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Solo Classic A neighborhood staple for over 18 years, Solo Classic has an established history of providing the highest quality rental string instruments with superior playability - never compromising our attention to details.

Solo Classic Music School honors the individual needs of our students providing unparalleled teaching methods centered on a diverse learning environment and customized curriculum-with correct guidance, all students can achieve their musical potential.Superior violins, violas, cellos, string basses, and bows handcrafted in the European tradition ensuring brilliant playability.
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Since 2001, the Raykovski family name has been synonymous with the old-world craft of making fine, master-crafted instruments. Opening a family-owned string instrument business and music school was the vision of Roumen and Dani Raykovski, who originally moved to Chicago from Bulgaria in 1997.
Opening its doors in 2001, Solo Classic music school has been a neighborhood staple dedicated to providing students with a rich musical education; as well as, encouraging the foundation of music programs in surrounding schools. Our school provides unparalleled teaching methods centered on a diverse learning environment honoring the individual needs of our students.
The Restoration and repair of violins, violas, cellos and bows has been a staple in Solo Classic from the very beginning. In addition to selling handmade string instruments, existing in the Chicago music scene has brought many of the world's finest musicians through our doors. Working with centuries old instruments has been a badge of honor for Roumen Raykovski who prides himself on bringing an instrument to it's original glory, while maintaining the brilliant playability and tonal quality that comes with an aged instrument.
Where quality and playability are of the utmost importance, at fair and the most competitive prices around. Solo Classic never compromises on the quality of rental instruments. Whether our rentals are in the hands of beginners or professionals, they need to offer brilliant playability while upholding the artful appearance of instruments inspired by the ancient Italian tradition of makers like Stradivarius, Guarnerius, and Balestrieri. Whether it's our custom hand made instruments or our rentals, Solo Classic never discriminates when it comes to the attention to details.
Reviews (19)
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Shin Hye Kim
Jun 19, 2022
Had my childhood violin fixed up at Solo Classic, and they did an excellent job. The owners are friendly, the craftsmanship is great, and the pricing is reasonable. I went during a busy season, and they were still very happy to help me out.
Jelly Show
Oct 29, 2021
I've been using this place for the rental of my daughter for years. The instruments that this place offers are very high quality. Being confronted with the request from my young one to have piano lessons I chose this place too and never regret it. The teacher has been very good for our daughter and we are still staying with her. What is striking about this particular place is not only the professionalism of its teachers (my friends are also taking lessons at Solo) but also the kind atmosphere of the staff. I never felt a slightest sense of negligence or disrespect. My concerns and wishes were addressed. Very happy with the service.
Dhruv Patel
Sep 07, 2021
You cannot compare the quality of instruments Solo has with any other company, especially their rentals and for such great prices! Roumen is a master luthier and personally adjusts all of the rentals making sure they play well regardless if it is for a child or not. We started renting and taking lessons 6 years ago--my daughter violin and son cello.

My daughter got into Patriot orchestra at Stevenson this year, so we purchased a violin for her with the rental credit that we built. Roumen is an absolute master and very thorough in answering all of our questions. The instrument is exceptional and sounds like it was made by a true artist. His wife Dani also treated us like we were a part of her family and was very considerate in making sure that we were satisfied with the instrument. Great family business, a true gem!
Gabriel Hwang
Aug 18, 2021
My name is Gabriel Hwang, conductor and violinist. A violin craftsman's name 'Solo Classic was introduced by one of my college student while I was having bridge problems. The precise curves and spacing of the bridge are very important for all violinists. After the fix, I was very happy for upgraded quality sound of my violin. And a few days later, my other teaching violin got a new fingerboard, bridge and overall restoration work, and I was very pleased for improving the sound.

I found that Mr. R. Raykovski is a real true Master of string instruments. To everyone who sees this comments, I would like to give highly, strongly, and utterly recommend to see Mr. Raykovski. And I was deeply impressed his assistant Mrs. Raykovsky. Her warmth and thoughtful personalities makes to all customers happy. I want to give them a great Thanks.

