Music Maestro Please! A Brief Guide to a Kids’ Most Musical Summer
From chamber music to full on rock onslaught, some Manhattan camps and workshops for almost everyone.
Whether one wants to learn a new instrument or style or work on the “chops,” summer is the opportune time for many kids to do so.
Manhattan School of Music
For kids with the air of classical, jazz and musical theater about them, the Manhattan School of Music at 130 Claremont Avenue in Morningside Heights offers programs for children 8 to 17.
The music theatre program runs from July 7 to August 1, while the instrumental, with the composition programs starting a week later but also ending August 1.
Brass, strings, woodwinds, piano and composition students are all accommodated.
On the jazz side, the education is similar, adding bass and guitar. Drummers and percussionists can study a wide variety of idioms including jazz, Afro-Cuban, Latin, funk and rock.
There are audition requirements—performed by video only—to establish a student’s skill level.
Julliard School
Further south on the Upper West Side, there’s the world-famous Julliard School. While they don’t offer camp programs per se, their Extension program offers a summer course for teenagers in Music Theory and Ear Training, both important skills whatever musical styles one might pursue.
Third Street Music School Settlement
Downtown, the Third Street Music School Settlement—which it should be noted is not on third street but rather at 235 East 11th Street) summer camp offerings are limited to the pre-school set.
Third Street also offers Winter Break programs in both jazz and musical theatre, each running February 18-21 for students aged 12-18.
As far as summer goes, Third Street calls their summer programs workshops rather than camps. Nomenclature aside, the function of Third Street workshops is largely similar to that of a camp—giving your kid somewhere to go and something to learn for most of a morning and afternoon come selected weeks of July and August.
Fields of the workshops include musical theatre; jazz and piano ensemble.
The exact dates differ by program and do require either a video audition or verified levels of experience.
School of Rock
For hepcats and kittens who love the big beat of rock and roll and its associated progeny and subgenres, the popular School of Rock has an Upper East Side location at 493 East 75th Street that offers an assortment of week-long summer programs from mid-June though late August.
NYC Guitar School
Similarly, while its mission isn’t limited to rock music, the NYC Guitar School offers numerous two-week sessions in July and August, from beginner to advanced, hosted at the Funkadelic Studios at 209 West 40th Street, just off 7th Avenue.