I brought it in to Guitar Stop. Their technician examined the guitar, cleaned the dust out, and came to the conclusion that the pickup/preamp would need to be replaced. They gave me the customer service phone number of the guitar manufacturer, and said that because they were no longer distributing that brand, there was no way they could get the parts, or do anything else to help me. Even though I bought the guitar there, they told me I'm on my own. One odd experience was that the technician didn't talk to me. All this info was mediated to me by the people behind the counter. When I had a question, they would ask the tech, the tech would tell them, they'd tell me. It was odd to have a middleman coordinating. I then did what I didn't want to do: I brought the guitar to Guitar Center on Mass Ave, across from Berklee. The guitar technician came out, introduced himself to me, and walked me through all the options. A couple days later they called me and said the guitar was completely fixed. It was the wiring, the very thing that Guitar Stop claimed it wasn't. There was NOTHING WRONG with the pickup or preamp. It works/sounds beautiful now. When I brought this to the attention of Guitar Stop, they told me how "filthy" my guitar was, how their tech tried every everything, etc. They offered to refund me the $20 bench fee, but it feels picayune to accept that. I always want to support local business and not the "big retailers," but in this case, if I need any work on any guitar, I won't feel confident bringing it to Guitar Stop.

I've been taking my two kids ages 10 & 13 to this place off and on for the past 2 years and felt…read morethe need to yelp about it. This place offers guitar, drums, bass, piano & vocals. In addition to private one on one teaching they offer ensemble classes as well. The studio is clean, modern and has a great decor. The whole aura/vibe is laid-back and casual. I really like that Greg the owner stays involved with the teaching and clearly has a passion for what he does. They are very flexible about scheduling and the prices are terrific. I've personally attended other schools and had other teachers, but none delved into theory and the history of whatever music it was you were learning. In addition they offer video recordings of your lesson, meaning you can revisit everything you just learned by popping it into your computer. Greg the owner is an apple lover, but the dvd's work in your pc as well! So if you are looking for lessons I suggest going no place but here.... Keep on rocking! Oh and you're welcome!!!!

My 10-year-old daughter has been taking voice lessons at GS Music Center for approx. 7 months…read more Jeanine the voice teacher has been fantastic!! She is well trained, professional, enthusiastic and great with my daughter. Greg the owner is very personable and accommodating. The studio is clean, organized and in a great location in Medford. I am extremely happy with the GS Music Center and would highly recommend them to anyone who is looking for music lessons for a child or an adult.

A hidden gem for music lovers. When you want personal service and knowledgeable staff there is the…read moreplace to go. I have been shopping and sending my kids for lessons here for 15 years and it is always a great experience.

It's been years since I visited Tewsbury Music but I recently picked up bass and took in an old…read moreYamaha to have it restrung and set up. It came back on-time and under the quote even though they had to do some unexpected work on two of the tuners. It was also cleaned up nicely and looked great. Very satisfied customer who will be returning.

My apologies as this review is WAY overdue. Also, please note that this is only my second review on…read moreYelp... ever. I was so thrilled with my experience at Wood & Strings that I was inspired to post. In the past few months I have had two fantastic customer experiences at the shop. 1. For my birthday I received a set of brushes for my drum kit. In a heavy practice session I damaged one of the brushes. I brought them back to W & S and they were exchanged with no questions asked, simply an apology and a smile. The staff person also upgraded the style of brushes to a better brand/make. 2. More recently (and more significantly), I returned to the Wood & Strings shop as I was in the market for a Banjo and a Dulcimer as gifts for family members. Most of my communications/interactions were with Mick (sp?). Mick was the absolute man. He was patient, informative and packaged together a fantastic deal for a brand new banjo and slick, vintage dulcimer. Not only did he guide me through my instrument decision making process with poise, patience, and knowledge, he threw in tuners, stings, gig bags, stands, and cases to boot. I cannot think of another store I would turn to in Boston, New England, the US for my string and percussion needs. My whole experience, from start to finish, was pleasurable, authentic, entertaining, and informative. The shop is old schooled and filled with music treasures. All of the staff are knowledgeable and simply put - great, real folk. We need more shops like Wood & Strings around Boston, and we all need customer service experiences as I had with Mick and the gang from Woods & Strings. Thanks guys.

1. Illegal bait and switch 2. Complete incompetence…read more3. Unhinged rude attitude 1. Illegal bait and switch - I called and asked if I could bring a guitar for assessment. Guy on phone said I could bring in and they'd assess for free. After five minutes of my free assessment, the lady tried to charge me for it. The guy then changed his story and said he actually meant that they would assess it for free only if I dropped it off but not dropped by with it (which doesn't make much sense if you think about it) 2. Complete incompetence - A) I told her that the guitar frets were out of tune. She denied it and said nothing was wrong with the guitar. B) I told her I wanted to action lowered. She said it was impossible to lower it anymore without causing buzzing. C) I told her something was rattling when I played the open G string. She said it could be anything causing it, even a loose truss rod So I took it to Stubblebine lutherie. Without even playing it, he inspected everything about the guitar - he listed exactly what was causing it to be out of tune (mainly the nut grooves), exactly how the action could easily be lowered without causing buzzing (he said the action was actually pretty high), and exactly what was causing the rattling (loose tuner component), and offered to fix everything for 100 dollars 3. Unhinged attitude - She started making fun of me for the questions I was asking. When I handed her the tuner, a rubber piece fell off, and she blamed me for breaking it to her coworker. When I pointed out that some of the frets we're out of tune, she blamed it on how I tuned it. When I clarified that I was told on the phone that the assessment would be free, she started to try to guilt me into paying and trying to get me to tell her how much money I made in my job. When I eventually did offer money because I felt bad, she made fun of me again