By William S. Sinclair
In 2005 I posted an article about some jazz camps I had attended. This is a follow-up to that article. Since that time I have attended three others you might enjoy reading about.
North Woods Jazz Camp
The first of these, a small and intimate gathering run by Kim Richmond and his partner Clay Jenkins, took place at a resort called Holiday Acres, in mid-May, by Lake Thompson just outside the little town of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The total faculty there was comprised of just 6-8 members, with another 20-25 or so in the student body. Actually, this resort has a long history of jazz camps, but it was interrupted with the death of one of the original organizers. Then Richmond later took over the responsibilities.
Richmond is well known and highly respected around the Los Angeles area for his prowess as an improviser, arranger, and studio reed player. He picked this resort because he grew up in Wisconsin, and his relatives run the establishment. Clay Jenkins is a college educator at the Eastman school of music, with considerable skills as a trumpet performer and improviser.
The weather in Wisconsin can get pretty chilly, but it generally doesn't snow that time of year. The climate is quite agreeable, providing one brings warm clothing. The general layout consists of a main building with a dining room, with several banquet rooms for rehearsal. Guests can stay in motel type rooms, with some cabins available if those are full.
The student body was divided up into three combos, including a big band, One nice feature is that participants got to play with the faculty members, rather than being isolated. Another feature is that one was allowed to bring “non-participants" (wife, girl friend, etc.) at no extra cost except for their meal plan. There were plenty of activities available there in addition to the music, such as kayaking, hiking, and boating.
Aside from the usual performing and rehearsing, the students participated in theory classes of various levels. There was also an improvisation workshop. Most participants were in their late adult years.
At the end of the week, the combined students and faculty gave a concert for the public, on a Friday evening.
Jazz Camp West
This camp was nestled in the redwoods about 20 miles south of Palo Alto, California—the perfect place for those who “want to get away from it all."
JC West was run by Stacey Hoffman and Madeline Eastman. This gathering has about 200 students of all ages, ranging from teenagers to octogenarians. Each week during the latter part of June, Hoffman leases out a YMCA camp for this activity, referred to as Camp Jones Gulch, for those of you who want to consult the YMCA web site.
Except for a few buildings, such as the main dining hall, restrooms, and lodging cabins, everything was out in the open (including 15 pianos!) under the trees. The lodging cabins had bunk beds with a shared restroom, each one sleeping 5-6 students. Some students preferred to save money by not sleeping in a cabin, instead pitching a tent out in the open. Some years we also had access to the Siden conference center, a motel type establishment about 5 miles down the road, and there are B&B accommodations in the area for those having a car.
Their activities began on a Saturday afternoon, followed by a lunch and general camp meetings for all participants. For those interested in combo placement, it included an evaluation audition for each instrument. In addition to the usual theory and improv workshops, other subjects offered were Brazilian rhythms, gospel choir, vocal intensive, and big bands (swing and Latin).
Since Eastman is the artistic director and a jazz vocalist, there was a higher than usual emphasis on vocal techniques. And for those not as much into music, they offered dance and yoga classes all during the day.
On Wednesday evening, there was a special concert, held atop a nearby hill. at an open amphitheater called Indian Bowl. Dinner is served buffet style, and to start things off was a marching precession of campers up the hill, accompanied by Brazilian percussion instruments. So the atmosphere was reminiscent of a Rio Mardi Gras parade. Of course, since there is no electricity at Indian Bowl, all instruments were acoustic. The concert was later enhanced by a huge bonfire.
In addition to the music, there was a clever skit where they poked fun at trombone players. For example, Jovino Santos Neto (the narrator) talked about the mythical land of Trombonia. One year the skit was about a lowly trombone player who fell in love with the high alto sax goddess. As one might expect, he finally won her hand, and “all was happy in the tromboniverse ever after."
One main difference between Jazz Camp West and others was that not everyone had a scheduled public performance. Each day there was a drawing for an open mike, and if one got drawn they invited other musicians to perform with them. The open mikes were held before dinner, and there was a faculty concert after dinner each evening.
The more advanced groups performed on Friday evening or Saturday morning, along with a dance performance, gospel choir, and the two big bands. Everything wrapped up at about noon on Saturday.
