I am the founder of The Vocalist Studio International and I know Lauren Bateman personally, as a…read moremusician, as a business owner and as a voice coach. I have been to the LB Music School. This school has excellent facilities and qualified teachers. As for Lauren, she is flat out one of the best teachers I have ever met. Here command of vocal technique and understanding of how to teach students how to train voice and therefore, how to apply it to singing better is world class. She flat out is one of the most qualified voice teachers in the Boston region. Anyone that participates in this school is going to get a great experience.

My 8 year old son has been taking music lessons at LB for almost a year and I can't tell you how…read morehappy it has made him. Little background, my son has autism and adhd. To say he struggles is putting it mildly. He strives to be like his peers and do the things they do, but unfortunately some of his struggles just make that too difficult for him. We tried soccer and t-ball. Those just ended with him in tears feeling defeated. Music has always been something that interests and soothes him. So, we thought we'd give lessons(he likes to sing)a try if he was on board. Since our initial email the teachers and staff at LB have accepted my son with open arms. I can 100% guarantee the half hour he is in his lesson he is striving. He is happy and gets to express himself without being judged. He is included and pushed to shine. He gets to be himself and the rewards we get from that are priceless!

My son had followed Mr. Mario Perrett to learn Saxophone for two years until he went to the…read morecollege. I am glad my son found a teacher as patient, friendly and musical knowledge. Under his guided, my son made a great progress. Incredible!!! Hong Wang

Mario was very patient and thorough with my kids many years ago. Thanks Mario for great lessons!read more

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

During a recent visit to get my daughter's clarinet repaired, I encountered mean spiritedness and…read morehovering, (by two different people but still...)! The middle-aged woman who initially greeted me and looked at my instrument was helpful and kind but not as knowledgeable as the second, older woman who was clearly running the show and ended up helping me. A third and younger woman stood so close to me until she was sure I was acknowledged by the middle-aged woman, if we weren't wearing masks, I'm sure I would've felt her breath on the back of my neck. The initial impression was enough to make me want to leave and not return, but my daughter really needed a clarinet and time was not on my side. So I swallowed hard and tried to make the best of things by staying engaged in conversation with the kinder middle-aged woman.I made it through the ordeal and decided to vocalize my disappointment here because while I don't know the first thing about instruments, I do know good service, and I did not experience that here. So, despite the fact that I ended up getting a loaner from Wood & Strings, as my kid's clarinet was busted, I can't in good conscience recommend this place because the service was subpar. It's unfortunate too, because the shop is so close and my kids are really getting into instruments that I see myself investing lots of money. But the woman was just so snotty and condescending, (of course in a "no disrespect intended" sort of way), if I don't have a better experience upon returning the loaner, they're going to lose a good customer because I won't be going back. Even if the prices are good, it's just not worth the hassle!

My daughter recently started taking piano lessons from Angie and I couldn't be happier. Angie is so…read morepositive and patient with children. She's able to keep my daughter excited about learning a new skill set at her own pace. Angie is passionate about teaching and it really shows.

We started taking our son to Angie's weekly Suzuki Babies class when he was 4 months old; he's now…read more15 months, and it's been so incredible watching his progress in the class, both musically and socially. When you do the same thing every other week you really get a metric for what's different from one two week period to the next; "wow, he knows what to do with the ball now!" "Two weeks ago he was distracted by a million things but today he's listening so attentively during story time!" She has us keep a journal as well, so you really get a sense of the bigger picture when you look back at previous months and all the ways your child is developing. I've always looked forward to Angie's class as a way to connect with other parents (and bonus, learn nursery rhymes that we can continue singing to him at home, so he's not just hearing Soul Asylum songs I mysteriously know by heart) -- but now our son clearly gets excited as we walk into class as well, to see his buddies and return to a comforting routine that he can build on each week.

They did a wonderful job re-hairing my bow. I was able to drop it off and pick it up the same day…read more They have a small parking lot, and there's also a city lot a block away, so it's very convenient.

Called to see if they could repair a book I of mine. They don't work on violins that they don't…read moresell which is totally understandable. But when I asked who they might recommend they also said they won't give out recommendations either. So I am stuck with them not being able to repair but also no idea who to use for a repair either.