As I am conductor, violinist and teacher, I recommend to get a consultation at 'Solo Classic'. The Solo Classic is wonderful Landmark for all string instrumentalists. It was my great pleasure to find Solo Classic. Thank you.
Owen Kim
Aug 18, 2021
First, Solo Classic has great and flexible hours. Whenever we need to tune our cello or make an adjustment last minute, they are always open and happy to help. Roumen is particularly kind and knowledgable about string instruments and he even showed me step by step how a cello is made from beginning to finish so that I could understand better. It is obvious that he is a master craftsman and has dedicated his life to this art. Over all, Solo always takes great care and I have not seen better rentals for such great prices anywhere else.
Dugarmaa Jidgarav
May 12, 2021
We known Solo classics since 2018, my daughter got her first violin rented from here and we met these wonderful couple and staff, we appreciated all the support for my daughter's Orchestra they are always polite and quick, best qualified. Very happy to be served by them. Thank you so much, always! I recommend to everyone.
Adam
Apr 19, 2021
Roumen and Dani are wonderful business owners. Roumen booked an on-call, unscheduled all-day appointment to restore my multi-prize-winning museum piece violin to a condition exceedingly improved upon from its original glory! Sparing many details, I was accomodated such that I've never had such a great customer service experience in my entire life, and I work in sales and in customer service, myself.

Over the course of my appointment, I quickly learned that Roumen is a kind and wholesome family man, and as such, he and I had become great friends over the course of my visit. Additionally, I was greeted kindly by and became acquainted with his wife, Dani, and Solo Classic staff, all of whom are wonderful, genuine, and talented people! Roumen's attention and passion for detail, his craftsmanship, work ethic, and skill are unmatched!

He meticulously restored the finish, cut a new bone bow tip with great precision --- a very difficult material to work with, rehaired my bow with the finest horse hair, installed a new sound post that he shifted several times, playing the instrument and analyzing the tone after each movement, until he discovered the sweet spot and has never played better!

His shop also has all manner of parts and accessories at all ranges of quality and variety available to suit your unique and sophisticated taste and style! Thank you so much for the great experience and amazing value -- the quality for the price of Roumen's work cannot be understated!
Gary Reinsford
Mar 20, 2021
We have been renting with Solo Classic for the past 2 years -- we switched from another company near by, because Solo's instrument quality is FAR superior and they never raise their prices. Plus Roumen is a master maker and provides the best service in case you need a repair. At first, we rented with the other company, but we didnt read their fine print. their lower prices are for "silver grade" instruments. which is basically a cardboard instrument and you have to call them to figure out the "correct" price for their "orchestra level" instruments.

Shouldn't all instruments be "orchestra level" if our kids are in the orchestra?! Plus they raised their prices within months of rental without letting us know! Writing this review because my daughter accidentally stepped on my son's cello and Roumen was able to do a repair in an hour -- such a nice experience -- plus they are a small family business and we gotta do what we can these days. Thank you Roumen -- see you for that bow rehair next week.
Alin C.
Mar 17, 2021
Solo Classic is a wonderful, family owned, one stop shop for all your music needs. From music lessons to instrument rental/purchase, they provide great quality services. All their teachers are professional musicians with many years of teaching experience. Roumen is a great violin maker as well as restorer. He fixed one of my broken violin bows in the past and did an amazing job.

Their rental instruments are also really good quality and very well set up. We've been very happy with Solo Classic so far and highly recommend them to anyone looking for music lessons or string instruments.
Tim K.
Dec 06, 2020
I've been renting violin and a cello for my kids from Solo Classic for 4 years now. Last year they also started music lessons. Really happy from their service and the expertise I get from Roumen. They always go above and beyond for their customers. Thank you guys and keep up the good work in these trying times.
Ala S.
Oct 25, 2019
This is the only local store where the owner is a professional violin maker. Per my conversation Roumen, he is a graduate from Chicago School of Violin making. All the instruments at the store are custom set up for optimal playability. You cant beat the price for the quality you are getting. Last week left my bow to be rehaired and as usual he did an outstanding job. A friend of mine plays for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and he referred me to this local family shop. Keep up the good job guys!
Miriam S.
Jun 03, 2019
We have been with Solo Classic for years for both of our children. We got to know Solo Classic as a rental company for the kids' orchestra instruments, but later signed them up for individual classes for violin and guitar. The owners are wonderful and attentive. The teachers are dedicated and really know how to work with children, how to encourage them and propel them forward without feeling pressured. Thank you so much for everything, we love Solo Classic!
Nema I.
Dec 03, 2018
My 15 year old has been taking music lessons for more than four years. Today we had wonderful Holiday recital which store organizes occasionaly. So far I have been very pleased with their service. On several occasions we needed emergency set up/adjustment, and Rumen as always did great job without.
Tabetha L.
Jul 30, 2016
My child's school offered two vendors to check out for upcoming orchestra in the fall. Decided to go with Solo Classic and am very pleased with that decision. Was welcoming and very helpful from the start. They double checked sizing for the instrument, and I then filled out a quick rental form with some basic information. Solo Classic delivers the instrument to school for you and you pay the 10 month rental fee in advance. This fee includes instrument insurance and is very reasonable. Overall, process was super quick and easy.
Ewa T.
Dec 09, 2015
I cannot comment on their product because they did not have the inventory to offer us for our child, but the service experience was sub par. We asked for a recommendation since he wasn't able to fulfill our needs and he wouldn't give us any stating it was impossible to refer us to a competitor. If you are unable to provide us with product.shouldn't you provide us with somewhere else to go?

