Alaska School of Music

What Alaska School of Music does

Alaska School of Music is a privately held, founder-owned music education business founded in 2005 in Anchorage, Alaska, operating under the former name Hillside Music. The company delivers individualized weekly half-hour private lessons across more than a dozen instruments — piano, guitar, voice, ukulele, bass, violin/fiddle, viola, flute, recorder, clarinet, banjo, and mandolin — to students ranging from age 4 to adults in their 70s. It claims the largest staff of music teachers in Alaska, with instructors spanning advanced performance backgrounds (symphony, music-education degrees) to specialists in young beginners, and operates through two physical studios (Anchorage at 12001 Industry Way; Eagle River at 11432 Business Blvd) plus an online delivery channel.

The revenue model is recurring monthly billing at $44 per half-hour lesson, payable month-to-month via electronic debit, with a one-time $25 family registration fee and a 3% surcharge on credit-card payments. The school is an approved vendor for all major Alaska charter and homeschool organizations (Family Partnership, IDEA, PACE, Frontier, Raven, Denali Peak), allowing institutional billing of lesson fees. Customer acquisition is overwhelmingly community-driven: word-of-mouth referrals and on-site customer testimonials dominate, supplemented by a website (alaskaschoolofmusic.com), direct phone/email outreach, and an online contact form.

There is no proprietary technology platform; instruction is delivered through standard music-teaching methodologies (Suzuki method referenced for violin). The business is bootstrapped — owner David McCormick has taught for 20+ years and remains the principal owner, with General Manager Brett Kuiper (BA in music, Calvin College) supporting operations. Enrollment has grown to 500+ students across Anchorage and Wasilla per the owner, while the lessons overview page reports 300+ students actively taught.

Name

Alaska School of Music

Legal name

Alaska School of Music

Website

https://alaskaschoolofmusic.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Alaska School of Music is a privately held music school founded in 2005 in Anchorage, Alaska, providing individualized weekly private lessons across 12+ instruments to 500+ students of all ages through two studio locations and online delivery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Music Education Services

NAICS

Fine Arts Schools (61161), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAMANAA

Private Music Lessons (Instrumental)

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Music Education (Instrumental & Vocal)

SECONDARYEDAMAAAE

Music Instruction (Instrumental & Vocal)

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Arts & Creative Enrichment (Visual Arts, Music, Theater, Dance)

SECONDARYEDAMANAB

Private Voice Lessons (Vocal)

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Music Education (Instrumental & Vocal)

SECONDARYEDAMANAI

Online / Virtual Music Instruction & Platforms

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Music Education (Instrumental & Vocal)

SECONDARYEDAAAGAC

Music (Instruments, Voice, Music Theory)

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Personal Enrichment & Hobby Learning (Arts, Crafts, Music, Cooking)

Keywords

• Private music lessons
• Music instruction services
• Piano lessons
• Guitar lessons
• Violin instruction

Headquarters

HQ city

Anchorage

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Music Lessons: Weekly half-hour lessons billed monthly. Primary revenue stream from recurring lesson fees. Additional one-time revenue from a $25 per-family registration fee.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Alaska School of Music is a multi-instrument music education service that delivers individualized weekly half-hour private lessons across piano, guitar/ukulele/bass, violin/viola, voice, woodwinds (flute, clarinet, recorder), and banjo/mandolin. Lessons are provided in person at studios in Anchorage and Eagle River, Alaska, as well as online via virtual instruction, with curriculum customized to each student's preferred songs and styles.

Product overview

Alaska School of Music operates as a multi-instrument music education service offering individualized lessons across piano, guitar, violin, voice, woodwinds, and other instruments. The company functions as a single unified service (not a platform architecture), with lessons delivered through two studio locations in Anchorage and Eagle River, Alaska, as well as online. The core offering consists of weekly half-hour private lessons priced at $44 per session, with instructors spanning diverse musical specializations from advanced performance to young beginner instruction. The school formerly operated under the name Hillside Music and has grown from its 2005 founding to serving over 500 students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Piano Lessons

Quantifiable outcome

• 500+ students enrolled across Anchorage and Wasilla
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• TakeLessons: Online marketplace connecting students with private music teachers across instruments. Closely comparable on private-lesson model and multi-instrument breadth, but operates as a national platform rather than a captive studio.
• ArtistWorks: Online music school offering video-based lessons and teacher interaction across instruments including guitar, piano, and voice. Comparable as a multi-instrument subscription music-education service, with stronger technology packaging.
• Lessonface: Online platform for private music lessons across instruments with both individual and institutional customers. Comparable on virtual-delivery format, recurring lesson subscriptions, and multi-instrument catalog.
• Bach to Rock: Music school franchise providing individual and group instruction in piano, guitar, voice, drums, and other instruments. Operates with the same subscription-based lesson model and serves similar youth and family segments.
• School of Rock: Multi-instrument music school franchise offering private and group lessons across piano, guitar, drums, vocals, and more, with in-person and online delivery. Directly comparable in core offering (private instrumental lessons, recurring subscription), though at national/franchise scale versus Alaska School of Music's regional model.
• Musika Lessons: Online private music lesson provider offering in-home and virtual instruction across multiple instruments. Comparable on subscription-style recurring private lessons and direct-to-consumer marketing.

Broad incumbents

• Music & Arts: Largest U.S. musical instrument retailer with in-store lesson studios attached to most locations. Comparable on private instrumental instruction but with a much wider retail footprint and instrument-sales revenue stream.
• Yamaha Music School: Globally recognized music education program offered through Yamaha dealerships. Comparable on group and private music instruction, but operates through a manufacturer/dealer channel rather than a single-operator studio.

Emerging players

• Fender Play: Subscription-based online guitar lesson platform from Fender. Comparable on recurring subscription model and music instruction, though narrowly focused on guitar/ukulele/bass versus Alaska School of Music's 20+ instrument catalog.
• Kindermusik: Early-childhood music education program offered through licensed educators. Comparable as a structured music-learning program, but differentiated by age range (0-7) and group-class format versus Alaska School of Music's private-lesson model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alaska-school-of-music

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Alaska School of Music