Great costumer service and a great collection of guitar gear, came in and bought a used 2x12 after…read moretesting it out and it sounds fantastic. Thank you so much!!

John is super nice and set up my old Les Paul for me. It plays better than ever!! He also had it…read moreready for me the very next day.

You know that feeling of walking into a store not knowing what to expect only to have your jaw…read moredrop? That happened to me today. I thought, "guitar store, huh?" Yeah, guitar store. Nationals, Martins, Guilds, banjos, mandos, some incredibly gorgeous hand-carved thing from Bali... all packed into a compact shop. Then Bernie starts talking and it's like the bookseller who's read every damned book in his store. A luthier with endless knowledge and experience running a guitar store. What a concept. And what a gift for local pickers.

I found this site searching for Fretwork for my 07' Fender Telecaster Ash Deluxe…read more During a consultation appt. I realized Bernie new exactly what was needed besides just a overall setup. Fret crowing & polishing as well as full setup. Of course I occasionally try to make adjustments & occasionally I get it OK. He also made some truss rod neck adjustments & fixed a neck bolt on issues. He knew by the look of my frets where the majority of my playing was on the neck. All I can say Is my Guitar sings better than I have heard it in years!! Highly recommend Carmel Valley Guitar professional service.

We're so lucky in PG to have this wonderful music store! They recommended my kid's violin teacher…read moreand we buy all our music books there. Very reasonable prices, great selection, and incredibly kind and knowledgeable staff. My child plays the flute and the violin and we've been very fortunate to have this place so close by; they also generously support local music studios putting on recitals and give the kids gift certificates for participating. We are lucky to have them.

The customer service at Bookmark Music was outstanding. Pamela worked with me closely over email…read moreand on the phone answering questions and facilitating an online order. When the product arrived and didn't match our needs she again worked diligently to help resolve and went above and beyond when we needed to do a return. I could see throughout the process that Bookmark Music really cares about their customers, which can be so rare these days. Support local businesses, support Bookmark Music!

Kurt was super helpful finding the best Clarinet reed for our grandson…read more Has an amazing inventory of reeds for all woodwind instruments. And is a very interesting person to boot.

Kurt performed acoustical adjustments on a trumpet for me and made sure I was satisfied with the…read moretransaction.

I bought a used Taylor Academy 12e from a private seller, but the action was very high. Took it in…read morefor a setup, and it was a great price, as their very accomplished luthier Frank (45+ yrs experience) charged only $20/hr, and had it done the next day. Frank let me know that he could only take the action down so far without losing tone (via the usual method of sanding down the saddle), and the action ended up still being to high for me. As a former Taylor certified luthier, he said that he could remove and adjust the neck to bring the action down without losing tone, but that would take a couple hours more work. It ended up taking him only 1.5 hrs, and $30 later my Taylor has action as low as on some of my electric guitars, and still sounds great. Thanks Frank! My future business is yours.

Frank is the best! He knows everything I needed to repair my guitar's neck that needed an artistic…read moretouch. He is one of the best luthier's around.

I have had a succession of classical guitar music teachers through the years, including two…read moreex-students of Andres Segovia. Anthony is my current music teacher and one of the best I have had. Anthony encourages me to keep my eyes on the music, and not on the fretboard - which has improved my posture and music reading ability tremendously. I also like that he focuses intently on the lesson, wasting no time. I am inspired to practice and demonstrate my growing proficiency each week. This is what I want in a teacher. Anthony is not just a classical guitar teacher - he is a true musician, using the classical guitar as chosen instrument. Anthony also produces two student concerts every year, and although scary, allowed me to perform in front of a warmly receptive audience on several occasions. I do not live in Monterey, so Anthony teaches me remotely using video chat through my computer. It works like a charm and I don't have to leave home. Anthony is a serious music teacher for the serious classical guitarist. I recommend him without any reservation.

I've devoted much of my life towards studying guitar, and I've been with Anthony for 12 of those…read moreyears. He is an incredibly patient and knowledgable man with a passion for music which has made the years I've been studying under him go by in a flash. Every time I had a question, he would always give a detailed and thoughtful response-- no matter how trivial or stupid my question may have seemed. I had the opportunity to work with a couple of his other students in an ensemble, giving me an incredibly valuable experience in playing guitar in a group. For a few years I participated in several concerts for his students, although I had to miss a few because they happened to fall on the weekend either during or before my final exams. No matter what your skill set is, Anthony will gladly teach you everything he knows with high energy and enthusiasm. I can't recommend Anthony enough.

Friendly service and very knowledgeable about their items! I asked many questions and they had…read moreanswers for all of them. Very trusting.

Part two where did the layaway go that had 41 Indian head pennies . I went into the pawn shop…read more Thursday April 2nd 2026 to get a copy of my layaway that they say went delinquent Chris and his boy and another young kid said there was no written agreement that on layaways they don't do that and they don't give delinquent notices to there customers . So there is no recourse . I couldn't believe that . There must have been an error imputing my payment into the new computer . Chris said to late anyways we put it out Feb 27th . But when I called in March they said I was in my grace period for March and I could come in when feeling better and make payment . How can that be because the item would have already been put back on the floor when there telling me its ok to make my March payment until I got into the store. Chris informed me there was nothing that could be done deliguent account what don't you get about that . What I'm having a problem with is why when I made my February payment the man said they weren't in the store. This is something I own now and paying on and it's not there ? No written agreement ? What ? Part 3 coming soo

I recently got a quick tour of the new music school that opened up in downtown Monterey. Owner and…read moreInstructor Dennis Murphy, a friendly jack of all trades with an upbeat personality, has transformed this space (formerly People's Mortgage Banc next to Ocean Sushi Deli) into an amazing space including class rooms, a stage with state of the art acoustic panels that are not only great to look at but help with sound control, a recording studio and more. The space is welcoming, comfortable and provides a great atmosphere to grow to your potential in the realm of music. I myself haven't picked up an instrument (clarinet only because I had a crush on the guy playing the French Horn, silly me) since Jr. High School and unfortunately stopped playing the piano in grade school but I am thinking about taking vocal lessons for my own ears sake. Dennis Murphy School of Music offers the following for those ages 7 to Adult: *Private Lessons and Music Clinics *Vocal (glee, choir, gospel) *Band Programs ( rock, jazz, blues, classical) *Recording & Production *Private Instruction for All Instruments Come check it out and he will be hosting a Grand Opening Party very soon! For more information about DMSM you can contact Paula at 831-920-1310or email her at paula@dennismurphy.org

Recently performed at a fundraiser were he was doing the sound for the entertainers…read more He was extremely rude from the beginning, we were just there to perform for the fundraising event, and were very sad that he turned what should have been a great event into a really bad experience!

I just finished my trial lesson with Emma, & I am very impressed! I highly recommend her to anyone…read morewho wants to take piano lessons :)

Justin started working with my 10 year old daughter virtually during the covid lockdown. She had a…read morevoice coach in the past and thought she knew what she was getting. To her surprise (and mine) Justin was very different from her previous coach, his lessons are focused around breathing. She has learned that singing is all about breathing. At first I just heard these weird breathing and strange noises coming from her during her lessons, there was no actually "singing". With time these strange sounds have taught her how to breath while singing, how to control her voice and project it without just being loud and shouting. We have noticed a remarkable difference. Since starting with Justin in Monterey we have moved to Southern California, she loved his lessons so much we decided to continue working with him virtually instead of finding someone local. We would nightly recommend Justin if your trying to bring your voice to the next level.

From the owner: Specialized Vocal training for all levels. Call to Schedule a Virtual Consultation Lesson!read more