Private Lessons

Albany Music & Sound
805 Burkhart St., SE
Albany, OR 97321
541-967-8293

Toll Free 1-888-200-7888

Welcome to Albany Music & Sound

Guitars, Amplifiers, Sound Systems, Bass Guitars

Print Music, School Band Instrument Rentals, Repairs

Lessons, Drum Sets, Percussion, Bass Guitars, Effects

Open Monday through Saturday,

10:00 AM - 5:30 PM

Closed Sunday

January is the time of year where all the new models are introduced.

Special orders on major items are the same low price as instock.

Why not order from us and relieve yourself of the worry of "what if"

We handle all freight and product issues so you don't have to worry

We have many New old stock items marked down to make room for the new stuff

We have selected many items to be offered

at close out prices. We can't even advertise them

on the internet without losing our franchise so come in

and check it out! Save up to 20% off the lowest price

on selected close out models.

Other Items: PA Speakers, Basses, Electric Guitars

Guitar Amps, Bass Amps, Drum Sets, Equalizers, Sub Woofers

Open Monday through Saturday, 10:00 AM - 5:30 PM

Albany Music & Sound

805 Burkhart St SE, Albany, OR 97322, 541-967-8293

www.albanymusicandsound.com
Devoted to Helping You Become a Musician

Private Lessons are available at our store on Guitar,  Bass Guitar and Drums. We have 2 lesson studios in the store where the lessons are held. Click on the link above to learn more.

Mark France teaches guitar and bass guitar  lessons several days during the week. 

Bob Pamplin teaches drum set and percussion instruction on Saturdays. 

Blog:: Today's market is a buyers market for sure. There is a vast amount of product out there and prices are low. But how do you know what to guy? The old fashioned "Brick and Mortar" stores that display the products that they offer for sale are still a great way to purchase musical products. Musical instruments and products very a great deal from instrument to instrument. 10 of the same model will all look, sound and feel a little different. We understand that price is important to our customers but it isn't everything. If you get a smoking deal on a guitar that looks great online but once you open up the box find out that nobody took the time to check it out, make sure it is set up properly and inspect it for damage or defects. It can be pretty frustrating. Then if you bought it over the internet, you have to send it back and sometimes it can take weeks to rectify the problem. There is a lot of cheap guitar shaped objects for sale over the internet. The unfortunate thing is that they most often don't play in tune and the strings are too far off the fingerboard to ever have any fun trying to play the guitar. You will get what you pay for. If you aspire to become a musician, think carefully about how important it is to you to have a "Real" instrument that will be a joy to play every time you pick it up instead of a frustration. We inspect setup and test every instrument before our customers take it home. If we miss something, we are here to solve the problem and help you quickly resolve your issues so you can be playing your instrument successfully. We do sell over the internet and those items are checked out with the same care as the items that we sell person to person but the same time delay can apply because of the extra time it takes for shipping and return. We want your business either way. Please contact us if you are looking for something and need help. We will offer competitive prices and superior service. If we can help you, please reward us with your business.

We do free guitar tune-ups and adjustments for any guitar purchased at our store. We will even change the strings for you with the purchase of the strings and show you how to put them on correctly for the first year after your purchase.
 

 

FAQ

We hope that you find this information useful! Here are some frequently asked questions about lessons and purchasing a guitar:


1. How long will it take?
Answer: Depending on your natural abilities and your willingness to practice, you should be playing simple melodies 3 chord songs within the first month. Everyone is different, but if you practice everyday, within the first year, you should be able to play more complex popular songs. The more you practice, the better you will be! We hope you will enjoy the process of learning as well as playing itself. The important thing is "Your Doing It".

2. What kind of guitar should I buy?
Most people know someone or have seen someone playing the guitar and that is what inspired them to want to learn. If you have always wanted to play like Stevie Ray Vaughn, an electric guitar might just be your best choice. If your favorite guitar player is Garth Brooks, you might want to buy a steel string acoustic. If your guitar idol is Andrea Sagovia then you might want to purchase a classical. Children often start on a nylon string classical guitar both because the 3strings are easier on the fingers and because the body of the guitar is generally smaller. However if your child is big enough to play an electric and that is what they want to play then you may be making a mistake buying some other type of guitar. A visit to your local music store might help clear that up for you.

3. What Brand Should I Buy?
Of course we think you should buy the brands we carry, how ever our unbiased answer is: There are many good brands on the market. Here are a few things you need to establish before you buy.
A. Find a famous maker brand name: there are many good brands on the market, depending on who you talk to, some are good and some are not. We have found that you can find good and bad guitars within each brand name. Try to stick with some of the companies that you have heard of, that have been around for a long time!

