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Guitar Camps
Hi all
I'm starting to mull over the idea of setting up a guitar 'weekend' or a guitar camp or some such thing here in the UK. I know camps are very popular in the US, wondered if anyone had any info on them, what they look for when they sign up, how they work etc etc I'm specifically thinking about what level to pitch at - do the US ones specify required ability, or try to cater for all or...? Also wondering about duration, what suits people best? Do the US camps provide food - if so, how do they cater for everyone? All help VERY gratefully received!
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My guitars : Huss and Dalton 00-SP Martin OM21 Martin 000-17SM Sigma SDM-18S Naylor 'Spered Evel' custom made |
#2
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Just - To answer your question, "Yes, yes, and yes..."
The camps\workshops come in all shapes and sizes. It's usually the guitar style that sets the tone of the sessions and the teacher adjusts the level. For example, at Steve Kauffman's Guitar "Kamp", you will learn flatpicking bluegrass; at a weekend with Toby Walker, you will learn how to play traditional fingerstyle blues. At the larger events, such as Swannanoa, there are a variety of teachers and classes to choose from. You really have to know your limitations before signing up, or be content that you may not be at a high enough level to become adept in the course material (but you are willing to work on it). Conversely, if you are already adept, you don't want to go to a course aimed at the beginner. I would leave that determination to the attendee, and make sure that there is a very clear description of the material to be covered in the publicity that you send out. The length of the camps varies from day long sessions to a week(s). The food situation can vary, but most all of the 'camps\workshops' that I have attended have at least provided a lunch. I would say that if you are expecting guests to stay over, three meals are expected. I prefer an extended weekend format: Gather on Thursday night, Friday all day, Saturday all day, and Sunday morning. Much of that is because it's selfish of me to say to my wife, "I'm going to guitar camp for a week - see ya." That's just not the way our marriage works. But IMO, a weekend is a nice compromise. If you're thinking of hosting one, one bit of advice would be to pair with a local inn (we call them 'Bed and Breakfasts' on this side of the pond). So you have food taken care of and lodging in place. The nights can be a lot of fun and are usually dedicated to mini concerts by the teacher or 'song circles' for the participants. You need to find a good teacher\teachers and pay them appropriately. And then, you need to find attendees. Fair warning - it doesn't always work out and you will be responsible for funds owed. You need to have this all planned out in advance - both success and failure. I have toyed with the idea of pairing a workshop with a house concert as a way of setting up a camp. The format would be and all-day workshop for the participants, (lunch and dinner provided) and then an evening concert open to all. It would be a productive day for the musician, and the event would be wrapped up quickly and cleanly. Good luck with your venture. And even if you only break even, it could be a lot of fun. best, Rick
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#3
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And reading your post again, especially in regards to food: these days, you need an expert chef to create a menu. People are vegans, gluten free, carnivores, omnivores, lactose intolerant, allergic, etc. That's one more reason for partnering with someone who is an expert in providing food and lodging.
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#4
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As Rick states, camps come in all shapes and sizes so it might be helpful for you to discover what size camp that you are willing to organize. I have attended camps (offering guitar and/or songwriting) from anywhere to one teacher and 12 participants to 8 teachers and 150 participants. These camps can be one day, a long weekend, or an entire week. Whatever accommodations are made for food and lodging is usually dictated by the location and the duration. Then there is the cost and who your target audience is so when you advertise you'll be sure to hit the guitar players/songwriters that will most likely be looking for what you are offering. You might want to check out the websites of the following camps just to see what they offer and how they describe that on their website. You can learn a lot from their FAQs.
Best, Jayne |
#5
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Rick and Jayne - absolutely brilliant, thank you both so much! Exactly the kind of thoughts and info I was looking for.
Lots to mull over, hugely appreciate your help.
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My guitars : Huss and Dalton 00-SP Martin OM21 Martin 000-17SM Sigma SDM-18S Naylor 'Spered Evel' custom made |
#6
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Contact Jay and Molly at
https://ashokancenter.org/camps/ Really nice people. I'm sure they will have some great advice. I have been going to the Western and Swing camp for 10 years now. Better yet make the trip next summer and see first hand how it is done. Campers have come to this camp from all over the world.
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"My opinion is worth every penny you paid for it." "If you try to play like someone else, Who will play like you". Quote from Johnny Gimble The only musician I have to impress today is the musician I was yesterday. No tubes, No capos, No Problems. |
#7
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I attended Mike Dowling's Greater Yellowstone Music Camp several years (wish it was still happening). You couldn't have asked for a better setup/environment. It's been a while, but will try to highlight to the best of my recollection.
