I went to Starving Musician (Santa Clara) in search of an electric drum amplifier and an Epiphone…read moreSheraton. I was in luck this day as I found both a brand new e-drum amplifier and a used Sheraton at fair prices. Looking the guitar over I noticed the nut for the instrument jack was loose and asked that it be tightened prior to purchasing. On a semi-hollow & hollow body guitars this can be a tedious task, hence why I asked for assistance. The guitar tech, Dimitri, stopped what he was doing and went above and beyond my expectations to remedy the problem. It was not a quick fix and he kept me updated throughout the process. Starving Musician is my first stop when looking for music gear. They have been around as long as I can remember and offer the best trade-in value for your used gear. Always a great experience.

Basically a great place for nice condition used equipment at decent prices with sales people to…read morehelp you with your selection. You can also sell some of your stuff here. However, sometimes.... ? A few days ago, I got this... I came in to sell or consign an 8 track reel to reel Tascam 38 in hardly used, pristine condition, value $800-1,000+. I was told that they do not sell this kind of thing and to go to Rasputin or Street Light. ????

All my life, I have been fascinated with piano music and have always dreamed of playing someday…read more After many years of pushing off lessons, I finally found a highly skilled piano teacher who could teach me to play classical music. I have been taking lessons with Mrs. Emilia for the last 6 months and it's been amazing! She has been inspiring me to build good techniques while pushing my playing to the next level. I highly recommend Mrs. Emilia to anyone who would like to learn how to play the piano.

We have been feeling lucky and honored to have someone like Mrs. Emilia as our piano teacher. She…read moreis not only a master-level professional piano player/performer/artist herself, but also dedicated and patient to teach what she knows and has experienced to the young kids (and their parents), in high quality! Her classes are inspiring and joyful for both the kids and the parents. It has been absolutely a treasure for the kids and parents to hear the amazingly beautiful music produced by her in classes and to learn how she makes it. Importantly, she can always easily come up with concrete and vivid examples, stories, pictures, etc, to help kids (and parents) to understand piano playing techniques and the essence of the songs! In addition, she can provide and come up with tons of practice methods to make practicing piano a fun and exciting process! Sometimes I doubt but then am surprised that my daughter is able to produce the amazing sound and melody, by practicing as she suggests! Along the way, I have witnessed and experienced that my daughter's sense and perception of music and sound has been greatly improved. More importantly, her piano playing techniques have been skyrocketed under Mrs Emilia training! Thank you!"

We've had a fantastic experience with Yamaha's early childhood music program in Cupertino--…read morestarting with the Apple Class (ages 3-4) with Miss Sammi, a super caring and patient smiley teacher, and now continuing in JMC 1 (ages 4-5) with Miss Yuyu, whose teaching is lively and engaging. After trying several Bay Area programs that lacked consistency or a clear curriculum, Yamaha music programs stood out immediately. The teachers are stable, caring, experienced, and truly skilled in early music education. Each class blends singing, rhythm, ear training, movement, and keyboard work in a well-structured, age-appropriate sequence, so kids stay engaged and build real musical foundations without feeling overwhelmed. What we love most is balance: a joyful group setting where children learn together and cheer each other on singing and dancing, paired with plenty of individual attention. Our child has made remarkable progress--going from not reading music to recognizing melodies, understanding basic music theory, playing simple songs, and even making up little tunes at home. He looks forward to every class and comes out smiling, more confident each week. The school culture is equally impressive. Director Miss Su actively creates performance and growth opportunities--from the annual recital and internal competitions to community outreach, like sharing music at senior centers--so children of all ages and levels can step on stage, build confidence, and feel proud of their effort. Teachers also share Bay Area concert listings, encouraging families to listen, learn, and enjoy music together beyond the classroom. If you're looking for a fun, supportive, and truly effective start in music, we highly recommend Yamaha (especially the Apple and JMC 1 class in Cupertino). It's given our child a solid musical foundation, a love of learning, and the confidence to share music with others. We as parents, highly recommend Yamaha's music program and will continued !!!

Ridiculous business. Was approached at a festival by sales people for this establishment, telling…read moreme and my wife they offer 1 hour of free piano lessons for our 6 yr old. We made time and drove over on a sunday morning, only to find out that they only teach to chinese speakers.... Not all asians are chinese. Don't waste your time on this business.