I know some of you may think that's fine, but to me, if you want to be a trusted business and somewhere I would go to in the future, then give me some direction. I may come back for other things in the future.but now you're getting none of my business (as little as that might be)
Naomi L.
Mar 15, 2015
I needed local violin repair place for my son's violin bow. I was recommended to go to Solo Classics for a bow re-hairing and possible repair of a warped bow. I was also looking to purchase a second violin. Though the shop looked nice, the behavior of the owners, Dani & Roman, was shady. This was the impression that I got: * Dani asked if we were from the local schools in the area and I told her we were not. * Roman's reasoning why the bow was slightly warped was due to the type of wood used.

He said that light wood bows had a tendency to warp more. He said he would leave it alone as long as it does not affect my son's playing, I believed him, after all he is a violin maker and he seems to be running a good business in the Lincolnshire area. * They both spoke in their language in my presence and Dani kept interrupting when Roman was trying to explain the condition of the bow. * When Roman was looking for a second violin to be purchased, Dani followed him and spoke to him in their language for a long time.

It just did not look professional and started so signs of shady dealings! He brought us a beat up violin and told us it was $250! My son tried it out and said it was awful! We promptly said we were not interested in it. Anyway, I decided to leave the bow to be re-haired. This was not a difficult job and for the price of $40 I felt it was okay. My suspicion was more with Dani than Roman at this point as he seemed he was being coaxed in some way.

We were definitely not going to purchase a violin from them, but a bow re-hair was fine. After getting back the bow however, my son's violin teacher noticed something strange about the bow hair; it was discolored and yellowed at the tip area. Apparently the color of a newly haired bow should be uniform. On closer and detailed inspection of the bow, my son's teacher said it looks like Roman swapped around the hair from where it is most warned from (the frog) and put it at the tip either from the existing bow hair it came with or from another bow!

When I found this out, I immediately called Roman. He was defensive and said that I did not know what I was talking about; that my son's violin teacher did not know what she was talking about; that she was not a violin making like he was. I had enough and passed the phone to the violin teacher and she could not believe the deceit! There was nothing for her to gain; she was just noticing the truth! Roman said I can return to have the bow re -re-haired. No, we will not be going back there!

The next day I called the violin shop from where I purchased the bow originally (a respected up state NY violin Co) to discuss what can be done with this bow. With regards to bow's wrap I told them what Roman said about that. They told me the type of wood used - light or dark wood has nothing to do with a bow becoming warped - all their bows were made of the same wood and varnished to be light or darker! Though it would be more of a hassle to return the bow to up-state NY and have it repaired, I now see that it is worth it as respect and trust matters most. Lesson learned.
Michelle O.
Sep 23, 2014
The only reason why i did not give them 5 stars is because they randomly take off hours. Do yourself a favor and call ahead of time to make sure they are not closed randomly or the owners are working when you need quotes on major repairs. Thus is still one of the best violin repair shops in the suburbs. They did an excellent job repairing my 80 year old violin. It had a few cracks in it that they sealed up.
Tyler K.
Jul 19, 2013
The people who work here are very nice. I have my violin lessons here weekly. They always are very sweet, and I always enjoy coming here.
Deborah K.
Jun 28, 2010
We rented a cello from Solo Classics for about 3 years. The instruments are fine for beginners and intermediate students. Rental costs and insurance is competitive with other stores. My biggest gripe with Solo Classics is that they are a very disorganized operation, simple transactions will zap you of your patience. I absolutely hated having to go in there. Renting a cello is a big investment I would recommend looking elsewhere before going to Solo Classics.