Your Top-14 list of music shops in Louisville

Excellent experience with Mingus as he is very transparent in his approach to the desired repairs and craftsmanship. I trust Mingus with my instruments and I am happy to have found Madrone Guitar repair. Highly recommend!

Recently had new pick-ups installed on my GL Legacy along with a light setup. Easy to work with and super quality work done by Mingus; highly recommended. Total Pro workmanship and knowledge made the experience more than pleasurable and will definitely be back for any future repair needs.

It is truly a work of art the work Mingus does. The craftsmanship and the care that goes into all his work is remarkable. I am glad there is a person so dedicated to music to restore our instruments for future generations. I highly recommend.

This place rocks.

I came in with out almost any guitar knowledge, the staff were very nice and beginner friendly. I mentioned my dream guitar while I was looking at a lower cost model and they brought it in just to allow me to get my hands on it.

I had my first Wildwood Guitars experience today — and it won’t be my last. I’m admittedly a guitar neophyte, and I was honestly a little nervous about going in, but Steve Stuart answered all my questions with not only patience, but enthusiasm. His passion for the subject was inspiring and the breadth of his knowledge reassuring, all without seeming elitist or intimidating. I never felt pressured, rushed or unwelcome. The overall vibe was simply a place with a bunch of folks who genuinely love guitars. I left with a guitar that I’m madly in love with and the satisfaction that comes with having a great experience. I can pretty much guarantee my next guitar will come from Wildwood, too.

This is place for serious guitar players who know what they’re looking for. You have to go in with a game plan and narrow down your options before you go in. The kid who was assigned to me was on the computer and, frankly, seemed irritated when I asked laymen’s questions around neck differences, pickup selection, etc. I just don’t think it’s a shop for the average hobbyist. I had cash with me and was ready to have someone help me along with my research, guide me a bit and walk out with a new guitar. That was not my experience. He probably sells dozens of $3-$4k guitars a day to people who already bought dozens of guitars from them! Ultimately, I wound up with a super enthusiastic kid at another shop who spent a good 20-30 minutes with me and I landed an amazing Les Paul Standard. That said, it’s a great atmosphere full of talented musicians from all over and the owner is super nice with an incredible reputation by all accounts (personal and online). If it was closer, I would’ve gone back on a week day with a solid plan. Just go in with a game plan, do your homework before you go in, and have a few options to try out beforehand with the codes/numbers you’re looking for so they can just run to the back and grab it….you can’t beat their selection and their pricing is very competitive.

I love WW GUITARS and have bought over 25 guitars from them. Almost every guitar I’ve purchased over 20+ yrs (ranging from Taylor t5, Martin D18 to Gibson ES 335) has been exquisite. And the ones that have not been so Stellar, WW has worked with me until I’m happy.

Since COVID however, the buying experience from them has faded considerably and I’m afraid that they have become another Sweetwater. I have tried to communicate with them and have supported them with strong appreciation and customer loyalty only to feel like just another customer. Customer service, tech service, appointment scheduling is now geared towards online sales and true customers that highly value the buying experience have been ignored. I have referred countless new customers to them and feel as though my staunch loyalty to this brand has gone unnoticed/ ignored.

Sadly, I have recently began to branch out and my last few purchases have not be with WW. I hope they continue to sell top notch instruments and am still hopeful that they can correct these issues and reach out too old school customers too.

They don’t do setups on your guitar yet they have a warehouse full of guitars? Great selection and very knowledgeable.

Shop closed its in store experience for covid and never re-opened. They essentially just became like Amazon, embracing a business model to kill brick and mortar in person shopping which is a tragedy for the acoustic guitar world. Used to be a 5 star store… now they’re worse than guitar center.

Slow
Lack of information
And asking of personal information

I started going there back in 2001 and have previously purchased four guitars from them over the years along with a DR Z Amp and numerous other goodies. The first being a Martin 00-15, then a Gretsch G6120 1959 in Lacquer both many moons ago. Then shortly thereafter one of first thin skin ’50s White Blonde Telecasters. And a little over two years ago a Brad Paisley Tele. I attempted to by another Telecaster this week and for lack of better words became very frustrated

You see, I used to go down to the shop as I only live about an hour up the road. Life happens you get busy and lately it’s been over the phone and online as free shipping and a lesser tax rate is better for me. I dealt mostly with Steve, Bruce and then Lance the last couple of times and they are all good people and made sure I was taken care of no matter in person or on the phone. I wanna say that after every conversation I have every had with Steve he makes you feel like a King and I know it’s not just for me as I have witnessed him many times treat everyone that way.

So why am I frustrated? It shouldn’t take 4 days to get a guitar in a box and out the door. I spoke with an Ian on day one to be informed that it was scheduled to ship in 4 days and if I wanted it by Christmas I would have to pay for extra shipping. I was with a customer on the side of the road helping them not be stranded so I quickly told him I didn’t need extra shipping and left it at that as I needed to get my work done. Day 2, I emailed to try and get a better understanding and dealt with a John that simply offered up excuses and just wanted to tell me how busy they were. So I got to thinking about all this and emailed them to cancel the order. I got an email back that now I was being pushed ahead of 11 other customers and the guitar would go out a day earlier if I didn’t want it set-up. This got me thinking even more, and I even wondered about the fact that this Tele was a very inexpensive guitar by their standards so maybe that’s why my order was being pushed back for some reason.

I’ve heard rumors that ownership has changed. I don’t know. I do know if Wildwood has become so busy that It takes them 4 days to put a guitar in a box and ship to a long time local customer an hour away they don’t need my business anymore.

Will is great. My daughter needed to upgrade her fiddle bow. Will selected a variety of bows and patiently guided her through the process of narrowing down the choices, balancing his watchful eye and ear with what she was experiencing. She’s really taken a leap forward with her new bow.

