Brass & Reed Music Center

Walking in to Brass and Reed’s small store is like stepping into a fascinating museum of wind instruments, aged and recent. The owner and repair tech, Bill, is a maestro: a combination old-​school craftsman and skilled engineer. Having played trombone for more than 40 years in 9 states, I have dealt with numerous repair technicians. In my experience, Bill’s knowledge of how to repair instruments is second to none. He has a deep appreciation for the beauty and sound potential of the instruments on which he works, and goes beyond simple repair to actually improve the sound, relieve the metal stresses and improve upon the original solder joints. I was also impressed with his commitment to the customer: after a couple of unexpectedly busy days in his shop, he ended up working many hours past closing time in order to finish a job for me and let me pick the horn up late in the evening. You don’t often see that kind of service these days!

It’s a shame about this place; it used to be one hell of a music store, with a great selection of instruments and sheet music. The rise of the internet and big chains like Sam Ash have really taken it down. They have just a bit of music now, and seem to mainly focus on band instrument rentals and repairs. Good people running the place; I’m sure you’ll get a fair deal if you’re in the market for a repair or rental. It’s just not what it used to be.