Forest Lake – Top 20 places for music shops20 recommended music shops in Forest Lake

Shawn is simply the best music teacher in the Chicago area! I was referred to Shawn by a teacher at my daughter’s school as someone who could teach her how to play guitar. I was so impressed listening to him teach my daughter that I started taking lessons from him as well (I never played the guitar before this). 10 years later, I am still with him weekly. He is extremely knowledgable and very patient. His teaching methods are fun and interesting. If you want to learn music theory or if you just want to learn how to play a specific song, Shawn will customize your lessons so you can reach your goals. He always puts your goals first and is most interested in your enjoyment of the instrument and music. He teaches all ages and he can relate to anyone. If I was unable to practice during a given week, it does not matter, he will find something interesting for me to learn during our lesson. I literally learn something new from him every time I have a lesson. He is very good at finding ways to weave in life lessons as well. His educational background in music is deep and he is proficient at many instruments as well as producing. He is even teaching me how to write my own songs and produce them, something I never thought I would be able to do. I cannot recommend him highly enough. My favorite hour of the week is the hour I get to spend with Shawn learning how to play the guitar.

If you’re looking to learn to play music – Shawn is the instructor for you. I highly recommend him.

Shawn was my daughter’s guitar/bass teacher for many years beginning with junior high school and continuing through college. His skill, knowledge and ability to teach, without doubt, was a huge influence on her musicality. To this day she is still an active musician.

I have been taking weekly guitar lessons from Shawn at Hutch Music Studio for 3 1/2 years and can think of no better teacher to learn from. Shawn is fluent in music at all levels. His deep understanding of music theory is only ‘icing on the cake’ for learning guitar techniques and skills. He is very patient, encouraging and uses very effective methods to help students learn at any level. His passion for music is evident at each lesson.

If you are considering music lessons, I can’t recommend Shawn enough.

Hutch Music Studio has everything one could wish for – whether taking lessons from Shawn, using the studio as a practice facility, or recording music. Check it out!!!

Shawn is the best music teacher I’ve ever worked with. He’s so patient and kind , he really is passionate about this industry. I felt so insecure about my abilities or lack of in music and he completely changed my life . 12/10 recommend coming to him .

I bought a trumpet from PJLA Music a PHAETON Trumpet PHT-2040 Black Chrome Onyx plated finish with 24 K Gold Plated finger buttons, top/bottom caps & water keys. I have been playing trumpet for 40 years and I have never had a better horn then this. I got it and starting playing and it played freely and was open and the horn allowed me to do as i wished with it and truly went over the top with its performance.. Thank you for my Horn!

Phil is by far the most compassionate trumpet teacher my son has ever had. He’s the best teacher we could have ever asked for!

Good

They helped me find my dream guitar, and 2 years later I still swear it’s the best guitar I’ve every played.

Eric is an incredible teacher and guitarist.

Mark has been doing work on my guitars for 12 years and I wouldn’t take them to anyone else!

Nice staff, low selection.

If they do not have it in stock, they will order it for you. Helpful staff.

Small shop with friendly, expert staff

I’ve lived in Libertyville for fifteen years and I have really tried to support them. I teach band locally and have a busy professional performing schedule and would love to have a local business that I and my students could use for guitar and band instrument repair, and to buy supplies and equipment. My experience with them has been the worst every time I’ve been in. Their store stock is woeful. Twice I have left nice guitars with them to be set up. The first time I couldn’t tell that any work had been done, but there were little dents on the back of the neck. The next time (Iknow: why?) they just sat in the store for three weeks while I waited. Then when I picked them up (no work was ever done) there were marks all over the cases, as if they had been tossed around. They are rude, unprofessional and totally disorganized. Students I’ve taught who took lessons there (not at my suggestion) learned nothing. Just another jive guitar store run by morons.

Prices are extremely unreasonable not to mention the skinny kid behind the counter called me man so many times I thought I was in a Cheech and Chong movie.

The store operates online. I ordered their product. Fingerweigths are great hand exercise equipment! I would highly recommend it!
The service is very good also – they answered my emails within 10 min.

Many years and many versions ago, I purchased a set of FingerWeights as I love my hands and need them desperately. At the time, it was a pretty crazy concept, but I’d sure miss my hands if they were failing me so I gave it a try. I knew I could certainly be a candidate for CTS for all the ways I constantly engage my hands, wrists, etc. with manual labor, keyboarding, crafting, cleaning, detailing and on. And I was telling myself – how off base could it be? It’s free weights for my fingers! I am a user, believer and fan of free weights for the rest of my body. Years later, I’m a true believer! Today at 60, my hand health is the same as it was at 30. Finger free weights work for me!