My daughter has been taking piano lessons from Ms.Lin since 2021. We feel so grateful to have such…read morea great teacher. Ms. Lin is patient, kind and knowledgeable. She uses different ways to describe hand movements and different concepts so that a 6 year old is able to understand. She taught my daughter to count a half-beat as "pi-zza" so we pizza pizza through the whole song. She encourages my daughter to participate in recitals and competitions, but never pushes. Participating was a great motivator to practice. My daughter always feels proud when she finishes each recital and receives her trophy. Each of her accomplishments is celebrated by us and her most wonderful teacher. We also love Virtuoso Music Studio. The waiting area fulls of new books and the kids love getting HI-CHEW candies and stickers when they finish their lessons. The principal Ernest is a great violinist. He truely cares about the studio and is very attentive to details, such as the decor and making sure restroom is very clean.We love learning music here.

My daughter has been taking cello classes with Ms Zoe for about a month. My daughter didn't have…read moreprior experience with the instrument, but had two years of experience playing the viola at her school. Ms Zoe creatively adapts her teaching to help my daughter draw relationships between viola and cello. It really helped my daughter master the basics fairly quickly. Instead of being strict on sticking to one learning pathway, Ms Zoe encourages my daughter to bring her school pieces and ask questions. One thing that my daughter really likes about Ms Zoe is that she plays along with the student. It's very encouraging to my daughter, and it makes her feel that the teacher is in this with her. My daughter really enjoys Ms Zoe's classes. I also would to share my experience with the studio. The service was excellent! The studio was able to put me in touch with Ms Zoe pretty quickly. There are many classrooms in the studio, and they're well maintained. Virtuoso also has a strong team of teachers teaching various instruments. We're very happy to have such great music studio in our community. I highly recommend this place!

What a find..... A unique, cozy guitar shop located in the quaint town of Saratoga…read more A bevy of beautiful (generally high end) instruments. I found the perfect Taylor acoustic for my daughter's Christmas/wedding/college graduation gift. Tyler is most helpful and a genuinely nice person. What he offers is basically a guarantee that will allow you to upgrade from your original purchase to something else and he will credit your original price towards your upgrade. Of course, your original purchase must be in the condition you bought it. A novel and intriguing offer. This shop gets 5 stars from me! And while you're in Saratoga, following your visit to Diamond Music, stop by a local coffee shop or diner to complete the afternoon.

All I gotta say is that the interaction/dealing with Tyler the past few days has been literally the…read morebest customer service experience in my whole life of buying/selling/trading guitars. (Bought and sold 75 guitars in 25 years.)

Reviewing as a total music novice family. We needed to rent a violin for my 5th grader for…read moreorchestra. We could not have been more helpful, patient and kind helping us set up a rental. Similarly, when we made the return at the end of the school year, the process was seamless! Highly recommend!

Just bought a ukelele from here to keep practicing as a beginner, they have good intro/beginner…read morepieces up to more expensive and studier pieces. The range I saw was from sale items at 49.99 up to 200+, they have a good, moderate amount of choices at each level, with different brands and accompanying acessories! My ukelele is a soprano, a great beginner ukelele I was practicing with, got it for $75 with tax and a carrying bag included in my purchase, if I remember correctly, tag price was $69.99 I did ask if there was something similar to a brand/type of ukelele I started my practice with but I was then getting sold onto the more expensive pieces that I didn't have experience with and didn't ask for so that was a miss for me. Wish I got more of a relevant recommendation but the workers were sweet, they let us browse by ourselves for a good amount of time before stepping in (which good for me because I needed time to think, compare, and browse). When we went, there were a handful of other customers inside the store, it's located in a small shopping center but the store is bigger inside than it appears on the outside. The parking situation was just okay, not bad, could use a tad bit more space, we went ~1p the parking lot was full minus 2-3 spots but I noticed cars came and went from the time we got there until we left so it seems like there's a couple spots free at any given time due to the traffic coming in and out for small errands. Lots of instruments and accessories to be found inside and the workers seem to be happy to help find what is needed! Pretty well organized inside to find what you need on your own though, I was able to find the ukeleles quickly.