Just bought a violin from Will, and it was a great experience! He was knowledgeable about each instrument he showed me, and when I had issues with the bridge on the violin I ended up purchasing, he was quick to help me sort it out. Would highly recommend!

Best fiddle fixer in the front range!

The instructors are very patient, kind and skilled at teaching kids. My child has made a lot of progress over a short period of time. I’m so glad Dana V Music is accessible and has pretty regular recital opportunities for students.

Dana and her team are incredible. This is a great program for any kid and will help those with an inclination to make music the experience they are craving. Thank you Dana!

We’ve had some amazing experiences with Dana V. Thank you for your encouragement and professionalism

I’ve been fortunate enough to hear Alexandra play live and I think anyone looking for an instructor could do no better than Main Street Piano.

Alexandra is knowledgeable and has a wonderful way of teaching. You’re guaranteed to learn with her by your side.

Alexandra Exeter is a wonderfully pleasant, professional and experienced teacher. I have learned a lot from her and would have never been where I am today without her!

I have been taking lessons from Jay Stern for many years now. He is engaging, creative, positive, and helpful. He is willing to explore any music genre I bring to him. He takes my lack of dedication to his craft in stride. I asked him about that one time, and he told me he learned long ago that you have to gear the lesson to the student. That every student that comes in has different goals, and that it is important to recognize that if you want to have a productive relationship. I really appreciated this about him. We started off with finger style, and moved to flat pick and lead guitar. We have explored old country, rock, indie, bluegrass and blues. He is always willing to explore music theory. He has even helped me chart out the chords for songs I wrote for my children and listen to my awful singing. He is a great teacher and despite my level of dedication, I have made tremendous strides in my playing over the years. Thank you Jay and Spring Creek Music for being an oasis of calm in my oh so busy life.

I am very grateful to have found this place. Tim is a great instructor for Bass.

Spring Creek Music has a core group of instructors that are musically diverse and experienced. Spring Creek’s staff includes electric guitar, acoustic guitar and bass guitar for students of all ages and all skill levels. Located in Old Downtown Louisville they have a great approach to instruction.

This is a cool, niche little spot!

Great selection of books with a variety of categories. Nice store of vintage stuffs. Employees were friendly too.

Awesome little shop, going back soon.

Nice little shop. Cool old town district.

3 stars for the selection of books & music, but 0 stars for quality control. I recently purchased 4 records here at this store and 2 of them were horribly scratched (one record is unplayable on one side). I understand that these records are vintage and some light wear is to be expected, but I’m surprised that these two made it to the shelf to be sold without a warning of their condition. (And I paid $24 for one of them!) Patrons, please be sure to ask to see the records that you wish to purchase before buying them. I would make the 50 mile trip up here to ask for a refund, but it’s not worth it. Next time I’ll know to check before I buy.

Prices are on the steep end but they have a great selection of vinyl and their rare books section has some great options. I could spend a solid afternoon going through this store.

Prices seemed inflated

I was glad I could sell my trombone here.

Specialized store focusing on educational music needs in the way of instrument rentals and supplies. Very individualized service over the years.

Excellent customer service. Called with 10 minutes to close on a Friday afternoon for a Saxophone sheet music book needed for Monday. Immediately the nice sales person put their hands on the book and held it for me until I got there. They just made a repeat customer especially since I didn’t know they were so close to me! I love that it’s supporting an individual instead of a chain as well. Thank you very much!

Very wide variety of sheet music and instruments. The new location is a little tight, but it’s nice to still have them around.

Little music store where you can find mostly everything you need. Most of the employees are nice and helpful for a small store.

Not bad for the only music store in Lafayette

Clerk made a mistake, got into an argument over what he said, owners showed up and started in with “Take us to court!” rather than listening to the circumstances. No customer service whatsoever. Apparently incompetence runs in the family-owned business. Nice store from a product standpoint, but terrible customer service. Left feeling screwed and unheard, with venomous wounds from really cranky people who don’t care to listen or do the right thing. Not sure how this store can survive with this kind of rudeness.

I cannot believe how much this place had gone downhill in the past year. The owner refuses to wear a mask even after asked even though there is a legal mandate in place. The blatant disrespect that I was greeted with was just insane. The guy at the front register took an hour to get my instrument contract for repairs because he kept helping other people. I was also refused a nice loaned instrument and was given a terrible one.The older woman also kept giving me a nasty side eye. I’m not sure if my appearance has anything to do with how I was treated, but I would not doubt it at all. When I was told my instrument would be sent out for repairs they told me it would be back on the next Tuesday. They then promptly forgot to send out my instrument even after trusting them to get it back in time for advanced music courses at school. When I called ahead to see if it was there and ready to be picked up I told them it was in a BRIGHT PINK CASE. They didn’t look for it and told me it was there. Therefor wasting my gas, time, and patience. Thats when I found out that they forgot to send it out. I’m now on the verge of paying for another month of paying for a rental so I have an instrument to play because they can’t do their jobs. I will be switching music companies and I would suggest anyone who reads this to do the same. The stupidity and disrespect is too much to handle anymore and I am sick of it.

Wide selection of instruments and sheet music, not that they let you look at any of it anyway. The whole experience made me feel very uncomfortable. The sales clerk followed me around and watched me like a hawk the entire time, I didn’t feel comfortable to browse the sheet music in peace. I also wanted to rent an instrument and the sales clerk seemed annoyed that I wanted to look at more than one instrument. It felt like he was trying to get me out of there as quickly as possible. If my business is such an inconvenience for you, maybe just close up shop. Owner also refused to wear a mask and walked around the store coughing everywhere. Use hand sanitizer after touching anything