We are one of the companies that manufactured weights for finger weights global and we are having to go to small claims court to get paymemt on products produced.

I have been getting my supplies from Schaff since 1980 (Yikes I’m getting old!) and they’re the best supply I’ve dealt with. Great advice and nice folks.

We always have great service from Schaff! Alan in the parts department is great to work with!!

Best piano supply company I’ve ever visited. Great people.

Very nice atmosphere, and great service

Great local supplier of music and instruments. When I need something in a pinch, I like to shop local. If it’s not in stock, Tim or his staff will order it for you! They have a showroom full of pianos and other instruments.

I’ve referred my piano students to Piano Trends Music Company for many years, for their printed music and musical instruments and I’ve heard no complaints.

Visit Piano Trends Music Company soon. Try out their pianos. You may find the perfect instrument to grace your home.

Music is for everyone – all ages – the universal language! Make your home come alive with the sound of music.

Piano Trends offers so much from music lessons to instruments and beautiful pianos. The instructors are talented and the owners Tim and Bobbi do so much for the community. And I love Tim’s six day a week musical cheer up, LIFTING SPIRITS.

Very nice selection.

Friendly service. A wonderful local business.

Worst place ever. Waist of time and money. I would not recommend this place. Stay away from this place.

Bought a beautiful piano paid cash … husband walked out needed money for kids paid piano trends to sell for me they refused to answer or send money I even paid for them to pick up in same town for 300. Now and then they refuse to respond to me

My husband and I are so happy we chose Yazz Jazz Entertainment for our wedding. Amy is a pleasure to work with. We planned our wedding while living out of state and not only did she Skype with us to answer our questions, she invited us out for breakfast when we were in town to meet us, ask us questions about what we want our wedding music to be like and to show us how the online planning form worked. The planning form itself was very well organized and without it, I’m sure we would have forgotten a lot of important music. DJ Dave S. who works with Amy was our DJ and did a phenomenal job! He flawlessly blended both American and Indian music for our fusion wedding, understood how to read the crowd, kept the dance floor busy the whole night and helped us with the flow of the reception tremendously. We highly recommend both Dave and Amy from Yazz Jazz for your event!

1000/10 all across the board for Yazz Jazz Entertainment. We first met Amy at the Stan Mansion open house. We got the pamphlet, scheduled a date to meet and from that point moving forward, we knew we were going with Yazz Jazz. We met with Amy pretty early in the process and told her the vision for our Tim Burton wedding and the group delivered beyond our expectations. My husband’s only rule was “we can’t hire the DJ unless he knows who Bassnectar is.” She facetimed JC during our meeting and it was final – bride wanted band .. groom wanted DJ .. and everything fell perfectly into place. If you’re on the fence because of money, please allocate the appropriate amount of your budget to hire Yazz Jazz because it will be worth every.single.penny.

Wedding month – She drove all the way to Logan Square to attend the walkthrough for the venue… in Chicago rush hour… Instant nomination for sainthood. She met with us the following week to finalize songs, special dances and requests, and the timeline of the day. Short notice we realized the timeline was bumped up a 1/2 hour and no problem, they still delivered and extended the set.

Wedding day – The DJ nailed everyone’s name, even the hard-to-pronounce Polish maid of honor, and the entire ballroom was on their feet for our entrance. JC read the room and ensured people we’re having a great time. During our dinner, he played Danny Elfman music from Burton movies. He helped execute our theme to the t. Short notice, my dad and I cancelled our dance and no one would have noticed because the transition was so seamless. The opening song, Let’s Get It Started, packed the dance floor and it continued to stay packed the entire night. Everyone loved Yazz Jazz and we’ve heard multiple couples already mention they want them for their wedding. All of the vocalists were engaged with the audience. Originally, since I am Team NSYNC, I nixed the backstreet boys medley. Amy triple checked with me that it was okay to play and out of the respect of my bridesmaid (who breathes BSB) I agreed. They killed the BSB medley and let the bridesmaid sing a line. It was perfect (and later balanced out by NSYNC songs). The band was dancing and on the floor with us the entire night. The performance was incredible.

Amy was so helpful throughout the planning process. She recommended multiple vendors, met with us multiple times, responded to every single text, email, and phone call. Her work ethic is astounding. At one point she was even helping rip open glow stick packaging for our exit. If Amy wasn’t there, our day would have felt incomplete.