I have found the perfect piano teacher!! My son started taking lessons when he was about 5 with a…read moretraditional, classical teacher. He progressed very fast but by the end of the year it was a chore for him to play. We eventually stopped taking lessons and I was at a loss. I wanted him to take classes and explore and grow his love for music, but I didn't want to sacrifice form and technique for fun. So what's a parent to do? I wanted it all or nothing. So, we went a couple years with nothing. And then I stumbled across an ad for Jingjing. She asked what we were looking to do in the lessons and told us she could mold the class into what we wanted it to be. My main objective was for him to learn and be challenged, expand his love for the piano, and have fun. I don't have an agenda - there isn't a concert that he needs to know a song for. I just want the lesson to flow and she's happy to accommodate that. However, if I did have an agenda and timeline I wanted to meet, I feel she would accommodate that as well. My son is now 9, is beyond inquisitive, and quite a bit fidgety. None of this seems to faze her. He asks non-stop questions about the strings and mechanics of the piano. She actually opened up the top of the piano to show him the strings and explained what happens between hitting the key and hearing the sound. For my son, this was HUGE! She follows his lead, answers his questions and then, without him even realizing, redirects him back to the lesson. Miraculous! He really enjoys classical music but Jingjing is open to playing whatever style they prefer. On his second class he asked her if she could teach him Moonlight Sonata and she smiled and agreed. There was no doubt or hesitation - just belief that he could. She watches his technique, points out nuances in the music, challenges him, applauds him, encourages him to write his own songs and has him practicing!! I can't possibly explain what a great teacher she is and how perfect she is for my son. Originally submitted a while back by my wife, Carol S., here on Yelp!

Jingjing is incredibly talented and lovely to work with...she has gotten my 6-year old daughter…read moreexcited to play the piano...and to practice on her own! She can engage children in ways I've never experienced with piano teachers before...I feel very lucky to have found Jingjing!!!

I have known Yury for years as a valued member of the Newton-Watertown community. He had been…read moretuning my old piano for a long time and when it came time to graduate to a better instrument, I visited his store in Newton. I had a low price range in mind but wanted a decent, real instrument that would hold its tune well in an apartment that's not heat- or humidity-controlled. Other piano shops laughed at my price range and said I'd never find a decent upright piano for less than $5,000. They were completely wrong. Yury is an expert in his craft and I completely trust his advice when it comes to pianos. He tunes them with an old-European-style precision and care that, quite frankly, is very difficult to find from other piano professionals. I purchased a refurbished Yamaha U3 from his shop for a wonderful price and couldn't be happier - true to his word, the piano was perfectly in tune when it arrived and hadn't required any tuning for over two months. When it does, I will be sure to call him - his prices are very reasonable and his work and years of experience, both in Europe and the United States, speaks for itself. I most certainly can vouch that his work is excellent and that the care and depth he brought to the job really made my old instrument a joy to play (and my new one even better!). This shop is a real gem because it's truly a one-man show and a real local business that does it all (there aren't many of those anymore!): he tunes, restores, repairs and sells pianos of all types and sizes. There are used Baldwins, perfect for a beginner student or kid starting out; there are also grand Steinways for the local jazz players and professional performers. In fact, a good friend of mine, a world-class jazz pianist, purchases his instruments at Yury's vs. any of the local chain stores. You will be supporting a LOCAL shop and will know that if you make a purchase, it will be an instrument that had been individually cared for. It will also be a fair price without the huge markup seen at the other places. Buying an instrument, especially a piano, is always intimidating, but I highly recommend this little shop and place complete trust in Yury's services.

Yury did a great job fixing my Steinway small grand piano. Also, he has hosted concerts at his shop…read morefor area pianists, on an excellent piano. Very informal and enjoyable!

I use Parallel as rehearsal space. I have been a customer for a couple of years now…read more The good: convenient location with good number of rooms to rehearse in. Rates are very reasonable. Online reservation portal is fairly easy to use Jay,owner, seems very personable to deal with face to face. Any other communications, email or text for example, not so good. See below. The Bad: They do not invest any money in equipment. Have had problems with some of the same amps repeatedly and they don't seem to get fixed. The really Bad: Responses to email communications when there is a problem are absolutely horrible. Many emails simply do not get a response. I have had some errant charges on my account and repeated emails to ask them to look into it were ignored. One example in particular, an extra charge late in December, send a bunch of emails with no response, Finally got a response early in New year after I was clearly frustrated saying that my emails came in during christmas break so they did not have a chance to respond and that they were reviewing the books. Now it is mid January and there still is no response to follow up email sent a couple of days ago. This has been the worst of it but in general pretty representative.

I have been learning bass with Jonathan for a couple months and definitely go here for instrument…read morelessons. I also rented rehearsal space for me and my friend and for the price you get a decent amount of space and equipment. I would definitely recommend for bands or if you want to take lessons here.