I made a stop here during my Black Friday shopping. Haynes was the gentleman helping us in…read moreselecting an acoustic guitar. He gave us so much information on selecting the right guitar. We did not expect to leave this place with so much information. Thank you Haynes for being patient and answering all of our questions. I'm looking forward to our next visit.

Our dance company uses this studio every week for rehearsals. It's a family-owned joint and the…read morepeople are lovely. They've invited us to participate in their yearly show, super nice! Recently we've been rehearsing like crazy people for another upcoming show, and the gentleman was kind enough to stay 30 minutes past closing to allow us extra rehearsal time. Wonderful folks, Donya Dance Ensemble loves Rico's!!

Great old timey vibe. Lots of vintage pedals. Nifty other stuff like quality cables.read more

Several month ago I had an Elektron Digitakt serviced at this store. There was a small mix up…read moreduring the repair, manager Andrew Marrah went above and beyond to ensure the device was returned to me in perfect working condition. I cannot overstate the professionalism of Andrew Marrah and everyone at Synth City. I would trust this store with anything regarding my gear, they will make sure to treat you well and with respect. 10 out of 10 hands down.

We've been to the Old Town School many times, but not for several years now. A close cousin was…read moreplaying, who teaches at the school. We had tickets to see him play. Not reviewing his music (which was fantastic), but the venue. The room we were in was like a black box theater. The room was fairly small and intimate. It was open seating and when we arrived it was pretty full. We were very fortunate that there were two seats open in the third row. The room is acoustically sound (pun intended)... Seriously, being small, they really don't need to amplify the sound, even though they did have a microphone set up. As we were leaving, we got to roam the halls around the school. There were a lot of fun, vintage posters that were a lot of fun to look at. We met quite a few people who either had been students there, or were current students who had nothing but good things to say about the caliber of the educators and the Old Town School. Based on the performances we've seen there of students and faculty, I'd say we agree.

This update is regarding a visit to OSF was to attend their Wiggleworms open house. I've left the…read moreoverall rating the same because OTSFM is still great for a lot of reasons, but the Wiggleworms class isn't one of them. I've heard of the class before and always thought if I had a kid I'd take them, but I think the age range starts at 6 months so we started with a class with a different provider, Music Playhouse of Chicago. I'm glad we came to this one to try it out. While the kids seemed to be having fun, I didn't like it as much as the Music Playhouse class. Wiggleworms doesn't seem to have a developed curriculum. This was just an activity where the kids can grab shakers and toys, and the leader will sing what they want or take requests from the kids, but not a class that has any kind of particular learning outcomes upon which children build. Maybe it was different because it was an open house but I'd have expected they would showcase what an actual class was, and I think it's just not what I prefer. There are some pluses, though. They have weekend classes, which can be hard to find with other music classes for kids. I think it may also be significantly less expensive than the one I take my kiddo to. And they may have a few more babies-only classes than where we go now, which usually has only one of any (depending upon enrollment). I didn't realize before I had a child but there's a huge difference between children of 0-18 months and those beyond, so mixed age classes wasn't my thing at the time. So Wiggleworms has its pros, but overall I'd visit Old Town SFM for the classes and concerts but choose another children's music class.

Alex's Music Studio has been a great place for my son to start his piano journey. Our experience…read morehas been wonderful from Car at reception to Ian, his teacher, who has been encouraging and kind. Alex sure does have a gem of a studio! Thank you!!

I've never been to the studio and I don't have any clue about the classes they teach…read more But once a week I get a video from my 2 year olds daycare class where Helen is leading the class in interactive singing and dancing. It is the highlight of my workday when I get that video! Watching the joy and pleasure he gets from clapping, stomping and following her cues warms my heart. When he first started at daycare he was a bit shy and reserved and would often just stare at Helen not really participating. But now he's blossomed into a dancing & singing machine. Helen's warm, engaging and supporting spirit have helped him build his confidence and allowed personality his personality to shine! Seeing his development in the last 2-3 months has been amazing and fun. And I attribute a lot of that development to music class with Ms Helen. Now if only she could teach Mommy and Daddy some rhythm so we could keep up with him!

Music lessons with Sol continue to be rewarding for my now 11 year old daughter, although she would…read morenever admit it! We highly recommend Sol for his engaging piano lessons. Through learning piano with him, my daughter has developed her own appreciation for playing the piano and every now and then, will seek out new songs on sheet music and learn on her own. Sometimes she'll even piece together different songs to make her own mashup, lol. It's also amazing to me to see her sight reading and playing a new song on the fly when someone asks - such a wonderful skill. We all enjoy the live piano music at home! Much thanks to Sol!

My daughter has been taking lessons with Sol for the last two years. He was recommended to us by a…read morefriend of ours who drummed professionally and took lessons from Sol as well. Sol is an excellent teacher who takes students through a natural progression of skills. He has improved my daughter's technique each week, expanding her repertoire in genres including rock, shuffle, and blues, and it's amazing what she can perform now compared to when she started. He tailors lessons to the needs of his students, and he use his own material for each week's assignments. Sol is very personable and has a great sense of humor. I highly recommend Sol for drum lessons.

We tried different piano instructors. Our search ended after we discovered Topher Allan Music…read more Our two sons have discovered their love and appreciation for piano; we've been coming for years! The boys enjoy their lessons with Chris. He's great with our boys. We moved further away but still return for his instruction. Chris is a great teacher. Highly recommend!