The amount of effort that Yazz Jazz puts into making your big day perfect is priceless. We cannot thank them enough.

Absolutely fantastic wedding band! Yazz Jazz was such a fantastic addition to one of my favorite weddings and I could not be happier with them. The sound for the ceremony and speeches was perfect and they got the dance floor going with everyone from the wedding. They were all very professional and kind and showed up early all dressed very nicely (seriously, that sometimes doesn’t happen..) and were definitely a favorite of the crowd! I would absolutely recommend them!

I saw Yazz Jazz perform at the showcase at the Crowne Plaza in Burr Ridge in March. Amy’s performances were subpar. She appeared lethargic. As a whole, Yazz Jazz was a mess when it counted most.

Dave is a fantastic guitar instructor. He not only is a skilled muscian with a wealth of knowledge about guitar styles and music theory, but is an excellent teather. He is very patient with my kids, and is excellent at figuring out where their skills are at, and working with them to progress to the next level. He will work with you to achieve your goals and progress at whatever pace you are comfortable with.

Dave is an excellent teacher for all ages. He has taught two of my kids and me for years. He is an exceptional player, and is able to teach any genre to the beginner and advanced player. He is easy going so the student feels comfortable and confident to learn. Great guy!

Dave is an amazing guitar teacher and player! My kids have been taking lessons from him for years. They are now not only very good but love it so much! I highly recommend Dave Krater!!

Great place with a home vibe! John is fun and approachable. Comparable prices. Support this place! Shop Local!

Fantastic!!!! They really tailor the lessons to YOUR needs not whatever they like or want…..very impressed at their ability to connect with clients of all ages!!! Personal and professional all in one!!! Glad we found them!!! 🙂

Edited because I am dumb and hit the wrong button

First off I wanted to say I LOVE this store. I knew of this store for a while, and went there for a pack of strings back during my first year of high-school. I remember every single detail about me wanting a gig bag for my Lauren LA 125 Acoustic, and asking Jon to play me something on it. I had gotten that guitar at Kidder Music with my Grandmother as my first acoustic of my very own. Back then Ken used to work there as well. Now Jon owns the store. Both of those wonderful people have helped me out with Countless things, from guitar repairs, simple life lessons about waiting and being patient for repairs to be done, Saving money for thing that I really want. They both are amazing people, and Jon and Ken are both my best friends. Also, So is Bloo (Jon’s beautiful puppy)
I have taken so many photos that if I uploaded them all they would take years and years to process and stuff.

Over all 10000/10 would (and will still) recommend
Best music store in my area!

Love this store, great hot foods, bakery, and very friendly staff. One thing, I would like to see in the Deli, is bruchetta. A great snack food.

Best soups ever!!

Mariano’s are great.

Ecellent fast food.

A clean store with lots of great options. I have been shopping here since it opened up at this location. They have a good selection of quality items to choose from, which I appreciate. Beide COVID, they also had a lot of fresh and hot food to eat in their cafe area.

One complaint I have is that the self checkout machines can be a bit difficult, and I can sometimes need a clerk multiple times in one trip.

Good selection and fair prices (very similar to Jewel in both areas). We are always disgusted by the wrappers and trash left int he carts. Couldn’t the cart staff clean them up just a small bi (or would people mind using the trash bins!).

Fine

Their Starbucks espresso machine was broken. They didn’t have an alternatives in stock. Then they don’t have Apple Pay or any mobile way to pay.

No staff, expired items on shelves, empty shelves, deli guy doesn’t change his gloves.

My Martin 2015 D-18 arrived this knk and it is everything you said it was. I could not find flag in it any where. The tone is just great. I am taking it to a jam on Saturday and them to another on Sunday. I plan to split my time between the Mandolin my normal instrument and the D-18. Thank you Tobias Music and I will recomend you to my friends

Great family owned music shop. Wonderful inventory but, more importantly, it is owned wonderful people. Online or in person, this shop is well worth a visit.

Paul gave my son a great deal on a Martin guitar for his birthday. Fantastic store. Very knowledgeable. Highly recommend.

***EDIT***
So, I am knocking down my review from five stars to three; due to my most recent experience a couple months after the first one. So I reached backout to buy another guitar (place order) as I really wanted an AD22e or another model I can’t remember, but after confirming they could place the order I let them know that I wanted the AD22e and to provide me the full price so we could close the deal and they went silent, mind you I didn’t even get a copy of the receipt from my AD27e that never came which I had also requested from the last conversation.

