The top 20 music shops in Port Barrington, United States

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!

Very helpful and they carry Idiotbox!

Great store. Very nice people. I was surprised at how inexpensive their GHS bass strings were, as I hadn’t bought new ones for my bass for 15 years. Will recommend to friends.

Very nice store, friendly staff, huge selection, ability to order almost any product, lowest prices around, reward program gives you money back, the list goes on. Instrument lessons, repairs and they even have a small vape shop with top brands at super low prices. Definitely a must for any area musicians!

I’m sure this place is great but I wish I didn’t have to make an appointment just to look around. Not a great business strategy in my opinion.

Legitimately told you a price then followed it up with a cheaper price if “you take it home today”.

Seller has ghosted for several days when asked to refund. Instrument was sent off after I asked for refund due to instrument taking days to ship and when i saw it still did not ship (I ordered a different flute from different seller and I received that one fast-within a week) so I requested a refund. Well, the instrument was shipped AFTER requesting refund (meaning dont send it anymore just return money back to account). Instrument is now back in their hands after I asked seller to provide label (took days to get that label too). 3 days have passed. No communication, no flute, and no refund. Avoid this experience as it is not a pleasant one for me. One month fighting this horrible experience

This little place is a gem to any serious musician. Top of the line gear in stock, and inventory and prices you would never find at a large retail chain.

Awesome shop, great people. I contacted Dr. Woods about doing a set up on my brand new Rickenbacker 4003. I dropped it with him Wednesday and picked it up Thursday. Plays perfect! Did a great job, and put me at ease. Happy to have such a great shop with great people near by.

Great store, the best service anywhere, decent prices. Buddy is a great guy.

Very friendly, asked for advice on a project gave great direction. I will definitly come back to give them my business.

Buddy is an expert musician. His advice, insights, and customer service are worth the visit. I support this local shop because they offer value that I can’t get from the web or a large chain.

A very helpful and knowledgeable staff. A relaxed atmosphere with some really great looking guitars.

Its a long story. In the end it was a bad experience.

I think if I didn’t check up with them things could have been much worst.

I’m not doing any business with them and advise the same.

I debated posting a review or not, but I think I should if it’ll keep someone from having a bad experience. First off, the employees are super kind people. Couldn’t be happier with the staff. But unfortunately the work I received on my guitar was really poor. Took a guitar there, first time bringing them one of my instruments. Was told I could expect a turnaround in under a week. Ended up waiting almost 2 months. Honestly not a big deal, happens a lot with instrument repair. Got the guitar back. Took it out to play it and the truss rod cover is missing. Find it in the case and put it on. Turn the volume knob, it falls off. Have to spread the top of the pot and reinstall it. Start playing and there’s a weird oscillating noise from the amp. Find the output jack totally loose, have to take off the cover and tighten it. Screws for the cover are stripped in the body. This is a new guitar by the way. Notice the G string sits higher off the neck than all the others, very noticeably. Figured they would fix this when doing a setup but I guess not. Had to file the saddles out myself. Should have just done the job myself at this point. Ended up taking the guitar apart to make sure the wiring wasn’t as bad as the assembly and setup. Got it playing good now, but after paying for someone else to do it and then having to do it myself, it wasn’t worth it. I figured the extra time taken would have meant it was 100% ready to go when they called but apparently not. This was a mid range guitar so I’m not terribly upset about it, but if it was something really nice I would have definitely been upset. Take this into consideration before dropping off your favorite axe. Hope they learn to slow down and do quality work.

