Fun fact: I’ve been playing bass for nearly 30 years, and in all that time, I’ve taken only two lessons. The only way I really learned the instrument was by playing it in a band. I bring this up because private lessons are but one way to learn to play music, and in my experience, I only got better by playing with better musicians. Below are some local music schools that, in addition to private lessons, offer group practices, camps, and even opportunities to play concerts at local venues. It’s great to get good at guitar or piano via solo and/or private instruction, but it’s even better to get good by learning to play with others.
Across six locations in Fort Worth, Colleyville, Keller, Southlake, and Lewisville, Creative Soul Music School has classes geared for everyone from li’l tykes on up to adults, with a variety of camps that get kids rocking out together. Creative Soul even does “Band Date Night,” in which an instructor shows you and your friend(s) how to play a song together. (Think: a cooking-class date night, but replace the souffle attempt with learning how to play “Wonderwall” or some such.) Creative Soul also offers team-building classes, which I would hope you and your officemates would use to learn to pound out “Working for the Weekend” and really mean it.
Founded in 1983 by the late, great virtuoso J. Michael Dailey, The Guitar Studio is the iconic Cultural District guitar school (4455 Camp Bowie Blvd, Fort Worth, 682-355-0190) that, along with its sister locations in Grapevine (211 W Northwest Hwy, 945-998-6039) and San Antonio, has helped develop the talent of hundreds of classical guitarists. Each location offers both private and ensemble lessons for players of all skill levels, and they also sell Altamira classical guitars and accessories.
On the Near Southside, Music Junkie Studios (1617 Park Place Av, Fort Worth, 817-919-0761) endeavors to get kids hooked on music at an early age, offering “lessons, classes, and camps for wiggly toddlers, curious kids, teens, and lifelong learners,” so if your kids fit any of those descriptions or you yourself need to scratch that itch to finally learn the drum parts to the first Strokes album, Music Junkie is a fantastic resource, staffed by local musicians with serious chops and great rapports with their students.
Platinum Music Complex (301 NE Loop 820, North Richland Hills, 817-381-5408) is possibly the only studio in America that used to be a city jail, and it still has fully functional cells and whatnot. But it is also unique in that it is indeed a complex, offering everything from rehearsal spaces, a recording studio, a 170-capacity performance venue, and private and group music lessons, so whether you want to film a video that has an incarceration theme or need a teacher to help you and your buds learn how to play 311’s “Prisoner,” Platinum is a great spot to get locked in.
School of Rock is probably the best-known of the bunch, since it’s been around since 1998 and its franchises are somewhat ubiquitous. In Tarrant County, you’ll find School of Rock locations in Fort Worth (4608 Bryant Irvin Rd, 817-332-7625), Arlington (5760 Pleasant Ridge Rd, 817-482-9723), Saginaw (6944 Blue Mound Rd, 817-985-7625), and Southlake (3220 W Southlake Blvd, 682-593-0990). No matter where you end up, School of Rock’s highly engaging and effective instruction method is still based on the idea that founder and music teacher Paul Green had nearly 30 years ago: Get students to play popular songs together. From beginners to musicians interested in the mysteries of digital recording, School of Rock has something for aspiring rockers of all ages.