I did finally get my guitar ordered but I had a national retailer place the order. I was disappointed I didn’t hear back from Tobias Music about completing the purchase and obtaining a copy of the receipt for my AD27e that never came.

** original **

Just bought an AD27e (Taylor) from them after finding it for sale online. it was a great buying experience. I’m a lefty, buying guitars online is the norm, and most of the time guitars I buy take a day or two to pack and ship. we had a few emails back and forth and they were quick to respond and very professional. These guys had it packed and shipped the same day, and I didn’t place my order until after lunch; that’s service.

They also took the time to dial the guitar in; it came with the action set and was tuned ready to play out of the box. Paul did a great job and really made this buying experience easy, and hassle free. I’ll have to check back often to see what other lefty guitar they get in. If I have the chance, I will buy from them again.

They are more of a acoustic guitar place not really a place for bass players .

Amazing selection of ukuleles at all prices. Very friendly and willing to let you try many ukes out including high end models.

Not being able to decide from what I saw online, everything looked so good, I drove 3 hours to check things out. What a wonderful experience! Matt was both knowledgeable and helpful. After testing out what seemed to be a dozen potential winners I finally landed on the perfect ukulele!
I highly recommend buying your next ukulele here. I know that I will!
Wes

Great place for a big selection of quality Ukuleles. The owner is very knowledgeable and offers great advice to players of all levels.

Bought my first uke here. The customer service was excellent and equaled the quality of my beautiful sounding new uke. Will be buying from Aloha City Ukes again. They also set it up.
This is an update add-on. Took my Lanikai Flame Maple baritone uke to an acoustic jam session last night (no amps allowed)and was floored when my uke could be heard over 5 other acoustic guitar players, Cajon and violin. Excellent instrument for accompaniment for my song choices. “ABSOLUTELY MAKE SURE you are aware of their small timeline for returns. My second uke same brand but tenor turned out to be a bummer of an experience, plus I had to beg for a refund after 7 days. The uke looked like it had been strung with thick cables and looked as if it was strung by a child. I have NEVER had problems barre ing but it was IMPOSSIBLE on this uke. It was touch and go as to whether Id get a refund plus I had to pay $45 to send it back. Wont be shopping Aloha City ukes again. First time was a charm. Second purchase was a nightmare.

Would give zero stars if I could. I’m very disappointed with how they treated my father. He bought a ukulele here to increase his skills & knowledge after a long & hard battle with cancer. The owner was kind during the sale, but his demeanor rapidly changed after it. My father tried asking questions afterward, such as how he could get the most out of his instrument.. to which the owner replies with “just don’t play it.” I’m genuinely disgusted to know that this is how the owner treats their customers after a sale. I’m in such disbelief by how manipulative and unprofessional this business is. I will be letting everyone we know in our music/ukulele community that they should never come here. I hope the owner learns to be kind to all after this.

Got there 10 minutes to 4 but they closed early. I gave 2 stars for the online store.

I love this Wal-Mart. Best one.

Good prices

Nice selection of hair care products that I wasn’t able to find at the other Walmarts near me. It has a better selection of everything actually and I like that it’s in a nice size strip mall. I found everything I was looking for.

Great prices on everyday household items.

Has nice grocery area. Some of there prices on there vegetables is a little high. Other items are competitive.

It’s Walmart. Go to Target for a less annoying experience.

I absolutely HATE the layout of this Walmart…. It was a fluke that I even went here. I avoid it at all cost! Yuck!

Associates are incapable of “matching” the prices listed on Walmart’s own website for tech. Website shows sold and shipped from Walmart, available for pickup immediately, and the exact stock location but the price cannot be “matched” since the holy website does not say verbatim what the associate wants to hear. If you are advertising a price and selling at another, that’s not “price matching” that’s price gouging and shady business.

The change in price is literally a manufacturer sale. The sale is honored by nearly every business I can find, except for this exact brick and mortar. So much for convenience Walmart. Thanks for taking 15 minutes to confirm they’re even in stock.

Since when is Walmart above false advertising?

Is anyone surprised at Walmart these days? Ordered family pictures of my kids and they “lost them”. Who knows where the pictures went to. They said they lost in inventory. Please don’t order pictures from them.

Yum

Great Food at Reasonable prices!

Always very predictable! Good, fast food!

Gast food.

It’s OK

Its mac

I don’t think anyone needs a post for McDonald’s people should know what to expect…

Very slow service for fastfood.

I was in a rush and it was pouring, didn’t check my food at the drive thru and of course I get home and I’m​ missing items. Call to complain, no answer. Never again.