Wherever your passion lies in the arts - music, art, ceramics, dance, theater, culinary - we have an amazing experience waiting for you this summer! Here are our dates down below. See you soon, an d if you have any questions, just give us a ring at (908) 230-6079
Bridgehampton, NY Summer Music Camp - Rock Camp
This summer, July 10-21, in Bridgehampton Rock Camp provides inspiring musical instruction to students ages 7-19 - ensembles, lessons, concerts, and electives for a variety of interests. There is also an afternoon Jazz Workshop course for interested students, as well as adult lessons offered in the afternoons.
You will be surrounded by aspiring musicians from all over the Hamptons such as Southampton, Sag Harbor, East Hampton in this welcoming and friendly camp. Check out our site for more details or give us a call, (908) 230-6079.
Music is a Language, Long Island Music Camp, Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop
In our music camp in Bridgehampton, Long Island, we approach learning music in the same way you learn to speak your native language. How is this done?
When we are all kids we lean to speak with words, then phrases, then complete sentences, and as we grow older find ourselves in situations where we need to speak in public to small and large crowds. Along with that we learn in a very intuitive way how to accent certain words and letters to express our ideas and emotions. To deepen our knowledge we learn to read and write and keep refining these skills throughout our life.
Learning music is the same thing. Here is a great video by the bassist, Victor Wooten, diving further into this idea.
Just as a child will have conversations at the dinner table, it’s the same in Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop in Bridgehampton, Long Island. You will play in multiple bands, you will have lessons, you will perform, you will interact with many different musicians (your age and older), and you will have many different teachers. With each teacher and student musician you interact with you will learn and get inspired in a myriad of ways.
So whether you a beginner or advanced musician, come as you are, and get ready to speak music!
The Art of Teaching, Summer Music Camp in Long Island and New Jersey
As we prepare for our music camps in Long Island and New Jersey at Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop, we always ask ourselves how can our teaching have the biggest impact on our students, and what makes for a great teacher? There are a few things that make Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop an amazing experience for our students.
We meet students where they are. Whether you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced student. It doesn’t matter. We meet you where you are and we push you 10 notches higher to a level you did not think was possible.
2. Whether you are learning a song by Nirvana, Miles Davis, Taylor Swift, or Duke Ellington. We help you understand the harmony and how the architecture of the song, how it’s built. This gives you knowledge and the inspiration to not only learn and play the existing music, but also space to create your own music.
3. Space and Nadia Boulanger. This is something that one of the greatest music teachers of the 20th century, Nadia Boulanger, gave to her students - knowledge of the structures and techniques used in great works of music in addition to inspiration, space, and encouragement for the student to then create his or own music. Seems like the art of teaching then lies in how to balance those two concepts - knowledge/analysis of music and one’s own creativity/voice. Finding that right approach then lies in the teacher’s awareness of where the student is in his or her development and what is the next step. Some consider Nadia Boulanger one of the most influential teachers after Socrates. She taught many of the greats of the 20th century, Igor Stravinsky (Rite of Spring, Firebird), Quincy Jones (Wrote and arranged for Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, and Michael Jackson…Thriller and more), Astor Piazzola the amazing tango composer who fused the music of Argentine with jazz, George Gershwin (Rhapsody on Blue), and many many other great musicians.
Here is a great article on Nadia Boulanger that just came out from the BBC.
Making music is fun, especially when playing with your friends! Let’s face it, people learn from teachers but they also learn from their friends and peers. It’s that synergy, that group energy when you are making music with others that makes the whole experience fun and fulfilling. After all, this is summer! At Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop in Long Isand and New Jersey, we don’t see ourselves as some sort of school….we see ourselves as an enrichment experience where students can be 100% themselves, learn a ton, and have a whole lot of fun along the way.
Here are some of the musicians who were influenced by the great teacher Nadia Boulanger. Herbie Hancock and orchestra playing George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.
Stravinsky (Firebird)
Astor Piazzolla (Libertango, played here with To To Ma)
Quincy Jones (Wrote/Arranged music for Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, and many others)
It's All About Your Sound, Music Camp in Long Island and New Jersey
In Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop our music summer camp in Long Island, Bridgehampton, and Lebanon, New Jersey, we focus on what makes a great sound on your instrument. Whether you are a pianist, guitarist, drummer, singer, or whatever your instrument is, your sound is your what makes your music unique to you.
