I just started taking drum lessons with Baruch and I'm already so glad I signed up! I started with…read moreliterally zero drum knowledge, and he makes everything easy to understand and really fun to learn. The studio space is super cool too and just adds to the whole experience. It's 100% worth every dollar and every minute getting to learn from a professional drummer.

I've brought two Guitars and one Bass for Willie and his repair team to fix, I highly recommend…read morethem super knowledgeable, the turnaround is surprisingly quick I won't go anywhere else to get my instruments repaired, plus they are super nice in the front desk there and very welcoming.

Amazing instructors with a wide range of talents to enhance your skills and knowledge. From choir,…read moreto strings; this place will bring you to the next level. We are using them for piano, double bass, and violin lessons. They are exceptional with our 10 and 13 yo. My children's love for music continues to grow and they're always excited to come to practice.

It's wonderful! My son attends Muse Academy and plays the piano, and he has improved so much over…read morethe past year. I can really see how much effort they put into teaching musical instruments. They also offer a virtual option if you can't make it in person. The teachers are great, and the overall atmosphere is excellent!

We had a wonderful experience purchasing our first piano from this store. We knew very little about…read morepianos going in, and our salesperson was incredibly helpful in explaining the basics of upright pianos and what to look for. He showed us several options within our budget, as well as a few above it, and gave our daughter plenty of time to play each one and really feel the differences. What we appreciated most was that he was knowledgeable and helpful without being pushy. He gave us the space to take our time and make the decision that felt right for our family. The entire process, from choosing the piano to completing the transaction and arranging delivery, was smooth and easy. We're very happy with our purchase and would definitely recommend this store to anyone looking for a piano, especially first-time buyers.

Ken and Ignacio are great to work with. They are very knowledgeable about what they sell and will…read moreguide you to the right piano for your skill level and budget. Bring some music and try some out. I purchased an upright from Greene 6 years ago and am now taking advantage of their upgrade program to move up to a baby grand. What I paid for the upright was fully credited towards the new piano. Highly recommended.

I had purchased a guitar for my student a couple weeks ago and during my lesson today I noticed…read morethat some of the tuning keys were cracking. I carefully inspected the guitar to find the cause of it (fallen, hit a table, etc) but there was no noticeable damage. I took it back to marks to see if there is anything that could be done in respect to that. They looked at the guitar and they handed me a replacement set at no cost. I did feel bad that they went out of their way to do that for me but it felt nice that I was being helped out. Super chill guys.

Took the time to help with a minor request. Very polite and helpful. Good place to check out.read more

My grandson is enjoying his cello lessons. His teacher, Mr Elliott is patient, excellent, and…read moremotivating. Highly recommend.

We have now entered the realm of student music... along with (what seemed) the rest of the entire…read morelocal school district(s). Bertrand's Music already did a great job marketing last year to introduce the kids to various instruments, and to provide parents with information about how to secure rental instruments and lessons. The fliers and information were helpful to return to this location. We were fortunate to identify a couple of violins from close friends but they desperately needed restring and repair. We came in Saturday to meet Troy - who was the nicest young man to help us identify the services needed. He provided detailed information about timeline and quote and made the whole experience painless. Mind you~ this is their busiest season at the start of the school year. Even though the building was filled with families, students, crying babies, and various instrument noises.. Troy provided top notch service and executed all needs without a hitch. We submitted instruments on Saturday and received a detailed telephone call by Monday to retrieve the instruments. Even upon return, we had the high fortune of meeting with Troy again. One of his fellow associates (newer in her training) helped us at first. Troy came to the rescue to help clarify the transaction, identified a computer error in billing, and skillfully provided us with the close of transaction needed. He went above and beyond to then offer to tune the instruments using one of their tools behind the counter (and he doesn't even play violin! just knows the ear and use of equipment). The violins sounded lovely. I never met this young gentleman before, but if Troy is the standard of hiring at this type of establishment, he has secured my business and my recommendation to come back to this Bertrand's. He was kind, well informed, and efficient. I was able to have two instruments repaired, tuned and timely prepared for the this wretched band season (I have two very excited musicians and a new box of earplugs.) The prices were reasonable and the service quick. He couldn't have provided better service. Be sure to ask for Troy when you return if you need anything related to music service needs. He made the experience fantastic and we will return and recommend.

Olga is an amazing art teacher who brings both structure and real artistic talent into her…read moreteaching. She is disciplined and sets clear expectations, which creates a focused learning environment where students truly grow. Both of my children, Ivan and Natalia, have made so much progress under her guidance. She doesn't just teach techniques--she helps kids build confidence, creativity, and attention to detail in their work. What stands out most is that she is a true artist herself, and that passion shows in every lesson. We are very grateful for her impact and the way she inspires her students to improve and express themselves

Update in response to the owner's reply: To San Diego Music…read moreAnd Art owner/contact Max: Your response actually reinforces the reason I left this review. Your instructor, Olga, publicly criticized my child in front of other parents and children. My child is neurodivergent. At times, he may have difficulty following directions, transitioning, or completing more complex instructions. That does not give any instructor the right to shame, embarrass, or publicly criticize a child. What is especially unacceptable is that your staff was already aware of my child's needs. Instead of speaking with me privately, giving me a warning, or trying to understand what support he might need, Olga chose to criticize him in front of others. When I brought this concern to you, I expected the owner to at least investigate what happened and listen to both sides. Instead, you immediately defended your instructor and treated my child as if he were simply the problem. You did not appear interested in understanding what actually happened or in finding a constructive solution. Instead, you joined in criticizing my child. Then, rather than addressing my concern about how your instructor handled the situation, you suspended my child's classes for an entire month. Children--especially neurodivergent children--deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. If a child is struggling to follow instructions, the appropriate response is to communicate privately with the parent and work toward a solution, not publicly embarrass the child and then blame him when the parent raises concerns. Parents should know how situations like this may be handled here before deciding whether this is the right environment for their child.