I called 45 minutes before they closed and was there about 25 to 30 minutes before they closed to get a guitar pick the lady with a dog looked at me walking out locked the door and got into her car and left mind you there was still about like I said 25 to 30 minutes left so if you’re gonna close at 8:30 put it on your page on Google that closing is at 8:30 and I’m still gonna buy a pick tomorrow because you’re the closest but that will probably be the last time I’m there and I will be returning the saxophone either Friday or the third

Their website requests an appointment, and as a courtesy, just give them a call or e-mail on a day/time you want to show up. Richard and Marshall are busy in their workshop with repairs and fulfilling customer orders, etc. They are most gracious of hosts fielding questions, telling you things you should’ve asked but didn’t. Getting a guitar from these guys is like buying a car from a professional mechanic. Buying a guitar from Brune is feeling confident about the product with which you walked out the store. They are both easy to talk to, they both give different perspectives on an issue or question, both are extremely knowledgeable about their luthier trade. Stores like this, that sell the caliber of classical/flamenco guitars they do are VERY VERY rare in the U.S. To have this gem in the midwest where I live is worth the drive. Buy, trade, sell with confidence here at R.E. Brune and Son Luthier and guitars!

Never been to Marshall’s shop as I live in Australia but I dream of visiting his shop, meeting him and Brandon and buying a guitar. Seen heaps of videos to get all hyped up..

Marshall (and Richard too) are easy going, helpful and generous with their time. They have dozens of high quality guitars for sale, they repair and set up guitars and other stringed instruments (I was there for a home-made ukulele today) and they build their own classical guitars. This is a first rate shop with first rate guitars. Marshall and Richard are knowledgeable and easy to work with.

Been dealing with Shel and Alan for 13 years.
Hands down the best distributor I’ve ever worked with.
By far, the highest margins for the retailer in the business.
I used to buy a lot of smalls from Musicorp (doesn’t everybody?).
Increased my margins substantially by switching to Perfektion.
Same quality products for much, much less.
Credit terms are flexible and available. All you have to do is keep your word and pay, and the possibilities are endless.
I’d give Perfektion 6 stars if I could.

Awesome store! Would visit again!

I have been dealing with Black Mountain Music for over 4 years now and I guess Scott Johnson the owner of Black Mountain Music closed and switched over to Perfektion Music as a representative at some time last year. And now I guess Scott Johnson is no longer representing Perfektion Music either. Now the truth is that I have never dealt with Perfektion Music directly and I understand if they do not know me nor my store. I guess the strange part of this is that when I asked if I could get a 30 day net. payment plan like I had with Black Mountain I was told they couldn’t find where I had done business with Scott Johnson before. Then the person on the phone asked me if I could call his grandfather in Texas as he is down there for the Winter. I find it strange that a company would need me to call their grandfather, who essentially is on vacation to find out if I can get credit with them. I would think they would have denied me or had me fill out some paperwork. I am not sure I want to do business with a company that has no one at the helm on a regular basis and has to ask a customer to call someone not on the premises. I would think they would have at least called the grandfather himself and had him call me, but it sounded more like he wanted me to ask permission for him to do business with me. Interesting!!!

A great place to take lessons and buy or rent instruments! They are friendly, full of knowledge about all things music and provide fantastic service.

Great and timely service! Jeff is the best!

I think I’ve purchased five guitars from Jeff and Consolidated Music. The service is top-notch and Jeff couldn’t be a nicer, more honest person. My only complaint is, the guitars sound so much better when someone else is playing it. I get a lot of requests when I play but I continue to play anyway.

Got my first guitar and amp here. Happy with the quality, service, and knowledge. Also taking weekly lessons. Great rates and times available. Recommend them highly

I love our local music store. Stopped in to get my daughter’s cello tuned and look for records for my mom. The owner was so nice and so helpful! Loved the selection of records as well

Great little gem in LZ. Lots of good finds, owner is very helpful and knowledgeable.

Friendly people

Music store with a nice selection of instruments. Some vinyl and CDs too, although it has very few, if any, hidden treasures. 2 stars removed because the one employee and 2 of the customers were not wearing masks when I visited. I would have spent more time and money here if they were. Stay safe, everyone.