Best.Music.Teacher.Ever…read more Here's an example of why: My son broke his right wrist, but was still committed to continuing his lessons with Chris. Mister Morrow, the genius composer that he is, composed pieces for my son to play with just his good hand. Chris even printed and bound it in a book for him. It was such a kind gesture. It brought tiny tears to my eyes. Chris is professional. It is evident that he is passionate about music and teaching. He is kind. My son looks forward to every lesson. (I had lessons as a kid, and hated going. My son loves it.) Chris has such a great rapport with his students. Thank you, Christopher Allan Morrow, for mentoring my son.

We are truly loving working with Martin Metzger. Our 12-year old son looks forward to his lessons…read moreand is excited to play the music he and Martin choose together. Martin strongly believes in allowing kids to follow their interests, and has the talent, interest, and patience to help them do so in a wide range of genres. Martin is knowledgeable and dedicated both as a musician and as an educator. We travel a bit of a distance for lessons and are convinced it's well worth our time. We recommend him highly to anyone at any age looking for a great guitar instructor.

Choosing the Metzger Music Studio has truly been one of the best decisions of my and my wife's…read morelives! Our daughter goes to Martin for guitar lessons and I fear I may not be able to convey here just how amazing he is and what his instruction has meant for our daughter as a musician! I would recommend Martin and his crew any day! We wanted to get our girl started on guitar very early, only because she was exhibiting an affinity toward music and guitar that got us thinking it wouldn't hurt to try her at guitar, so we contacted Martin. He readily welcomed the notion of trialing and the rest is history. Besides being a phenomenal guitarist, his being an amazing person and having a Masters in Education have both manifested in the amazing way in which Martin teaches our girl to play the guitar. He works with her at her own pace, taking cues from how she learns in order to tailor his instructions to suit her learning, all the while making the lessons equal parts guitar and fun, entertaining our girl's every whim to be jovial and enjoy learning the guitar. He shows her the utmost respect and teaches her in a way that has inspired her to look up to flamenco legends. For her age, that level of aspiration itself is awe-inspiring and the credit goes to Martin. He doubles down on skills that our girl is good at while helping her elevate those she needs more work on, from strumming to chords to rhythms to percussion to improvising. We love his holistic approach of teaching the pupil to actually feel music and rhythm rather than just to learn to play the guitar. His methods have resulted in wonders! We have been fortunate to witness moments of our girl's performance that have impressed even Martin. That is the level of quality of instruction one can expect from Martin. He stresses on practicing, practicing and practicing some more. He also encourages playing at recitals that he arranges for his students, which is a great way for the student to be inspired and be audience-ready. He has also started our girl on sight reading, which is helping her to learn to play the guitar while reading music. I would characterize Martin's overall approach as informed (no unnecessary attachments to old or new methods just for the sake of it), inspiring, feedback-loop-based, very disciplined and simply amazing! And his guitar skills? Incredible! Let me put it this way, we have considered migrating to a warmer climate and one of the top considerations that have kept us in Chicago is that we don't want to lose Martin as our friend and our daughter's guitar teacher. And he's been a great friend to our daughter too. There are great guitar teachers everywhere, but there's only one Martin. Our girl's weekly guitar lesson is one of the highlights of her week that she looks forward to. It is a joy to see her learn to play the guitar and have the time of her life while at it! As for the rest of his studio, Martin has 16 teachers on every instrument (and even voice) who travel to people's homes for lessons, which is convenient for many families. The teachers are well-educated, passionate about their instruments and art, and they are wonderful with children. As I alluded to earlier, the studio also puts on three recitals free of charge every year! I only give online reviews when I feel the recipient absolutely deserves it and reviewing Martin and his studio was a no-brainer! I wholeheartedly recommend the Metzger Music Studio for any potential student interested in developing a lifetime love for learning music!

My 10 year old daughter started playing piano 2.5 yrs ago with Stuart Thompson. Musical Chairs…read moreowner/director/teacher Lisa Borelli recommended him as a good fit for her. Lisa couldn't have been more exact. Every week my daughter can't wait to work with Stuart. He's so positive, fun and supportive AND she can actually play...really play! Since starting piano her interest in other instruments and music has grown. She has picked up the flute and the ukelele. Musical Chairs is able to provide lessons for these instruments, too. Rather than some big, over crowded music school, Musical Chairs is very personal and supportive with many ways for kids to explore music and perform. And the per lesson fee is very reasonable. Making up missed classes is also flexible per the teacher's schedule. I look forward to my daughter growing with Musical Chairs.

Musical Chairs is great. I love that it's a neighborhood family and business. Lisa is very…read moreencouraging and responsive and has a great love of music. My 10 year old daughter takes piano and voice from Stuart. Stuart also led a session of Glee that my daughter did. Stuart is kind and patient, nurturing and encouraging. My daughter's piano and singing skills have developed well. Stuart is a master musician and a great model for my daughter. She loves him. Colin teaches guitar to my 8 year old son. He has only been playing for less than a year and is developing playing and music reading skills. Colin chooses some great rock n roll selections that my son enjoys. Colin is very patient. He is a working musician which is great for my son to see. They have a good time together.