We are about to share a full breakdown of the local music scene in Manchester, UK with you today. The best instrument stores in your area including some different sections for where to buy guitars and the best drum shops in town will also be covered.
There will definitely be a lot of crossover between some lists but we have done our best to get the right spots in the right sections for you. Up next we will get into quality instrument repair shops near you because some reading this may need a piano tuned, a guitar repaired, or work done on other band instruments and there is somebody out there that can assist.
Contents
Then it will be time to pivot to the best music lessons for kids or adults. Following that we will give a shout out to the top stores for music lovers that sell vintage CD’s and records here.
We also think many of you will want to know about the best concert halls and live music venues while some others may prefer to visit bars and restaurants that have free live music around the city.
And we will get you out of here with the best festivals on the Manchester music calendar. Stay with us til the end where you will find a map with the wide variety of stores and venues we are discussing pointed out.
Everyone reading this is welcome to look through more of our blogs on the United Kingdom at that link.
Manchester Musical Instrument Stores
Some of the best musical instrument stores near you would be:
- Forsyth Music Shop at 126 Deansgate
- Alan Gregory Music & Musical Instruments at Xenon House
- PMT Manchester at Red Rose Retail Centre
- Chase Direct at 58 Oldham St
- Booths Music at 17 Churchgate, Bolton
- Grove Music at 269 London Rd, Hazel Grove, Stockport
- Live Louder at 18 Ashley Rd, Cheshire, Altrincham
Forsyth Music Shop sells a wide selection of instruments in your area including pianos, guitars, woodwinds, brass, and folk as well as sheet music, CD’s, DVD’s, and other related items.
Classical and acoustic woodwind, string, brass, and percussion instruments are sold at Alan Gregory Music where they also offer extensive repair services for all acoustics ranging from basic string replacements to stuck valves to entire overhauls, re-plating, re-lacquering, and full restoration.
Some of the items offered at Forsyth Music Shop include guitars, drums, amps, keyboards, pianos, speakers, PA and live sound, recording, studio, and top DJ equipment.
Musical instruments from some of the world’s top brands including Yamaha, Casio, Behringer, Tanglewood, Aria, Crafter, Cort, Chase, Numark, Ritter, Db Technologies, Hi Watt, and much more are sold at Chase Direct.
Booths Music opened in 1832 and is one of the oldest independent music shops in Manchester specializing in instruments, accessories, sheet music, repairs, and professional music lessons.
Guitar, bass, and ukulele repair services ranging from restrings, setups, checks, and more are offered at Grove Music who also sells instruments.
Live Louder is an independent local instrument store specializing in guitars and ukuleles.
Where To Buy Guitars
For all the guitars and accessories you need check out:
- Custom Acoustic Guitars at 137 Barlow Moor Rd
- Marvel Guitars at 110A Park Rd, Timperley, Altrincham
Custom Acoustic Guitars is one of UK’s leading acoustic guitar specialists providing a comprehensive range of instruments.
Classical, electric, and bass guitars near you as well as ukuleles are sold at Marvel Guitars.
Just about any music shop from any of our lists will also have some selection of guitars to choose from.
Drum Shops Near You
Nicko McBrain’s Drum One at Astra Business Park on Guinness Road is one of the best shops to buy drums and percussions in Manchester.
Earlier we linked you to Forsyth Music Shop, Alan Gregory Music & Musical Instruments, PMT Manchester, Grove Music, and Live Louder but we also need to mention them here in the local drum stores section.
Instrument Repairs
Instrument repairs in Manchester are available at:
- Jack’s Instrument Services at Collingham St
- The Guitar Repair Workshop at Professional Music Technology, Regent Rd
- Phil Hartley Guitar Repairs at 10 Florence Ave, Bolton
- Jim Fleeting Guitars at Pearl Mill, # E5A, 4th, Stockport
- Eddie J Guitar Repair at 450 Northenden Rd, Sale
Jack’s Instrument Services excels at providing repairs, restorations, maintenance, modifications, upgrades, installations, pickup windings, re-spaying, and other services.
Hundreds of guitars, bass, drums, keyboards, and accessories can be found at The Guitar Repair Workshop where they also provide set ups, refrets, headstock and neck repairs, and other instrument repair services in your area.
Phil Hartley Guitar Repairs specializes in instrument cleaning, repairs, modifications, and lots of other services.
Professional guitar setups, modifications, and repairs for beginner and advanced musicians are all offered at Eddie J Guitar Repair.
Instrument repair services are provided at Alan Gregory Music, Booths Music, and Grove Music from our local music stores list too.
Music Lessons
Level up by taking lessons at a music school in your area:
- Maunders School of Popular Music at Monsall Rd
- Chetham’s School of Music at Long Millgate
- Gasser Music Studio at 18 Lloyd St
- School of Electronic Music at 220 Chapel St
- Keys Piano School at 137 Bradshaw Brow, Bolton
- Stockport Music School at 214 Buxton Rd, Stockport
- Aura Music Academy at 4 Lloyd St, Altrincham
- All Music Academy Didsbury at Wine & Wallop, 97 Lapwing Ln, West Didsbury
- David Aldridge Guitar School at 3a School Rd, Sale
Maunders School of Popular Music provides professional guitar, bass, piano, keyboard, percussion, drums, and vocal lessons near you for beginners to advanced players.
Chetham’s School of Music offers piano, singing, and music theory classes for students of all ages, abilities, and musical preferences.
There are lessons ranging from online to one day weekend taster to flagship flexible two year professional courses at School of Electronic Music.
Stockport Music School specializes in keyboard, piano, drums, and guitar lessons.