Often times many teachers will focus on the “what.” This is the scale that works over this harmony, and that is something we need to know, but there is something more important than that, your sound. Your sound or your voice on your instrument is what draws the listener closer to the music. It is something unique to you and something that should be developed side by side with learning music techniques, harmony, and rhythm.
So how does one work on one’s sound? For wind instruments, saxophone, flute, trumpet, etc…, you will focus on your breath and embouchure paying attention to things like vibrato, and your approach to how you play the note (legato, staccato). For pianists, guitarists, bassists, and drummers we pay attention to playing without tension, your attack (how you strike the note, thinking like a drummer), the position of your body and how that can change your sound.
Working on one’s sound is a process that takes place over time, and just having that awareness will help you create a sound that is personal and unique to you, a voice that expresses all you have to say in music!
Here are a few examples of musicians with distinct voices on their instruments.
That Initial Curiosity and Fascination with Music, Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop in New Jersey and the Hamptons
What draws people to music? Where does that magnetic pull come from? At Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop in New Jersey and the Hamptons we recognize that this kind of curiosity is a special thing. It’s a spark that we like to nurture, challenge, and develop though our lessons, bands, electives and performances. It’s a special thing because if you are surrounded by people who have a combination of knowledge and generous spirit, that spark will grow, grow, and grow.
Ray Charles talks about his first piano teacher and you can hear in his voice how that initial curiosity and fascination was nurtured and challenged to grow. Check it out.
An Inner Confidence Rises Up, Music, Art, Dance, Theater Camp in the Hamptons
Through the years I have noticed an inner confidence emerge from students in our music, art, dance, theater camp in the Hamptons and New Jersey. Something happens when someone throws himself or herself into something and creates something that they never thought was possible.
When students arrive at our music camp, our art camp, our theater camp, and our dance camp in the Hamptons and New Jersey, there is a mix of excitement and maybe a bit of nervous energy. It’s amazing to see how this feeling transforms into a certain confidence that comes through performance and sharing your talents with your peers, family, and the public. It’s not showy…it’s a kind of quiet, inner confidence that radiates outward that’s built on accomplishments that they have seen through on their own with their fellow musicians, dancers, artists, and actors.
How a "Mistake" in Music Can Say So Much, Rock Camp, Jazz Workshop, Dance Intensive, Theater Workshop in New Jersey and the Hamptons
One of the benefits of learning music is you learn to adapt to change in the moment. Creating something whether its music, art, dance, or theater, you have to work as a team, and embracing change is part of that. This is something you will learn and experience at Rock Camp, Jazz Workshop, Dance Intensive, and Theater Workshop in New Jersey and the Hamptons. The bass player may be rushing the beat a little bit, the drummer forgets the cue going to the bridge, an actor forgets a line, a painter makes a brush stroke he didn’t intend. What do you do, especially if it’s during a live performance?
Here is a fascinating video of the great pianist Herbie Hancock talking about making a “mistake” at the piano in a performance with the trumpeter Miles Davis. Herbie talks about cringing when it happened, but then he talks about how MIles Davis heard what happened and altered his notes to make his “mistake” something perfect. Herbie goes to say how this experience taught him to approach music and life differently. So good, check it out.
Summer Jazz Camp in New Jersey and Long Island, Jazz Workshop
Jazz Workshop is a music camp in New Jersey and the Hamptons that aims to take students to a higher level through mastering their instrument or voice, how to solo, how to understand harmony, and inspiring students to find their individual voice in music.
Let’s look at George Gershwin’s song, Summertime, as an example of how we can dive into the music.
As a baseline for improvising on this song we need to know that we are in the key of d minor, and everyone will play the triads for d minor, g minor, and A major, root position and with inversions.
We see in measure 2 and 3, that we have a ii-V-i pattern. The II-V-I and it’s minor key equivelent, ii-V-i, is a harmonic cornerstone to many jazz songs, particularly music of the American Songbook. So after understanding this we need to put this knowledge in our fingers, voice, and become fluent with playing II-V-I’s passages in different ways and in different keys.
What about improvising? Well, there are many approaches we can take. A macro approach, and a way to just start getting into the music would be to review the d and g harmonic minor scales, as well as the f major scale. The d harmonic minor scale (d-e-f-g-a-b flat-c sharp) can be used over measure 1-3, 7-11, 14-16 while the g harmonic minor scale (g-a-b flat-c-d-e flat-f sharp) can be used in measures 4-6. The F major scale can be used in measures 12 and 13.
