Summer camp isn’t just for kids! If you have some time available this summer, why can’t you enjoy the immersive learning and socializing experience of music camp? You can. You don’t even need that much time. If you have a week or two, or even just a long weekend, you can find a music camp that will suit you. Here are some of the top summer string workshops we’ve found for adults:
Christian Howe’s Creative String Workshop is open to small groups of adults for intensive master classes, jam sessions, and private instruction with an exciting collection of world-class composers and musicians. It's running workshops in Toronto (May 19-20), Dallas (June 1-2), Columbus, OH (July 1 -7), and Asheville, NC (July 8-14).
Jamey Aebersold’s Summer Jazz Workshops welcomes musicians, from novice to professional, of any and all instruments, to add to the jazz flavor. This summer’s special guest is saxophonist David Liebman. There is a week-long workshop as well as 2-day seminars. One of this year’s 2-day seminars titled “Anyone can improvise!” is scheduled to run right before the week-long workshops, making it easy for interested musicians to attend both. The week-long workshops are scheduled for July 1 – 6, and July 8 -13, held in Louisville, Kentucky.
Interlochen Center for the Arts runs Adult Band Camp, Adult Chamber Music Camp, and Adult Choir Camp. It’s been educating adult musicians from all over the world for over 60 years. This year’s Chamber Music camp runs from August 13 – 18, held in Michigan. The theme is “Fearless Pioneering” and features study in the works of Beethoven and Bartok.
Snow Pond New England Adult Music Camp mixes music and outdoor activities. It has an outdoor amphitheater where a final concert is held. All the attendees get the music before arriving, so they have a chance to start learning it. The camp is open for practiced musicians as well as those just returning to it. This summer’s camp runs from August 27 – September 2, in Maine.
Eastman School of Music Camp, under the auspices of the University of Rochester (New York), offers a few different summer adult experiences. The orchestra camp, which runs from June 3 to 6 at its Keuka College campus. The orchestra camp is primarily for adult strings players, but also has spots for adult players of other orchestra instruments. Since this is an adult camp, trips to the local winery are part of the experience. You can find information on their other adult summer programs here.
Lakefield College School runs its Lakefield Music Camp, located in Ontario, Canada. The camp is open to adults and amateur youth, of all skill levels. It offers a wide variety of technique workshops to instructor-led ensemble jam sessions in musical styles ranging from Klezmer to chamber groups. The camp runs from August 12 – 19.
Sparrow Music Camp is also open to all skill levels and provides opportunities for non-orchestral string instruments, like the guitar and dulcimer. Attendees also can learn a variety of folk music, including Celtic and Scandinavian. This summer’s camp is from June 7 – 10, held in High Springs, Florida.
Here are some options dedicated to music educators
The Jacobs School of Music (Indiana University) holds a Retreat for Violin and Viola Teachers, from June 29 – July 8, at the Bloomington campus. The retreat has two sessions surrounding the 4th of July. Session I is titled "Beginning the Violin Journey," and session II is titled "Establishing a Healthy Foundation through Etudes, Scales, and Repertoire." Sessions include lectures and demonstrations and are led by Mimi Zweig and other music professors from universities across the United States.
Last – how do you get to Carnegie Hall? You attend its Music Educators Workshop Summer Program! This program is geared towards K-12 educators, but attendees don’t need to be certified in music education. Teaching artists and performers are also welcome. This workshop is separated into two sessions: “You are what you play” (July 11 – 14) and “Dare to Create” (July 25 – 28).
Don’t let the kids have all the summer fun. Here are some violin practice tips for adult learners, so you can brush up on your student skills before you go.
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