I found this school after long search for my daughter. She had 2 years of experience with another…read moreteacher but our goal always was a music sheet reading skills. Michelle was really nice, during the trial class I explained her why we are here and what is our goal. She was really nice and patient. Finally my daughter started to look at the music sheet when she is playing , not just trying to remember. Recommend!

My 4 year old had been bugging me for months for a piano lesson. I am not convinced if he is…read moremature enough to learn piano at his age, he is super active and can barely sit down for more than 5 mins. After relentless "when can I go for a piano lesson", I started looking for a good school for him. Los Gatos School of Music is 5 minutes from my home. I am encouraged by the reviews here and I scheduled his first trial lesson. When we got there, I was so nervous, my son barely read, how in the earth he will be able to understand how to read music and all that intricacies? To my amazement, Ms Michelle managed to get my son to concentrate and learn very well. Today is our 4th lesson and my son is still excited and wants to learn more. The piano lesson is not only good for his soul, it also teaches him a great motor skills and brain coordination with his hand movement. I am so happy to find this place and Ms Michelle for my son. We are so looking forward every week to come to this place.

I have studied piano with Eric for two years now, and I wholeheartedly recommend him to students no…read morematter the age or level. He not only has exceptional musical ability and knowledge but is also genuinely kind, caring, and motivating toward his students. Under his teaching, I have succeeded at international competitions, gotten the opportunity to perform at Carnegie Hall, and been accepted into well-regarded summer programs such as the Peabody Institute at John Hopkins University. He is deeply invested in the success of his students both as musicians and as individuals. I appreciate that he challenges students to grow technically and artistically while building a positive and supportive learning environment. He is incredibly thoughtful in his teaching and adapts according to the personality and needs of each student. With his guidance, my love for music and my abilities as a pianist have truly grown so much. I consider myself and other students very fortunate to learn from him.

I have a 4 year old and 6 year old currently with Eric, who we pursued after my older daughter…read moredesperately wanted to be ahead of a friend of hers who was slightly ahead of her after a year at big-box studio. Most studios do the same Faber set of books, page by page, and most of the studios we went to had piano teachers who were mid to good, but overly rely on this structure to get the kids to a certain point. It is a drudge and I felt like if my daughter's friend was ahead there was literally no way we would ever get ahead which deeply demotivated my daughter. Eric is a passionate, energetic and driven teacher and I think there is some self selection that happens with those that go with him. He is what I would call highly attuned: he sees potential in my children that even I am unaware of. But if there is one thing I believe as a parent, if you see a spark, throw gasoline on it. When it comes to piano (and I'm assuming violin / voice, we haven't gotten there yet ;)), Eric is a tankful of kerosene. He is engaging, knowledgeable and a true role model for my children. One thing my husband and I both love in his teaching is on his website of what he teaches, I've attached here. In a period rife with AI anxiety, we are confident of the positive effects of his teaching that have made my daughter more industrious, better at chores, better at practicing and discipline, and being a better citizen and human. I will also comment on a moment where Eric was pretty stern with my daughter that she had to practice more. I personally never achieved anything in music so I thought 5-10 min a couple times a week was fine but she plateaued. After this lesson, she cried about the feedback for days and I asked her what her goal was. For her, it took remembering her competitive side and then leaning into getting better. I also told Eric about what was happening and he was sensitive to her mental state and worked with her to regain psychological safety. In truth, piano is a hard skill! Young children will be uncomfortable if they want to achieve greatness (my 4 year old has no such interest and therefore her lessons and her approach is much more chill. Given her personality, also am pleased that Eric has inspired her to sit and try vs. other studios where she would just cry and tantrum). I also think most piano teachers we had my daughter work with took a very passive approach about her plateauing and I'm thankful he pushed her in this way. His talents don't come free and I will say Eric is a single person managing like 70 students or something crazy like that. So there have been some logistical difficulties when people get sick or scheduling changes. I've learned to lower my expectations there -- because truly, to give my daughter a chance to achieve true excellence with someone so warm and engaging is worth it. I don't know of anyone who can compete with Eric in terms of pushing progress in a way that is effective and instills both a love of music and strong work ethic; the inconveniences of working with this single individual is worth absolutely worth it.