This is only one of many ways to start creating your own melodies over the song. Initially it’s important to learn the building blocks (scales, arpeggios, etc..), but once you have this understanding, one needs to throw this knowledge out the window in a way, and start creating melodies and lines that come from your voice, your own creativity, what you are hearing into the music. Then the music really comes alive and will inspire you and everyone listening!
Music Camp in New Jersey and Hamptons, 3 Things to Know
I have seen a few different approaches to music camps/education.....At Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop, our summer music camp in New Jersey and the Hamptons, I can confidently say we are the 3rd approach, without a doubt!
1. A fluffy-music-appreciation type of experience - that's not us (I am having flashbacks to when my children were very young and we took a few of these classes).
2. A hardcore conservatory approach (i.e Manhatten School of Music, Julliard...this is great but it's meant for older students and is meant as a pre-professional, bootcamp approach) -that's definitely not us either......
3. Banff Approach (a great center for the arts in western Canada). This is us!
The environment is social, fun, friendly, and students are inspired to learn and create as much from their teachers as their fellow musicians. You are surrounded by teachers who are pursuing careers in music who love to share with others. An interest in music or anything I suppose, is something that should be nurtured and allowed to grow at the same time.
Diving Into the Roots of Rock, Rock Camp & Jazz Workshop, Summer Music Camp in Long Island and New Jersey
At our music camp in the Hamptons, Long Island and New Jersey, we make sure to understand our roots and where the music comes from, the heroes, innovators, and creative spirit of those sung and unsung. So what makes Fats Domino of New Orleans so important in the growth of rock?
First off, Fats Domino was from New Orleans. Well, we know New Orleans as the birthplace of jazz, and of course blues is a cousin to jazz, living side-by-side. A piano style developed out of jazz and blues and Fats knew it well, Boogie Woogie. This involves a driving left hand pattern in the left hand and the right hand plays syncopated lines on top of usually played over the blues or a song with changes that reflect I, IV, V harmony of the blues. Great musicians of this style include Gene Ammons, Professor Longhair, Meade Lux Lewis, and later rock-n-roll musicians like Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, and Fats Domino. Professor Longhair’s music had something else to it, a distinctly New Orleans rhumba-rhythm infused in the music which was very influential to great musicians like Dr. John and Allen Toussaint.
In the 1950’s Fats was able to infuse his music with a triplet feel and his song “The Fat Man” went to #2 on the R&B charts. The site SPClarke.com explains it well down below:
“The Fat Man” is often referred to as the first Rock and Roll song, although such assertions will always be the subject of great dispute. As far as Fats was concerned, he was merely playing the same sort of music he had been playing in New Orleans for years. Referring to being called the “Father of Rock and Roll,” Domino, himself, later said, “Well I wouldn’t want to say that I started it, but I don’t remember anyone else before me playing that kind of stuff.” Whatever the case, Fats Domino was suddenly a Rhythm and Blues star.
This led the way to rock-n-roll hits like Blueberry Hill.
But we all know everything comes from something else, and when we peel things back we also have to give a shout out to the great musician Little Willie Littlefield. His song of 1949, It’s Midnight, pre-dates Fats Domino and he is credited as someone who helped popularize the triplet feel in the music.
Music just goes its own way, and if you like it becomes a part of you. It’s cool that the B-side of the 1985 Paul McCartney single "Spies Like Us", entitled "My Carnival" was recorded in New Orleans and dedicated to Professor Longhair. And if you listen to the Beatles song Oh! Darlin you hear how it’s rooted in the sound and rhythm of many of these innovative and creative shining stars of early rhythm and blues, boogie woogie, and rock-n-roll.
Rock Camp & Jazz Workshop, The Premier Music Camp for Summer 2022 in the Hamptons, Long Island and New Jersey
If you love music, you are in the right spot. Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop are two summer camp programs happening this summer in the Hamptons and New Jersey in which students of all ages, teens, adults gather to learn music in a fun and inspiring environment.
ROCK CAMP…..What We DO!
Meets 9-3 pm
At Rock Camp we start with a brief morning meeting where all students meet up and there is a 20 minute hands on workshop (one day could be polyrhythms, another day the music from another country, jam session, etc..).
- We then dive into morning lessons (instrumental or vocals). Students can choose a second instrument for afternoon lessons.
- Students then join their morning band (music chosen in collaboration with teacher, usually spans the history of the music, from the 50's/60's to a song that came out last month. Students also work on original music.
