Shopping

Where to stock up
Allodi Accordions
Accordions are cool: witness Arcade Fire, King Creosote, Annie Proulx and Beirut, not to mention all those Balkan gypsy punks. This is London’s squeezebox hotspot. Founded in 1953 by Bruno Allodi and now run by his son, Emilio, it heaves with hundreds of (mainly secondhand) piano accordions, button accordions, continental chromatics and bandoneons. There’s also a repair workshop.
Allodi Accordians, 143-145 Lee High Rd, SE13 (020 8244 3771/ www.accordions.co.uk) Lewisham DLR/rail then 122, 178, 261, 321 bus. Mon 2-6pm; Tue, Thur, Fri 10.30am-6pm; Sat 10.30am-5pm.

Andy’s Guitar Centre
The daddy of Tin Pan Alley’s guitar shops has been here for more than a quarter of a century and offers five floors of acoustic, electric and bass guitars, alongside sheet music and accessories. They also do repairs and lessons. Next door is Andy’s Drum Centre (020 7916 5080).
Andy’s Guitar Centre, 27 Denmark St, WC2 (020 7916 5080/www.andysguitarnet.com) Tottenham Court Rd tube. Mon-Sat 10am-8pm; Sun 12.30pm-6.30pm.
Feature continues

Bina Musicals
The older rival of Jas Musicals in Southall specialises in a large range of sitars, veenas, flutes and drums from around the world, as well as made-to-order harmoniums. They also do a fine range of Indian figurines, books, videos and music.
Bina Musicals, 31-33 The Green, Southall, Middlesex (020 8571 5904/ www.binaswar.com) Southall rail. Mon-Sat 10.30am-7pm; Sun 11am-7pm.

J&A Beare
With more than 140 years’ experience selling Stradivari and other antique violins, violas and cellos, you’ll often see notable orchestral players here.
J&A Beare, 30 Queen Anne St, W1 (020 7307 9666/www.beares.com) Bond St tube. Mon-Fri 10am-5pm; appointments preferred.

Bridgewood & Neitzert
Busy shop selling violins, violas, cellos and double basses alongside early viols, lutes and baroque violins. Violins start at around £200, double basses at £900. Five full-time staff deal with repairs.
146 Stoke Newington Church St, N16 (020 7249 9398/www.londonviolins.com) Stoke Newington rail or 73 bus. Open Mon-Fri 10am-6pm; Sat 10am-4pm.

Chappell of Bond Street
It retained its name, but Chappell recently moved to this three-storey temple in Soho. It’s the leading Yamaha stockist in the UK, with an enviable range of digital and acoustic pianos, guitars, brass, woodwind and electronic equipment. The sheet music is reputedly the largest range in Europe.
Chappell of Bond St, 152-160 Wardour St, W1(020 7432 4400/www.chappellofbondstreet.co.uk) Tottenham Court Rd tube. Mon-Fri 9.30am-6pm; Sat 10am-5.30pm.

Duke of Uke
A Spitalfields newcomer with ukuleles and banjos for all levels and budgets. A brightly coloured Mahalo is £20, Duke of Uke’s own brand starts at £80, electrics go up to around £700 and vintage ukes (Domino, Martin, Roy Smeck) can cost up to £1,000. They also stage jams and workshops.
Duke of Uke, 22 Hanbury St, E1 (020 7247 7924/www.dukeofuke.co.uk) Liverpool St tube/rail. Tue-Sun 11am-7pm.

The Early Music Shop/London Recorder Centre
You can go from a tenner for a plastic recorder up to £3,500 for a Paetzold cherrywood model. They also stock harps, flutes, baroque cellos, crumhorns and other world folk instruments.
The Early Music Shop/London Recorder Centre, 34 Chiltern St, W1 (020 7486 9101/www.e-m-s.com) Baker Street tube. Mon-Sat 10am-5pm.