[thisidigofyou]

I'm in my 40's and I'm looking for a jazz camp where I wouldn't be out of place as an adult. I'm happy to play with and talk to people of any age, but I don't want to be the only adult participant at a jazz camp.

Last year I went to the Centrum Jazz Port Townsend Workshop/camp and enjoyed it. I would say it was about 80% high school/college people and 20% adults. I never felt out of place because there were always other adults to talk to, eat with, etc. I would go back this year, but I have a family trip the same week as the camp.

I stumbled upon the Stanford Jazz Workshop and it looks like they have a week for adults called the "Stanford Jazz Institute." However, I saw it was for people aged 12+, with the younger musicians having to audition.

Have you been to the "adult" jazz camp week at Stanford? If so, how was it? How many high school/college people were there versus those older than that?

Or... is there another jazz camp you'd recommend for adults?

 

[milandro]

few old answers (hopefully someone will get an alert of these quotes and will chime in)

Hey Garylee

I did go to the Stanford Summer Jazz Workshop last summer
i loved it! its very laid back (if you want it to be) or very intense(again, if you want it to be). unlike the other camps i went to i the food wasn't bad, pretty good actually. When you get to the camp, you go through many audditions(theory, improv, prepared piece,sight reading, all the good stuff) then they split everyone into combos depending on you level, you are also placed in a theory class, master class, improv, ear training, and other classes like that(and a jazz history/listening class which i LOVED!!). the dorms that you stay in are VERY nice, last summer they put us in a new building and it was great, you get a living room type place and then a little hallway with a sink, mirror, closet. and then another room with three beds(at least the room i was in did). the age difference of the people who go there is huge, so if you are a "late bloomer" you shouldn't feel uncomfortable. also at night you get to go see jam sessions in a coffee house by the people who work there and stanford students, if your good enough they will let you join in. Also there are great concerts everynight that are free if attend the camp. You also get 1 free lesson

you should send me an e-mail at - [email protected] - i will tell you more about it, i dont have much time currently.

I did the Stanford Jazz work shop about 5 or 6 years ago. It was super fun. I would do it again in a heart beat. I learned a lot and got to play a lot of tunes with many different people.

I don't know about the Abersol workshop but I went to Stanford Jazz Workshop last summer and it was mind blowing. I can honestly say that to be around so many great jazz musicians was a life changing experience. People came from all across the country to go.

Check out the Stanford Jazz Workshop. I was fortunate enough to attend when Stan Getz was Artist in Residence at Stanford University. Both my sons have attended, more than once. Staff included Rufus Reid, Bruce Foreman, Tootie Heath, Jim Nealy, and many others. It is run by alto player Jimmy Nadel. The combos and the master classes were excellent! For years, Joe Henderson was one of the best teachers and performers!

-- Sidepipes

This summer, I am a counselor at Stanford Jazz Camp at Stanford University. While here, I went to a masterclass with the great Clarinetist/Saxophonist Anat Cohen. She brought up something I have forgotten for a little while, which is to remember to swing often requires remembering to play quarter notes, either on or off the beat.

As an exercise, try to focus a solo only playing quarter notes both on and off the beat. I've found that it helps all the other lines feel better, it keeps the ideas fresh, and it lets the music groove more freely. As saxophonists, we are the worst when it comes to focusing on 8th notes I think. This is a really good exercise that creates a much more focused attention to groove and rhythm, something I need to improve in with my solos at least.

Has anyone tried this? Any suggestions about this?

 

[John_P]

Another camp to consider is Maryland Summer Jazz (https://marylandsummerjazz.com). I attended seven or eight years ago and had a great time; only saw a handful of attendees who were not adult-aged. It's located in the Washington, DC suburbs.

 

[tenorcat]

Do some more searching. I lived near Stanford and used to ride my bike over in the evenings for unbelievable faculty concerts during the Jazz Workshops. It is very professionally run. I dropped in on some classes different years, even though I never enrolled. It was really laid back. It seemed expensive to me at the time, even with out paying for housing. I was a building contractor and always crazy busy in August, so I never signed up for the whole thing. But it seemed like everybody, all ages were really serious about playing. How much is it worth to sit with world class legends to play and talk about the Music?

The guy who has run SJW for years is a great tenor player named Jim Nadel. He started the "Jam List" many years ago as the internet emerged. You should try to find his e-mail somehow and talk with him, get the whole run down for this year. By this time, their web page should be up and running too, with the schedule and faculty for 2020. Probably YouTube clips from past years student groups.

There is another Jazz immersion kind of program that is a camp, called Jazz Camp West in La Honda, California. It's maybe 20 miles west of Stanford in the ancient Redwood rain forests of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It is a pretty mind blowing place just to visit... but to play music there is magic stuff. I know friends who have attended year after year, and some who have taught classes there. It is run by the Jazz School in Berkley now I believe. Not too hard to search for info... probably YouTube clips of it too...

Good luck...

 

[thisidigofyou]

Thanks for the insights milandro, John_P, and tenorcat!