- We break for lunch and students then have time to relax and hang with their friends.....then volleyball, soccer, or they play with others on their own. Teachers also meet with students 1-1.
- Then we have electives, more niche topics (song writing, reading/writing, African drumming, harmony, improvisation, solo guitar, learning logic, sibelius, etc....).
- Afternoon Lessons.
- Afternoon Band, a different band and teacher than the morning.
- At the end of the week students then do a performance for family, friends, and the public.
Jazz Workshop…..What We DO!
Meets 3-5 pm
Jazz Workshop is a music summer camp and workshop in the Hamptons and New Jersey that meets in the afternoons and its goal is to teach students how to play jazz through:
• Lessons (private or small group).
• Ensembles, learning and playing music from the jazz repertoire (Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Dave Brubeck, and many others).
• Instruction on improvisation, harmony and chords, and learning to master your instrument as you grow as a musician and find your voice and sound.
The Power of 7 Notes, Rock Camp in New Jersey and the Hamptons
7 notes make up the C major scale. It;’s simple, basic, and yet it’s nothing but simple. Why? Well, when played as a ladder of notes up and down, its sounds like a regular music exercise, but when one starts combing notes to be played at the same time, it creates harmony or chords.
Ok, cool, but so what? Well, if you play that same simple C major scale but now in triads (3 notes chords) up and down the scale you are entering another world. So instead of paying: C, D, E, F, G, A, B, (C) up and down, you now can play C-E-G (C Major triad), then D-F-A (D Minor triad), then E-G-B (E Minor triad), etc… up the scale and down. You can play the triads as one block or arpeggiate it.
Btw, once you you can go up the C major scale, then try the other keys. There are only 12 of them. You can either go up or down chromatically or follow the circle of 5ths pattern (C, G, D, A, E, B, F# (G Flat), D Flat, A Flat, E Flat, B Flat, F, C).
Ok, cool, but now what? Well, from these triads or blocks of sound, these can form the building blocks to creating new music, your music! Just experiment with different patterns within the scale until you find a progression that really speaks to you. Just have fun and stay curious.
Here is a really cool video of Paul McCartney (one of the great song writers of our time) getting into it. Enjoy!!
At Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop in New Jersey and the Hamptons, we’ll get into this concept as a way to explore song writing and improvisation.
Music Summer Camp and Classes, Rock Camp, in the Hamptons and New Jersey
Rock Camp and Jazz Workshop in Bridgehampton, NY and Lebanon, NJ bring some of the most talented musicians and teachers around the country to work with students of all ages to take their music to the next level.
Some students have little to no experience while other students are advanced. We make it all work with a combination of nimbleness and thoughtfully placing students together in groups, so students are playing with their peers, having fun, and learning along the way. We as a staff are also staying aware of everyone is doing socially and musically. You need to have both working in harmony, so students are making friends, learning, and gaining confidence on their instrument. Finally, we keep our enrollment numbers low so everyone has a ton of one-on-one attention throughout the day in morning lessons, morning band, electives, afternoon lessons, and afternoon band.
Rock Camp and Dance Intensive, a Summer Camp Experience Like No Other in the Hamptons and New Jersey
What makes Rock Camp the premier music camp in New Jersey? What makes a week of Rock Camp and Dance Intensive stand out as such a unique and amazing week of summer camp in the Hamptons?
A few things come to mind:
Faculty.
We seek the best teachers and performers from NYC and from conservatories/colleges from around the country. Essentially we look for teachers who are mastering their craft (pushing the envelope to further their artistic careers) and who also love teaching. Every teacher at RC and DI has these two qualities.
Creating a Fun and Social Environment.
OK, it’s summer! After spending a year in classrooms, we want our students making friends, spending time outside, and having a great time making music and working on dance. Whether a student is a beginner or an advanced student, we make sure everyone is inspired to achieve an entirely new level in the music and dance abilities, while also having a great time along the way!
It’s all About the Student.
Every student is unique in his or her talent, and learns differently. This is why every day after camp lets out, we have a faculty meeting and speak about every student, making certain the student is getting what or she needs. Why don’t we have these students create a trio during lunch, and perform at the end of the end of the week? Does this student need extra attention in this area? How about choreographing a new piece this dance faculty member and these students? How can this student be inspired to achieve the next level in terms of repertoire, technique, artistic expression, and confidence? We are asking these type of questions and discussing solutions every day. We stay nimble during the day to make these mini-changes so every student is having an amazing experience at Rock Camp and Dance Intensive.