Jazz Camp West

Jazz Camp is my happy place! The mentors, performances, conversations, hikes, dances and time in the swimming pool over the years are some of my fondest memories! I have been going to this camp almost every year for over 20 years! I started when I was a teenager and this camp changed my life in so many ways. The world class faculty, amazing classes and friendships have been priceless. I can't say enough good things about Jazz Camp West!

Jazz camp changed my life; it's as simple as that.
For years I walked around, singing to myself and pretending that I was singing to an audience (an appreciative audience, of course). Late in my life I actually dared to take a few lessons with a Local Legend, Ellen Hoffman, who said "You need to go to Jazz Camp". Boy, was she right!
This will be my seventh year at camp, and it's become one of the most important weeks of my year. I've done things I only dreamed of, and I've gotten used to being on a first name basis with internationally known musicians (everyone eats together; that makes it easy) and, yes, i've gotten used to getting up and singing for an appreciative audience, backed by musicians I could only dream of working with. It's Jazz Camp, and believe it when people say, there's nothing like it. It's true. Come and see.

I wish I could award 10 stars because that's what this program deserves. I first attended Jazz Camp about 7 years ago, and like many other campers have become a yearly repeater. I think they've been around for over 25 years now!

Intended for older teens and adults, this camp offers a zillion classes for Jazz musicians of all levels, from beginners to pros. Whether you're a singer or instrumentalist, or a dancer, there's something for everyone. The faculty is  usually comprised of well known Jazz musicians from the Bay Area and beyond, and they have a yearly "artist-in-residence" like Tuck & Patty, or Tootie Heath (there have been more of course). With tons of classes, open mics and faculty concerts every night followed by late night jam sessions, you get all the Jazz ed you can possibly want in a week and then some. But that's not what makes this camp so extraordinary.... you see, all of this happens outdoors in the fabulous Redwoods of La Honda, CA.

If you can picture a humongous redwood tree with a drumset and a piano in its shade, with a racoon sitting close by watching you play, then you're closer to what it's about. It takes place at a YMCA camp and you get to jam 24/7 in nature. How can you possibly make this any cooler? (And yes, it does get freezing cold but the jazzcamp organizers warn you about that and give you a mile-long list of stuff you may want to bring with you to stay warm in the evenings/nights). You can choose to either camp out with your own gear or stay in one of their cabins (all cabins ingeniously named after Jazz musicians), their "luxury" version being the Sarah Vaughn cabins. The luxury amounts to "restroom INSIDE the cabin" rather than in a separate cabin, which is the case for Thelonius Monk cabins. They strategically place port-a-potties around camp for those staying in tents.

Last but certainly not least, the camaraderie and sense of community of this camp is AMAZING. In other camps you don't get to hang with everyone from faculty to "regular" campers, all having their meals together and dropping social/racial/religious/prestige and any other lines you can think of. It's a huge outpour of love and support and usually you leave the camp personally transformed and inspired to live a little outside of the box ;-)

More info is on their website, though I'll admit the website doesn't convey AT ALL what this camp is about. I heard about it from someone else who'd been there, and when I saw the brochure and site didn't feel too convinced about it. However my friend totally insisted this was the bomb, so I signed up and OH MY GOD! Best thing I ever did for my musical freedom and inspiration.

Hard to put this all in a nutshell, but if you're a musician, love Jazz, and are looking for a way to get re-inspired, re-energized, or simply reminded about the sheer joy of making music together, then this is the place to go!!!