Since everything is “woodsy," we had to keep the doors of our cabin or motel room closed at all times when no one was present to keep the raccoons away. Another down side for those traveling by air, was that we had to bring our own bedding. With many airlines charging extra for luggage nowadays, the extra cost is more than the actual cost of the bedding. Some people bought their bedding while on the way over to the camp, but that required access to a car. Then there is the question of what to do with the bedding afterward.
Jazz Vermont: Band Camps for Grownups
Finally, there was Byron Siegel's establishment, also under the heading of Jazz Vermont. These were all previously held at a ski lodge in Vermont, part of the Grand Summit Ski Resort chain. However, this year he moved it to Sunday River in Maine, Their schedule occurred the last week in July to accommodate their two guest artists, saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi and a vocalist, Amanda Carr.
There was more emphasis here upon playing, rather than theory or improvisation, although Bergonzi conducted an improv workshop right after lunch. Speaking of food, this reviewer feels that relative to other camps, the best quality was here,
The groups were divided into big bands and dectets, and one septet. Each day there were two group rehearsals and one sectional rehearsal. Then on Thursday evening, there was a public concert where everyone performed along the two guest artists. One group focused upon music from the northeast part of Brasil (Bahia, Salvador), because their leader (Ben Sher) specializes in that.
The accommodations were typical of a hotel or ski resort. The campers had a choice between a kitchenette with a Murphy bed, or a standard room with two regular size beds. The standard rooms were quite comfortable, but one can't say the same for the kitchenettes.
The only real problem this reviewer has found is with the airline connections. Portland is the closest reasonably large airport, and that's about 60 miles, or 1 ½ hours drive. Otherwise, one has to settle for Boston or Manchester, New Hampshire, both more than 3 hours drive. Mr. Siegel did offer a free shuttle service to Portland, however.
There was a notable difference in the age pattern relative to other places. Most participants were seniors, typically non-music professionals (doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc.) pursuing jazz as a hobby. There were a few teenagers there this year, however.
Summary
This reviewer felt that all of these met their main goal—for the students to share their music with others that are as passionate about jazz as they are.
In 2005 I posted an article about some jazz camps I had attended. This is a follow-up to that article. Since that time I have attended three others you might enjoy reading about.
North Woods Jazz Camp
The first of these, a small and intimate gathering run by Kim Richmond and his partner Clay Jenkins, took place at a resort called Holiday Acres, in mid-May, by Lake Thompson just outside the little town of Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The total faculty there was comprised of just 6-8 members, with another 20-25 or so in the student body. Actually, this resort has a long history of jazz camps, but it was interrupted with the death of one of the original organizers. Then Richmond later took over the responsibilities.
Richmond is well known and highly respected around the Los Angeles area for his prowess as an improviser, arranger, and studio reed player. He picked this resort because he grew up in Wisconsin, and his relatives run the establishment. Clay Jenkins is a college educator at the Eastman school of music, with considerable skills as a trumpet performer and improviser.
The weather in Wisconsin can get pretty chilly, but it generally doesn't snow that time of year. The climate is quite agreeable, providing one brings warm clothing. The general layout consists of a main building with a dining room, with several banquet rooms for rehearsal. Guests can stay in motel type rooms, with some cabins available if those are full.
The student body was divided up into three combos, including a big band, One nice feature is that participants got to play with the faculty members, rather than being isolated. Another feature is that one was allowed to bring “non-participants" (wife, girl friend, etc.) at no extra cost except for their meal plan. There were plenty of activities available there in addition to the music, such as kayaking, hiking, and boating.
Aside from the usual performing and rehearsing, the students participated in theory classes of various levels. There was also an improvisation workshop. Most participants were in their late adult years.
At the end of the week, the combined students and faculty gave a concert for the public, on a Friday evening.
Jazz Camp West
This camp was nestled in the redwoods about 20 miles south of Palo Alto, California—the perfect place for those who “want to get away from it all."
JC West was run by Stacey Hoffman and Madeline Eastman. This gathering has about 200 students of all ages, ranging from teenagers to octogenarians. Each week during the latter part of June, Hoffman leases out a YMCA camp for this activity, referred to as Camp Jones Gulch, for those of you who want to consult the YMCA web site.
