Local guide
Everything you need to know about one-to-one music lessons in Aberdeen: where the Stoneywood studio is, what you can learn, who it suits, what it costs and how to book.
By Connor Montgomery, Music Teacher at Fresh Music Aberdeen ·
If you've been searching for music lessons in Aberdeen, you'll have noticed there's no shortage of options, from online courses to tutors who travel between houses. Fresh Music Aberdeen is different: a dedicated, fully equipped music studio in Stoneywood, where every lesson is one-to-one with Connor Montgomery, a teacher with over 20 years of experience. This guide covers everything local players and parents usually ask before booking: where we are, what you can learn, who lessons suit, what they cost and how to get started.
Fresh Music Aberdeen has been rated the best music school in Scotland two years running, and holds a five-star Google rating built on reviews from real local students. As one student, Mark McCall, put it: “Nowhere better in Aberdeen for guitar lessons.” The school is run by Connor with his wife Pamela, and the atmosphere is friendly, relaxed and encouraging, with no judgement whatever your level.
The studio is at 11 Aspen Place, Stoneywood, Aberdeen AB21 9BA, in the north-west of the city. That makes it one of the most convenient places for music lessons if you live or work in Stoneywood, Dyce, Bucksburn, Bankhead or anywhere around Aberdeen Airport. It is just as easy to reach from the city centre and the rest of Aberdeenshire:
All lessons are one-to-one and shaped around the music you actually want to play, whether that's chart hits, classic rock, metal, indie or your own songs.
You'll learn to play by ear and read both standard notation and tablature, and the Fresh Music YouTube channel has a large library of free lesson videos to support your practice between sessions.
Fresh Music specialises in adult teaching. Whether you are picking up an instrument for the first time or returning to one you put down years ago, lessons move at a pace that suits you. Lessons run Monday to Thursday, 9am to 9pm, so there are morning, afternoon and evening slots that fit around day jobs and shift patterns.
Aberdeen is the energy capital of Europe, and many people here work away or offshore. Lessons are normally weekly to keep you consistent, but exceptions are made for those on an offshore or away rota, so you can still make steady progress around your trips.
Children are just as welcome, and parents can relax knowing Connor holds an enhanced PVG through Disclosure Scotland. Parents and guardians are welcome to sit in on lessons, and after-school slots (4pm to 6pm) make it easy to fit lessons in on the way home from school. Regular student progress reports let you see exactly how your child is getting on.
For pupils at Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire secondary schools, lessons can support SQA National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher Music performance, and preparation for Rockschool and Trinity College London grades is available for students who want a graded qualification. Lessons can also help students preparing for further education in music.
The Fresh Studio is set up so you can turn up with just your instrument and get straight into playing. Amps, cables, pedals, studio microphones, an electric piano and a full electronic drum kit are all ready to go, alongside a wall of acoustic, electric and bass guitars. If you don't have a guitar yet, one can be borrowed during lessons (right-handed only), and you'll get honest advice on what to buy for practising at home.
Restringing, minor electrical repairs and guitar adjustments are included as part of the service. Screens and recording gear make lessons visual and hands-on, and hearing yourself back on a recording is one of the fastest ways to improve. It's something a YouTube tutorial simply can't offer, as we explain in why you should ditch YouTube.
Pricing at Fresh Music is simple and transparent:
Lessons are paid monthly by Direct Debit, based on a 44-week working year, with a price lock until March 2027 and the freedom to cancel anytime. See the full payment information for details.
Weekly slots are booked in advance and held for you. To get started, fill in the enquiry form, email connor@freshmusicaberdeen.co.uk or call or message 07780 637 178. Tell Connor which instrument you're interested in, your experience so far and the times that suit you. If your preferred slot is taken, you can join the waiting list and be offered the next matching time.
Still deciding? Our guide to choosing a music teacher in Aberdeen and the lesson FAQs answer more questions.
The studio is at 11 Aspen Place, Stoneywood, Aberdeen AB21 9BA. It is close to Dyce, Bucksburn and the airport, easy to reach from the AWPR, and served by buses 17, 18 and 35 from the city centre. Free on-street parking is available nearby.
Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, drums and ukulele, plus songwriting, recording and practical music theory.
Yes. Fresh Music specialises in adult teaching and welcomes complete beginners, returning players and advanced musicians, as well as children and teenagers.
Yes. Lessons can support SQA National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher Music, and preparation for Rockschool and Trinity College London grades is available.
£20 for a 30-minute lesson (£73.33 per month) or £30 for a 45-minute lesson (£110 per month), paid monthly by Direct Debit. See payment information.
Yes. Lessons are normally weekly, but exceptions are made for students who work away or offshore.
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One-to-one lessons run Monday to Thursday, 9am until 9pm UK time, at 11 Aspen Place, Stoneywood, Aberdeen AB21 9BA.