I was very dissatisfied with this location as they don’t offer any instruments that would allow the user to produce the sounds of Echolocation

This store has everything your looking for, very nice people that work here. Can’t wait to start music lessons!!

Extremely helpful with guitar purchase. Thank you

Dave is awesome and always helpful.

good prices on used drum gear. would like to talk to the owner who’s a drummer. the young man that works only on Friday isn’t knowledgeable about all the inventory. don’t pop in if you’re in a hurry. nice place.

I had a music lesson scheduled for 1/8/20 at 6:30pm I had a morning Dr.s appointment in Milwaukee The original scheduling would have allowed me plenty of time to got to the store. unfortunately The Doc found something worrisome and need me to stay for tests that is when I called to try and reschedule and this saga began. This store literally stole 3 lessons worth of my money with out remorse…because I had a medical emergency!

It is very unfortunate that this store is not run like a local business servicing their neighbors. I have been going to Pearl Street for years. I have bought several instruments and accessories, including a previous owners personal guitar. I nave taught myself a bit and can play a bit but I decided to get some polish with lessons. I bought 5 lessons and took one that night is was great. The teacher was awesome. The following week I had an appointment in Milwaukee but was scheduled to be home for my lesson. Well the Doc found some stuff that need further attention. I called The store to reschedule my appointment but the told me I would be charged full price. I explained to deaf ears about the issue, nope, you lose the lesson, You can start back up with your remaining lessons next week. I don’t care about the money but when a small, local business is this inflexible with it’s neighbors then would rather go big box and get the pricing.

So I got a call from the store and The owner tells me there is no refund or reschedule. I had asked him to refund the remaining balance on my account he said that I have to give 2 weeks notice. so he now has taken 3 lessons fees for absolutely no services rendered. In the Us code it is defined as theft.
Please see attached voicemail transcript to see how this store treats a medical emergency.

Here is the voice mail transcript from ken the owner (I believe).
“Hi this message is for Gary this is Ken Pearl Street music um on the oil over here and _⁠_ signed up for lessons with Nate and then um we paid for the month and then you didn’t show up today I heard you want to refund because you were upset um about um our policy um but we have a contract that you signed so I mean you know about _⁠_⁠_ policy it says it on the contract right on the contract it says anytime student _⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_⁠_ _ lesson then um you don’t get a refund for that lesson iMessage within 24 hours and um yeah that’s just how that works um it’s in the contract we can email you the contract that you signed _⁠_⁠_⁠_ that says that that’s fine if you want um and if you wanna refund um for the rest of the lessons for the month um it also says on your contract that you need to put in a two week notice when you wanna quit so you would always for two more lessons anyway so I would say why don’t you just finish out the month and if you want to put in your two week notice um starting today that’s fine um but yeah he signed a contract um that you’re fine with canceling the same day and not getting credit for it and _⁠_⁠_ also signed a contract I said you have to give it two _⁠_⁠_⁠_ notice before you quit so um yeah those are store policies if you can give us a call back or you can email me Pearl Street music at att.net if you have any other questions or concerns um if I have your email um I’ll look and see if I have your email I can just email you the contract that you signed OK and we’ll talk then thank you bye-bye…”

You lack the charm of a neighborhood business.

Brought my new guitar in for a set up. Assured that it would be done right in 2 weeks. Called after 2 weeks and was told they hadn’t even started on it. Will never shop here again. Couldn’t be more disappointed.

Only been at the store 3 times. 1st visit was ok. 2nd I asked for a guitar cable to try out an amp. The owner refused to provide one even though I said I would keep the volume down. 3rd time I was allowed to play a guitar for a while at low volumes, then the owner rudely placed his hand on the guitar and said “You need to leave.” What’s the point of having a business if you don’t allow customers to try out your instruments? I will never do business with them again and will happily give my money to another music store.