Today is 01/02/25, Thursday, the day after New Year's Day. It's 11:15am that I'm writing this…read morereview. I've been waiting for 15 mins for the store to open even though the hours say they open at 11:00 am. Their voicemail is full but the recording also says 11:00 am opening. Their website says open at 11:00 am. I'm not quite sure if everything says the store should be open but they aren't open. I purposefully came here to get my guitar strung with fresh strings. I wanted to support local stores specifically. The worker came in around 11:18 am. We all have hard days. I only dinged one star because truthfully it was only one worker for the whole store he was very very apologetic... He cleaned, oiled, and strung my guitar. He took his time and carefully did everything while also having to man the whole store by himself! He apologized profusely when he had to step away to help customers. I could be upset set, but it's the beginning of the year and we're all human. $12 for full restring (all 6 strings) you pay for the cost of the strings you want put on. I chose Elixir for my acoustic electric and those run around $20-ish bucks

It took some convincing (most of last school year), but my 5th grader "decided" to play an…read moreinstrument this year--the violin! Yay! Our school provided a list of required items, based on the instrument selected. They also listed local places where parents can go to rent or buy an instrument. Disappointingly, both of the recommended places are owned by the same big company that has been absorbing local shops the last few years. So I busted out Yelp on my phone and Music Central came up as an option. I gave this shop a call and Charlie was kind enough to answer all of my questions over the phone. He left a great first impression from the different shops I reached out to that morning. I decided to take the afternoon off from work and pick up my daughter early during her minimum day so we could see Charlie while he was working--glad I did! Charlie answered more of my questions and measured my daughter for her first violin (insert proud parent tears of joy here). We discussed rental terms and Charlie answered another round of questions to help make me very comfortable signing a contract. I like how standard repairs (like string replacement) and maintenance (like tuning) are included with my rental. And I LOVE how I can "trade in" my rental for the next size up instrument (in similar condition) without breaking my contract! During our first visit we picked up a few of the required accessories listed for the violin and Charlie gave his recommendations on what is really needed to help save me some money up front. As a dad on a budget, this was much appreciated. This shop has a large collection of acoustic and electric guitars in the back. There are also lots and lots of music sheets in stock too. Much to my surprise, Music Central also has a large collection of ukuleles from different manufacturers. My eldest daughter has been interested in ukuleles for years (we have owned a few inexpensive ones to foster her exploration of this instrument) so this may be the focus a future visit. I mentioned this to Charlie and he shared that he teaches ukulele for the shop. How cool is that?! Thanks for an awesome first visit Charlie! Looking forward to a long relationship with Music Central to help my daughters make beautiful music.

15 years after writing my initial review about my first son's guitar lessons with Gary, I am…read moresupplementing it. My second son now plays the clarinet at school. I was interested in options other than the free school instrument. His school suggested purchasing or renting from a big retailer!?!?! I did some research online and then took my son to Alan's to try clarinets in person. My son was able to play any of the clarinets Alan's had in stock in a private room -- and even try REALLY expensive mouthpieces. The gentleman helping us was an expert in the field and had lots of helpful information that clarified and supplemented my limited clarinet knowledge. My son walked out that day with a beautiful clarinet, at a very competitive price, which he will continue to upscale with better quality mouthpieces, also stocked at Alan's. I highly recommend stopping at Alan's for all of your music needs from private lessons to quality instruments. We received outstanding expert, no-pressure, no-nonsense customer service that we simply would not have received at bigger chain stores. Thank you, Alan's!

The very best you will not find anything better anywhere, including the United States…read moreFriendly service, very knowledgeable staff

I was looking for a violin to purchase and my teacher recommended that I go speak to Erik at San…read moreDiego Violins (who used to be a part of Hammond Ashley). When I happened across the shop (tucked away in a commercial area of Sorrento Valley), and I found that Erik was extremely helpful in talking me through the different selections he had to offer. He talked me through the details and nuances of both the bows that I was considering and the violins that I was interested in trying out. I was able to test out a variety of violins in the backroom the place had, and took a couple violins and bows home to evaluate for a week. The whole process was simple and incredibly smooth - and I was able to stay in touch with Erik via phone throughout the experience for any additional questions. I'm now a very happy owner of a new violin, bow, and case... and I highly recommend talking to Erik if you're looking to own a quality violin or cello!

This place does zero things wrong. We've been renting here for years. Never had any issue. Bow…read moreneeds to be rehaired? Switch. String broken? 15 min fix. Time to size up? Ok let's see what you need and get it tuned and out the door. Super affordable as well.

Chuck is great! As an adult I wanted to finally start taking violin lessons and he got me right in…read morethere that week and here I go.

Mr King is an eccentric piano teacher who is full of fun stories and very good at motivating and…read moreteaching young kids! My daughter started playing in her first lesson and was very excited she could play right away. He is very friendly, caring and knows his stuff! He also shares tips and tricks to improve, inspiring players and lent us books to practice with. He is a gem & we love piano with Mr King!