State of the art purpose built studios and excellent facilities can be found at Aura Music Academy which provides innovative local music lessons.
For those interested in taking lessons All Music Academy provides it all for beginners and advanced players.
Private, group, and online classes are available at David Aldridge Guitar School.
CD & Record Stores
Check out all kinds of vintage CD’s and records at these local stores for music lovers:
- Clampdown Records at 9-11 Paton St
- Vinyl Exchange at 18 Oldham St
- Piccadilly Records at 53 Oldham St
- Kingbee Records at 519 Wilbraham Rd
- Sifters Records at 177 Fog Ln
- Wilderness Record Store at 9 Egerton Cres
- X Records at 44 Bridge St, Bolton
- Double Four Records at Lower Hillgate, Stockport
Clampdown Records is an independent store selling new and used vinyl records in your area along with CD’s and DVD’s covering rock, punk, indie, funk, soul, and jazz as well as interesting rarities, memorabilia, and other music related items.
Since 1988 Vinyl Exchange has been providing new and used CD’s, LP’s, and DVD’s featuring rock, indie, metal, punk, alternative, experimental, industrial, hip hop, house, techno, electronica, rave, jungle, R&B, disco, soul, funk, jazz, blues, folk, and other genres.
Some of the genres featured at Piccadilly Records include rock, pop, indie, disco, funk, jazz, house, Balearic, psych, and everything in between.
For nearly 25 years Kingbee Records have been buying and selling various types of music on new and old CD’s and records in Manchester.
Sifters Records has been offering fairly priced old recordings in all sorts of genres for nearly 30 years.
A carefully curated selection of vinyl records ranging from rock, jazz, soul, folk, hip hop, disco, funk, and psychedelia from around the world are featured at Wilderness Record Store.
X Records is one of the leading independent local record shops providing a massive range of vinyl, CD’s, DVD’s, memorabilia, indie exclusives, RSD stocklists, and rarities since 1985.
Forsyth Music Shop who we mentioned earlier carries lots of CD’s and records too.
Manchester Live Music Venues
Seeing a concert at Manchester live music venues is always a good time:
- Band on the Wall at 27 Swan St
- Rebellion Manchester at 2B Whitworth St W
- The Live Room at 94-96 Grosvenor St
- The Alma Inn at 152-154 Bradshawgate, Bolton
- The Arden Arms at 23 Millgate, Stockport
- The Green Room at 10 Goose Grn, Cheshire, Altrincham
Band on the Wall brings renowned musicians from across the world to the stage.
The Live Room is a one of a kind sophisticated ethnic themed high end establishment with a tapas lounge, cosmopolitan bar, restaurant, live entertainment, and nightclub.
Live local music is offered along with good beer in a fab atmosphere at The Green Room.
Fun Restaurants With Entertainment
You can take a date or a group of friends to these restaurants with live music:
- Dukes 92 Bar & Restaurant at 18 – 25 Castle St
- The Botanist at 78 Deansgate
- Bouzouki By Night at 88 Princess St
- Albert’s Schloss at 27 Peter St
- Thirsty Scholar at 50 New Wakefield St
- The Bridge Pub & Dining at Brindley Ave, Sale
- Menagerie Restaurant & Bar at New Bailey, Ground One, New Bailey St, Salford
There’s live music in your area every night of the week as well as a range of champagnes, wines, artisan beers, ales, and botanical cocktails at The Botanist.
Thirsty Scholar is one of the best spots to go for live entertainment ranging from band and poetry nights to comedy nights to 60’s and DJ’s.
Bars With Live Music
There are also some bars that play live music around town:
- One Night Six at 186 Deansgate
- Retro at 78 Sackville St
- Bunny Jacksons at 1 Jack Rosenthal St
- The Fitzgerald at 11 Stevenson Square
- The Whiskey Jar at 14 Tariff St
- Yes at 38 Charles St
- Gullivers at 109 Oldham St
- The Definitely Maybe Bar at 18 St Andrews Court, Mawdsley St, Bolton
- The Cracked Actor Bar at 28 Little Underbank, Stockport
- The Head of Steam Didsbury at 653 Wilmslow Rd, Didsbury
One Night Six One Eight Six is a classic cocktail bar and live music venue in Manchester.
Bunny Jacksons is a good place to go for live music, bourbons, happy hours, and delicious food with discounts.
A variety of live music featuring bands, DJ’s, and acoustic musicians as well as a vast selection of premium whiskies, cocktails, beers, and much more are offered at The Whiskey Jar.
Gullivers is a renowned, energetic, and bustling bar that has been hosting live music, spoken word, and theater acts since 1865.
Great local live music and events are hosted at The Head of Steam Didsbury which also offers an extensive list of beers, wines, spirits, and more.
Music Festivals In Your Area
The Parklife Festival in June has hosted some of the biggest musical performers of the last decade including Liam Gallagher, Foals, Disclosure, The Chemical Brothers, and more.
In the past we have also discussed:
- Bars, Clubs & Festivals In Leeds
- Bars, Clubs & Festivals In Liverpool
- Bars, Clubs & Festivals In Sheffield
- Bars, Clubs & Festivals In Birmingham
Enjoy The Manchester Local Music Scene
We tried to cover everything as quickly and as well as possible for you on this page. After reading about the best musical instrument stores, drum and guitar shops, instrument repair services, classes and lessons, vintage CD and record stores, concert halls and other live music venues near you like bars and restaurants, and the best festivals in the region you should have a much better understanding of what is available.
And anyone that made it this far might just know a little bit about the local music scene themself and if so feel free to tell us what we got wrong in the comments or share your own thoughts. Now it is time for you to go enjoy the music in Manchester, UK.