Stephanie is so patient and she keeps our daughter engaged. We have been taking piano lessons for years now from a beginner and our daughter looks forward to her lessons every week! (though practice is still another story 🙂 )

Our son loves learning from Stephanie! She is patient with him and he is making great progress on the piano!

Stephanie is an excellent instructor. Both my girls, ages 12 and 13, have taken lessons with Stephanie for a couple years. They are inspired by her musical ability and love for music. They have reached a skill level where they enjoy practice – I don’t need to harp on them to get in their piano time. Throughout the day the piano calls to them and I hear them practicing new and old pieces they’ve learned. Stephanie has helped make piano fun while challenging them to grow their abilities.

I cannot emphasize five stars enough when I talk about Knight Music Academy. We have been a KMA family since my daughter was 2 and my son was a newborn (we are nearly celebrating 7 years at KMA). Because of Laura Knight and her incredibly warm teaching style and commitment to providing the best educational experience possible for all KMA students, both of my children have grown to have a deep and genuine love of music and feel proud to be guitarists. I have also watched in awe as Laura has helped to foster within them a sense of self-discipline, respect for themselves, their classmates, and their instruments. Moreover, both of my kids feel a sense of confidence as performers that I never had growing up with music lessons. The skills that they have learned at KMA transfer to their attitudes towards learning in many other environments as well. KMA offers far more than just music education, it’s an excellent investment in your child’s development overall. As a parent, watching my children thrive in such an enriching and nurturing environment is an incredible feeling. I am so grateful to Laura and all the KMA teachers for providing such a wonderful home for music education. Every family I have referred to KMA (and there have been quite a few) have marveled at how incredible the experience is–way better than anything they had tried elsewhere. If you’re searching for a place to teach your child to love music–look no further. KMA is the absolute best!

My daughter loves taking music lessons here. They have frequent recitals and excellent teachers.

We’re having a wonderful experience with Laura and her staff as parents of a student at Knight Music Academy. The staff is very competent and professional. In addition, the environment is very wholesome and family-oriented. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone interested in music lessons.

Disappointing Experience for my Child

I enrolled my 6-year-old child at Knight Music Academy with high hopes for a positive learning experience. Unfortunately, my experience with the owner, and the piano instructor, left much to be desired.

On multiple occasions, I observed displaying rudeness and impatience towards both students and parents. This behavior created a tense atmosphere that was far from conducive to a productive learning environment.

Moreover, demonstrated a lack of patience when working with my child. Instead of providing gentle guidance and encouragement, there were instances where my child felt discouraged and hesitant to continue with lessons.

These experiences had a notable impact on my child’s enthusiasm for learning piano. What should have been a joyful exploration of music turned into a source of anxiety and reluctance.

Expectations vs. Reality
When I initially enrolled my child, I anticipated a nurturing and supportive environment where a love for music would flourish. Unfortunately, the reality fell far short of these expectations.

Suggestions for Improvement:
I strongly recommend that Knight Music Academy invest in training for their staff, particularly in areas of effective communication, patience, and professionalism. Creating a positive and encouraging atmosphere should be a priority.

Conclusion
In sum, my experience at Knight Music Academy was disappointing, primarily due to the demeanor of the owner and instructor. While there may be positive aspects to the school, they were overshadowed by these significant shortcomings.

Sign Off:
Thank you for taking the time to consider my feedback. I hope this review serves as constructive feedback for Knight Music Academy to improve and provide a better experience for future students.

Off the chart recording space

Simply awesome!

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.

I rented a violin from these fellows, as i have a shoulder injury, i asked would it be possible to swap for another instrument, a cello, specifically. Of coarse they obliged. They are friendly knowledgeable, and are a quality local business that drives are community to pursue enlightenment through music. 5 stars, I’d give 6 if it were possible.

Tim and Jason are two of the nicest people I know in the music business.
They make everyone who enters their store feel welcome; and they work tirelessly to make sure that every customer is satisfied.

Friendly service. A wonderful local business.

Very nice selection.

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