3 Best Music Schools in Portland, OR

The staff, teachers, and volunteers at Ethos Music Center go above and beyond in supporting their mission to make music lessons and instrument rentals accessible: not just for students, but for EVERYONE who walks in the front door. It is a point of pride to build relationships with the amazing community that Ethos has fostered for over two decades. I see students of all ages who leave their lessons feeling excited about what they learned and what they will learn for next week. Students have the ability to choose the type of music they want to improve upon, even specific song suggestions. The instructors are welcoming, patient, kind, and full of knowledge and talent. The opportunities Ethos offers for those who are passionate about music are diverse. From the range of instruments available, and different lesson structures (private lessons, group lessons, ensembles, rock band, production & recording software instruction, etc.), Ethos truly puts the students and families first in this non-profit organization. If I could give more than 5-stars, I would.

My daughter takes piano lessons at Ethos. She has a young female teacher who is inspiring her, teaching classics and currant popular songs that keep my daughter engaged. Great asset to N/NE Portland.

I saw little kids with violins running to practice together next door. It turns out they were all students at Ethos and loved playing so much that they played together between lessons.

My daughter started her violin lesson with Chris in Kindergarten, and it's been about 5 years now. Chris is a fantastic violinist, and a seriously talented teacher too. He's got this way of making lessons fun and engaging, and he's super approachable, which is awesome for kids. Chris is also great at tailoring the lessons based on her progres. He blends the technical stuff with the fun musical bits perfectly. Plus, he's incredibly kind and even helped out when her violin needed a quick fix, which was a huge help! If you ever get the chance, go see Chris perform! He's incredible. We're so blessed to have found him.

Chris, who taught our son piano was an incredible teacher for young kids. Our son is six and has never taken any formal music classes and was excited to learn piano. Chris’s style is academic yet foundational meaning our son might have struggled with keeping attention, but we could tell our son‘s technique and foundational knowledge of piano and music in general was established. Chris was very, I cannot repeat enough, very patient with our son, keeping him on task as much as one could. I highly recommend Eliason for young kid music lessons.

A great music school for beginners and advanced of all ages. I started violin lessons with Chris in 2020 or 2021 as an adult in their 30s and my 11 year old daughter started piano lessons with Corrin 2 months ago. Both have been awesome, understanding and kind instructors! I love the virtual and in person options.