Except for a few buildings, such as the main dining hall, restrooms, and lodging cabins, everything was out in the open (including 15 pianos!) under the trees. The lodging cabins had bunk beds with a shared restroom, each one sleeping 5-6 students. Some students preferred to save money by not sleeping in a cabin, instead pitching a tent out in the open. Some years we also had access to the Siden conference center, a motel type establishment about 5 miles down the road, and there are B&B accommodations in the area for those having a car.
Their activities began on a Saturday afternoon, followed by a lunch and general camp meetings for all participants. For those interested in combo placement, it included an evaluation audition for each instrument. In addition to the usual theory and improv workshops, other subjects offered were Brazilian rhythms, gospel choir, vocal intensive, and big bands (swing and Latin).
Since Eastman is the artistic director and a jazz vocalist, there was a higher than usual emphasis on vocal techniques. And for those not as much into music, they offered dance and yoga classes all during the day.
On Wednesday evening, there was a special concert, held atop a nearby hill. at an open amphitheater called Indian Bowl. Dinner is served buffet style, and to start things off was a marching precession of campers up the hill, accompanied by Brazilian percussion instruments. So the atmosphere was reminiscent of a Rio Mardi Gras parade. Of course, since there is no electricity at Indian Bowl, all instruments were acoustic. The concert was later enhanced by a huge bonfire.
In addition to the music, there was a clever skit where they poked fun at trombone players. For example, Jovino Santos Neto (the narrator) talked about the mythical land of Trombonia. One year the skit was about a lowly trombone player who fell in love with the high alto sax goddess. As one might expect, he finally won her hand, and “all was happy in the tromboniverse ever after."
One main difference between Jazz Camp West and others was that not everyone had a scheduled public performance. Each day there was a drawing for an open mike, and if one got drawn they invited other musicians to perform with them. The open mikes were held before dinner, and there was a faculty concert after dinner each evening.
The more advanced groups performed on Friday evening or Saturday morning, along with a dance performance, gospel choir, and the two big bands. Everything wrapped up at about noon on Saturday.
Since everything is “woodsy," we had to keep the doors of our cabin or motel room closed at all times when no one was present to keep the raccoons away. Another down side for those traveling by air, was that we had to bring our own bedding. With many airlines charging extra for luggage nowadays, the extra cost is more than the actual cost of the bedding. Some people bought their bedding while on the way over to the camp, but that required access to a car. Then there is the question of what to do with the bedding afterward.
Jazz Vermont: Band Camps for Grownups
Finally, there was Byron Siegel's establishment, also under the heading of Jazz Vermont. These were all previously held at a ski lodge in Vermont, part of the Grand Summit Ski Resort chain. However, this year he moved it to Sunday River in Maine, Their schedule occurred the last week in July to accommodate their two guest artists, saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi and a vocalist, Amanda Carr.
There was more emphasis here upon playing, rather than theory or improvisation, although Bergonzi conducted an improv workshop right after lunch. Speaking of food, this reviewer feels that relative to other camps, the best quality was here,
The groups were divided into big bands and dectets, and one septet. Each day there were two group rehearsals and one sectional rehearsal. Then on Thursday evening, there was a public concert where everyone performed along the two guest artists. One group focused upon music from the northeast part of Brasil (Bahia, Salvador), because their leader (Ben Sher) specializes in that.
The accommodations were typical of a hotel or ski resort. The campers had a choice between a kitchenette with a Murphy bed, or a standard room with two regular size beds. The standard rooms were quite comfortable, but one can't say the same for the kitchenettes.
The only real problem this reviewer has found is with the airline connections. Portland is the closest reasonably large airport, and that's about 60 miles, or 1 ½ hours drive. Otherwise, one has to settle for Boston or Manchester, New Hampshire, both more than 3 hours drive. Mr. Siegel did offer a free shuttle service to Portland, however.
There was a notable difference in the age pattern relative to other places. Most participants were seniors, typically non-music professionals (doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc.) pursuing jazz as a hobby. There were a few teenagers there this year, however.
Summary
This reviewer felt that all of these met their main goal—for the students to share their music with others that are as passionate about jazz as they are.
