Fretted Instruments School - Folk Guitar Lessons and Banjo Lessons in NYC

Acoustic guitar or banjo, beginner or rusty veteran — the Fretted Instruments School turns up the heat on folk strings. A SoHo schoolhouse tucked inside a walk-up on Sullivan, they keep the lesson board stocked with clawhammer banjo, 3-finger bluegrass, and flatpicking repertoire. Students from all five boroughs swing by after work, lured by the promise of fretted folk without the commute downtown.

Behind the peeling fire door at 171 Sullivan St Apt 14, you’ll find no velvet wall hangings, just the quiet thump of foot percussion and calloused fingertips hunting new shapes. Drop-in spots still pop up for bluegrass ensemble jams, old-time Appalachian drones, and Irish reel sessions that slide straight into bebop when a jazzer tags along. Add private folk guitar slots for DADGAD and open tunings, then squeeze in a weeknight clawhammer refresher — it’s a calendar that feels handmade.

Leave the street buzz on Greene and cruise south; when you round the corner the green awning disappears. Ring once, and when the door buzzes, sprint upstairs. Need the map before you sprint? Grab directions here, or dial (646) 526-3351 to lock in tomorrow’s guitar line.