Music & Arts
TypeSubsidiary
IndustryMusical instruments
Founded1952 (1952) in Bethesda, Maryland, United States
FounderBenjamin O'Brien
Headquarters
Frederick, Maryland
,
United States
Number of locations
253[1]
Area served
United States
Key people
Jeff Gottlieb, President
ProductsMusical instruments, sheet music
ServicesMusical instrument rentals and repairs, private music lessons
Number of employees
1,500 (2005)
ParentGuitar Center, Inc.
Websitemusicarts.com

Music & Arts is an American musical instrument retailer chain specializing in band and orchestra instrument sales and rentals, guitars, keyboards, sheet music and accessories, musical instrument repairs and private music lessons. It is the largest school music dealer in the United States, with 253 retail locations.[1] Originally founded in 1952, the company has operated as a subsidiary of Guitar Center since its acquisition in 2005.

History

The first Music & Arts Center was founded by Benjamin O'Brien in a small house in Bethesda, Maryland in 1952. That first store offered music lessons, music and art supplies, and dance lessons — thus the name Music & Arts. The company gradually expanded in Maryland and Virginia, later opening retail stores in Atlanta, the Philadelphia area, the Carolinas, Nashville, Denver, and the Northeastern United States. Music & Arts Center eventually became one of the largest chain of musical instrument retail stores serving school band and orchestra programs, with 62 stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Northeast regions of the U.S. as well as Colorado.[2] In 1998, the corporate headquarters moved from Rockville to Frederick, Maryland.[2]

By 2005, Music & Arts Center was operating 60 retail locations and 7 educational support centers throughout the mid-Atlantic and Southeast.[3] On February 9, 2005, Guitar Center announced the acquisition of Music & Arts Center and its plans to merge Music & Arts Center with its American Music Group division of band and orchestral instrument stores.[3] The new company, operating as Music & Arts Center, included 82 retail music store locations spanning the United States, 1,500 employees, 330 affiliate dealers, and over 150,000 annual musical instrument rentals.

Music & Arts has become the largest school music dealer in the United States, with over 260 retail locations, over 200 educational representatives, and over 300 affiliate locations. The retailer has been characterized as the largest private music lesson program in the United States, as its independently contracted music educators conduct over 1.5 million private music lessons with students each year.[1][4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kailus, Katie (October 2022). "Not Slowing Down". Music Inc. Magazine. Maher Publications.
  2. 1 2 "Music & Arts Center: About". 2007-04-21. Archived from the original on 2007-04-21. Retrieved 2016-12-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. 1 2 Clabaugh, Jeff (9 Feb 2005). "Guitar Center acquires Music & Arts Center".
  4. ↑ Wissmuller, Christian (4 October 2021). "Music & Arts Expands Throughout 2021". Musical Merchandise Review. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
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