Two brothers and music lovers, Jeff and Randy Wilson, recently decided to retire from their business, Sound Check Music Center located at 671 Maltman Drive Suite #5, Grass Valley.
Doors at Sound Check will be closed to the public January 24, but until then, musical instruments and equipment are marked down as much as 60 percent, according to Jeff Wilson, co-owner.
“We’re at the point where people can come in and make an offer, and if it’s a reasonable offer, we’ll accept it,” Jeff Wilson said. “We have to vacate this by the end of the month.”
During the two years running Sound Check, the Wilson brothers have welcomed the music community, offered lessons, repaired instruments, and had a great time doing it.
Jeff Wilson and his wife plan on staying in the area and spending more time with family, while his brother Randy is staying in Southern California.
“It’s time to retire and enjoy life,” Jeff said. “My wife and I, we have grandkids and great grandkids, so we want to spend more time with them.”
Deep discounts will be available before doors close at Sound Check with inventory of guitars, percussion, amplifiers, keyboards, drum heads, and lots of accessories.
One store closes and another opens in Nevada City
Plans for another music hub are in the works for Pete Welty, a previous owner of Sound Check, who is partnering up with the owners of Miners Harmony Music currently located at 10055 Wolf Road in Grass Valley.
Welty, Zach Trayner, and Jeremy Schafer have the keys to a location at 754 Zion Street in Nevada City that housed the former Enid and Edgar vintage clothing shop.
The three partners are expected to open up the newest version of Miners Harmony Music by March or sooner.
Plans include a music shop, instrument repair, an education center for music lessons, and a live event venue.
The large space already has a stage, room for inventory, and space to build out a lounge and rooms for lessons or for individuals to practice, according to Welty.
The location on Zion Street in the 7 Hills Business District of Nevada City will offer more visibility and more foot traffic, according to Welty.
Building a presence in the community which is known for being the home of so many artists and musicians is important to the owners of Miners Harmony.
“We kind of see ourselves as a hub for musicians,” Welty said. “We’re going to also have a musicians guild, which will be like a musicians co-op, if you will.”
The musicians guild will be a partnership with local musicians to buy into and get perks and benefits for being a member, according to Welty.
“There’s no music hub in Nevada City either, or even in Grass Valley,” Manny Servantes, sales person and music teacher at Sound Check said.
Servantes will be joining the team at Miners Harmony and says he is looking forward to the new opportunities they will offer.
“There’s not a place in town for musicians to hang out and meet,” Servantes said. “I really think a big part of what’s going to draw people is having it as a social hub.”
The team at Miners Harmony hope musicians will feel comfortable in the new space where they can share their talents and hold informal events.