B. After you have established a credible brand name, find a store with a good reputation. If you know someone who has purchased a guitar from the store your looking at and they are satisfied, that should help you feel more comfortable.

C. The five things that we stress paying attention to when buying a guitar are Brand, sound, feel and appearance and price. The first thing that will catch your eye is the appearance of a guitar. Please make sure you play the guitar, listen to the guitar and of course compare price with similar models. If you don't know how to play the guitar, ask a salesperson to play several of them for you. Try some inexpensive guitars and have them play some expensive guitars. See if you can tell the difference. If you think you have found a guitar that sounds good to you, have someone else play several guitars while you look in the other direction. See if you can pick out the guitar that you liked. Look to see how close the strings are to the fingerboard. If the strings are hard to push down, your fingers are going to get sore a lot faster. This is called the action. Listen to the treble notes and the bass notes. Do they sound clear or muted? Play the guitar with a pick somewhat forcefully and see if it projects well and if it has a good sustain. It you buy an inexpensive guitar you may have to sacrifice in some of these areas. But if the guitar doesn't play easy, you will never be satisfied with it. Remember, you get what you pay for, both in service and in quality!

4. How much is this going to cost?
We carry guitars from $79.00 and sizes from 1/2 to full size. We have tried other less expensive guitars and found that they are not quality conducive to learning. If you purchase an inexpensive guitar, make sure that after you tune it, it will play in tune. Many times I have heard the comment that someone does not think their guitar will stay in tune. Usually what is happening is that the guitar doesn't have true pitch when you play some of the fretted notes. This will give the impression that the strings might be slipping. If you have suspicion that you’re experiencing this problem, tune your guitar with a chromatic electronic guitar tuner and then check some of the fretted notes up and down the neck. If the intonation is off, some of the fretted notes will register out of tune although the open string is in tune. If you are an adult, you might enjoy a nicer guitar to begin with. If you take good care of your guitar it will last for years and years, provided you get a quality guitar to begin with. Lessons presently range from $13.00 for a 1/2 hour lesson, ($20.00 per hour) once a week for guitar. Guitar lessons are held on Wednesday's, Thursday's and Saturday's.

5. We are concerned that it will be too loud.
Most smaller guitar amplifiers come equipped with a head phone jack that you can plug any set of headphones into. Inserting the headphones cancels the speaker so that the sound only comes out of the headphones.

6. Can I learn the style of music I like to listen to?
When you first start playing, you usually will learn some simple songs that are easy for beginners to learn. We will try as soon as possible to begin to show how to play the kind of music that you want to play. Most of the popular music that you hear is a little more difficult than you are going to be ready for at first. However, we will focus on what you want to learn as soon as possible!

7. What about those mail order and internet places?
Because of the many considerations involved in choosing a guitar, we think it would be best to make your decision after you have taken some time to look and listen. 10 guitars of the same model will all be different because wood has such unique characteristics. So you are going to want to try before you buy. Service is very important to all of us and it is very hard to get the service you deserve from a company down the road several hundred or thousand miles. Please remember, you get what you pay for! We often have sales on our guitars and drums etc., and you don't have to pay more than you would to order something from a catalog, you’re just going to sacrifice the help that we can give you, if you purchase one of our products.

8. How old do you have to be to start?
We now have 1/2 size guitars that would be appropriate for a 7 or 8 year old. If you start your child at an early age, they will begin by learning single note melodies and simplified chord fingerings. When their hand can reach all the way across the fingerboard, they can learn to play full chord fingerings. If your child can read and has a desire to learn to play guitar, we encourage you to get involved in music lessons. Children that start at an early age will better develop their musical ear.

9. Can I teach myself?
Yes you can. We sell teach yourself type methods and video's. Many adults are just too busy to commit to a lesson once a week. There are some great books available for you. We have found that if you take lessons, you can learn faster than if you try and teach yourself. We want to help you turn your desire to play into reality, and we can best help you if you take lessons from us. If that doesn't work out, come by and will help you find the right self teaching book!

If you live in our area, we invite you to come in and spend some time with us. We will be glad to help you select the instrument or accessories that are right for you!

Amp Shopping Basics First time guitar and bass guitar amp shoppers should check out this sight before going shopping. 

Guitar Shopping Basics  If you are a beginning guitarist, you might find some helpful information on what to think about on your first purchase and some FAQ on beginning guitar. 

 

Guitar Instructor Mark France's Home Page

Information on Guitar and Bass Guitar Amplifiers

Piano Teachers: We have names of several piano teachers that are accepting new students this fall. Call us for details.

"Lessons Last A Lifetime! The Effort Shared Is Most Rewarding."

Comments? Contact Albany Music & Sound at:mailto:albanymusic@juno.com