The Sidedoor

The Side Door is one of the most beloved intimate listening rooms in Northern California, a 120 to 140 seat concert hall tucked inside The Fifth String Music School in Sacramento's Curtis Park neighborhood that has become an essential destination for anyone who takes acoustic music seriously. The story behind it is a classic case of a happy accident producing something wonderful: John Green, who ran Fifth String Music as Sacramento's premier stringed instrument retail store for 37 years beginning in 1981, decided to shift the business away from retail and toward music education when the space adjacent to his new location on Franklin Boulevard unexpectedly opened up. With a lot of effort and help from good friends, that space became The Side Door, and it has been delivering extraordinary nights of music ever since. The room is a model of what a listening venue should be: no alcohol, no food service beyond water and coffee, no bar noise, no distractions, just the music and an audience that came specifically to hear it. Tickets are sold in advance online and at the door when available, typically priced at $20 to $25, and shows sell out regularly so advance purchase is strongly recommended. The programming is curated with genuine taste across singer-songwriters, bluegrass, country, folk, jazz, blues, and Americana, featuring both celebrated local musicians and nationally recognized touring artists. Past performers have included Laurie Lewis, Nina Gerber, Tony Furtado, Special Consensus, Rita Hosking, Eric Andersen, Dirty Cello, According to Bazooka, and many others who choose The Side Door specifically for the room's special intimacy and the quality of the audience's attention.