I spent the whole Spring organizing this thing. I had to find a venue, which ended being Click Music. I had to find other teachers and coaches to come in, and even chaperones, which I was quite successful at finding. I had to arrange a schedule and think of what the days would consist of. I decided to have students play in three different groups: Small chamber groups (trios & quartets) age-based groups that were larger (half & half), and a mass ensemble with everyone together. In addition, I had an hour-long "class" or "session" on an important topic pertaining to us. The sessions I did this year was:
The History of Brass, the Brass Family & the Harmonic Series
Basic Music Theory, including scale degrees, chords and intervals
The Importance of Practicing, including creating a practice chart
Improvisation Games, based on the book by Jeff Agrell
Listening to Brass Instruments in different ensembles
Also, the students had one day where they worked with a specialist on their instrument in a masterclass, which went really well. I brought in Larry Heidel of the Saratoga Orchestra to coach the low brass, and Malcolm Peterson (a prominent teacher and performer in the Skagit/Whatcome/Snohimish Counties) to take the trumpets. The students then heard them, myself and one of our coaches perform solos on our "local artists" recital. I also brought in the Whidbey Island Horn Club to perform. And, to take a break from music to do something fun together, I took the students outside each day to do an outdoor activity.
I had 16 total students registered for the camp, which was a little lower than I wanted (20), but I held the camp anyways. I had spent a lot of time preparing music specifically for the ensembles of this camp which included me arranging 4 pieces, and using two previous arrangements. Thankfully I had a good number of pieces by other composers and arrangers that fit our ensembles.
When the first day of camp began, I have to admit I felt a bit nervous, because I wanted to provide an awesome experience for these kids, and I had no idea what to expect. I was just confident in myself and confident that I had planned it right, with enough humility to know that I probably would need to improve on some things for next year. I was really to accept responsibility for aspects of the camp that would not have gone well.
But thankfully, very little went wrong or needed improvement. The realistic truth is that the kids at this camp had an absolutely amazing experience. It was so evident in their enthusiasm to show up every day, and to play the music. They provided so much feedback during the camp about what they liked. That's all I heard throughout the camp--what they liked. They were incredibly patient, as well, so when we were transitioning to a different ensemble or activity, or if I needed a second just to figure something out, they were respectful. The rehearsal process what awesome, too. They were just so responsive, and they simply just sounded very good by performance time.
And it was a good group of kids, too. The majority of them were students that study with me already, but I had several kids whom I had never met before, which was awesome. We had students representing all three school districts on Whidbey Island. Of course, when you have 16 kids together, you have a very interesting range of personalities, some maybe not the most ideal. But we still were a supportive team to each other and used that uniqueness to our advantage, I feel. And, the ages were quite varying; we had 11-year-olds up to 17-year-olds. The vast majority were middle-school kids, as we only had 3 high-schoolers. And the young kids really looked up to the older kids.
Just before our final concert, I had the students reflect with me about what they liked about the camp and what they would like improved for next year. I got so many great comments about what went well, such as the music selection (everyone loved the music), the challenge, playing with different-sized ensembles, playing with advanced players, learning about the history of brass, learning about improvisation and music theory, working with all the teachers of the camp, playing outdoors...Everything I had planned and spent a lot of effort in making right had been noticed and well-liked.
So, as you can tell, this camp went as good as it could have...even better! The kids left the camp ready to tell everyone they knew about it, and who knows how big the camp will be next year? Because yes, there will be a next year.
And in case you're wondering, this camp was well-documented, in the form of pictures, video, and audio. I have had little time to sort all that stuff out and post it, mainly because the Whidbey Island Horn Club has been so busy this weekend, so you'll have to bear with me and be patient while I get stuff posted. But you're going to love it.
I'm so proud. I've rarely been so proud of something I've done in music. It's good to have a little pride in oneself at times, isn't it?
Take care and value music.