The camp was held at a ski resort during off-season. The setting was beautiful, and the accommodations were perfect--there was a big lodge, with nice rooms, plus a huge lodge room for gathering and jamming, There were also rooms to accommodate the instructors/classes, of varying size, as well as some outdoor areas set up. Since it was a resort they had a small store, and more importantly a big bar on site--another place to gather an jam. There were also activities for non-musicians like my wife, who loved it for hiking, riding the ski lift, horseback riding, and so on. They had a kitchen staff and all meals were included--so really no reason to leave the site for the whole week. Yes, the camp should have a "focus" and this one was all about Blues and Swing. They had known instructors for the different genres, which I think is a big part of the draw. They ran 4 classes per day, and you could sign up for the ones you wanted--descriptions were given in the program with regard to levels, but I think you could still participate in the sessions you wanted to. Each night one (or group of instructors) would perform in the bar (which had a stage and sound system). On the last night the "campers" could sign up to perform a song, either solo, or with an ensemble that you assembled. Everything was "all-inclusive", so you didn't have to worry about reaching for your wallet the whole week, and it made for a much better experience. I believe there were options to "room share" to help with costs, and you might have been able to eliminate the meals and lodging if you wanted to stay at a motel in the nearby town and pack your own food (but I'm not sure, and I don't think anyone did this). Lots of good friends were made, and I still mourn the ending of the camp, as does my wife. Of course this is on a pretty large scale, but I can't imagine a better setup. On the other end of the spectrum a smaller scale weekend, or even a "workshop" for a day are options--I've done "day" workshops with a morning and afternoon session, and an evening "house concert" with the instructor, which was also fun (and a lot cheaper). Good luck! Some pics from GYMC back in the day: Me with The Teewinot Jug Stompers (my group that I assembled for performance) Me performing another year: Some friends jamming in the lodge: Bar shenanigans! Me and Orville Johnson--one of my instructors that week: The wife loved the camp as much as I did! Last edited by Stringmaster; 08-05-2021 at 09:35 AM. |
#8
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Not sure if you’re already aware, but here’s one in England:
https://www.sorefingers.co.uk/ I haven’t been, but I’ve heard it spoken of favorably. |
#9
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As the above posts suggest, it's as much a matter of venue and logistics as teachers or style/tradition focus. I've been attending workshops and camps since the 1980s, particularly the Augusta Heritage Center's week-longs (every year from 1996 until the shutdowns last year), and one of Augusta's strong points was support from the college campus that hosts the non-profit foundation and provides the core residential/venue and administrative services. The other was having the musical side run by people who knew people who knew people--that's how the teaching staff was assembled.
But even a weekender makes some non-trivial organizational demands, since at the very least you need a space big enough to accommodate classes and flexible enough to allow social playing. (My experience has been that making music outside the classes offers as much pleasure and instruction as the actual instruction.) And that suggests, say, a hospitable hotel or similar facility, with a cooperative management team. This might sound strange, but seek out people who have organized science fiction conventions, especially smaller, less formal gatherings--they're used to dealing with the hospitality biz. I'm beginning to think that maybe I'm reinventing the old advice about real estate: location, location, location. For a one-off, morning-and-afternoon workshop, almost any setup can work (a music store, a church basement, somebody's big living room), but scaling up starts to make serious demands. |
#10
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I've done two - a long weekend jam camp and a week long guitar intensive (Swannanoa guitar week).
I have to say the long weekend (Friday evening - Sunday afternoon) fits my life better right now. Plus the fact that it was in driving distance so I could do the morning farm chores and still get there when it started. Less instruction got done, but it was definitely more digestible. The weeklong Swannanoa camp is amazing and overwhelming. Location - the jam camp was at a church's retreat center. Perfect for the class size and had some on-site lodging. Swannanoa's location at Warren Wilson college is perfect for mass instruction, food, lodging, etc. The single day workshop/house concert could be a way to get your feet wet, with less logistical hurdles. Maybe work up to a weekender once you try it and sort out a location. Best of luck - I plan to seek out more, they are great fun. |
#11
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I just went to a camp cut down to four days and half the attendees and staff. It was a mixed bag for me. The majority were there for a fun time, and they were certainly having that. Mass sing alongs were the main attraction in the evenings. Not my thing at all. Also the top three of my class selections were at the same time. Nobody's fault there, so I took two classes that were below my level. I still learned a few things though. I was able to take the pitch a tent option and go somewhere for the first time in a year plus. That was great. We were in that blissful period where we thought we'd left the bad times behind.
Don't discount the amount of work needed to pull a camp off. My wife ran a pre season camp for a youth orchestra. The day after it ended, she was planning the next one.
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#12
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I've been to Augusta (mentioned above) many times, and Midwest Banjo Camp twice. Augusta is a full week, Midwest Thursday pm to Sunday noon.
Both are held on college (university) campuses, which simplifies the lodging and rooming situation. US colleges generally don't have a full class schedule in the summer, so they're happy to have some paying customers for their facilities. The class schedules for these two camps were pretty different. At Augusta, each instructor runs classes for a week, and attendees are generally expected to stick with a class, although they can jump ship if they don't cause hassles for the instructor they are going to (e.g. catching up with material from earlier in the week.) At Midwest, classes are scheduled hourly with no repeat topics, so you can mix and match whatever you like. I did some banjo, some mandolin and some guitar. Both of these camps have classes at different levels. In fact, Midwest had 5 different banjo tracks from novice on up, if I recall. Both also had scheduled jams, organized by instructors at Midwest, more free-for-all at Augusta, and these are a nice feature. Augusta also has student showcases. Both have (really, really good) instructor concerts. I liked both schedules, but slightly prefer the Augusta version. We're making plans to go to one that's new to us, Great Lakes Music Camp. This is in a retreat center with limited lodging, so we'll be tent camping. D.H. |