MUSIC EDUCATIONSign Up Today!
Nothing says summer fun more than making friends and playing music! Amplify your summer by joining our Performance Program and kickstarting your journey to the stage. All of the show details are available here for your convenience.
THE WHO
MONDAYS 5:00-7:00PM
One of the heavyweight bands born from the British Invasion, The Who forged a sound and style that would change Rock & Roll. The Who were one of the first, if not THE first, bands to gain recognition for producing Rock Operas in their music catalogs. Most notably Tommy, which sold millions of units with the hit single “Pinball Wizard”, helped establish The Who as one of the top bands of the era. Tommy has since been re-interpreted into a ballet, a Broadway show, and a symphony production. The Who are clearly one of the most legendary bands in rock and roll history, composed of four amazing musicians who somehow still exceeded the sum of their parts. Pete Townsend’s unique guitar style and masterful songwriting allowed space for bassist John Entwistle, drummer Keith Moon and vocalist Roger Daltrey to shine. The Who is a killer show for bass players and drummers to develop serious chops, offers complex parts for guitar players, and has surprisingly complex vocal harmonies.
DRUMAGEDDON
TUESDAYS 5:30-7:30PM
Drums and percussion have been around for as long as recorded history, but in the past hundred years, and with the creation of the drum kit, the instrument has reached new groundbreaking heights. The drums are the foundation on what the rest of the band can build upon. From a Blues Shuffle to modern-day “Trap” Hi-Hats, the drum is an ever-changing and evolving instrument that lays the foundation for the music that we all love and cherish. Some of the drum legends who will be showcased in the Drumageddon Show are Neil Peart (Rush), John Bonham (Led Zeppelin), Ginger Baker (Cream), Danny Carey (Tool). Artists who incorporated multiple drummers or large percussion sections, such as The Allman Brothers Band, Santana, and The Grateful Dead, will also be featured in this show. Through this wide and diverse setlist, students will see the evolution of drumming throughout the years, and how the great innovators of the instrument continued to influence rock music’s history. This is an extremely important educational opportunity for drum students as well as all other instrumentalists to pay homage to the greatest drummers of the modern era.
HEAVY MILLENNIUM
WEDNESDAYS 5:00-7:00PM
The Heavy Millennium show traces the evolution of metal AND HARD ROCK music from the turn of the century to the present day, and focuses on bands who kept the virtuosic spirit of metal alive while incorporating more contemporary techniques into their sound, such as an emphasis on melody and harmony, and modern studio production. Artists such as Disturbed and SYSTEM OF A DOWN rose to prominence with the popularity of Nu-Metal. The HEAVY MILLENNIUM show will celebrate this next generation of HARD ROCK AND metal artists - including Avenged Sevenfold, Tool, HALESTORM, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, System of a Down, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, DEFTONES, and more! This is a super challenging show for all instruments, as the speed and precision of this music requires quite a bit of proficiency to master.
JOAN JETT & PAT BENETAR
WEDNESDAYS 7:00-9:00PM
Joan Jett and Pat Benatar - these iconic rockers both rose to prominence in the late 1970s, and became international superstars in the early 1980s. Their styles are different but complement each other well - both are grounded in classic guitar rock. However, Joan Jett embraces more of a punk aesthetic while Pat Benatar employs a more Hard Rock edge. Joan Jett’s initial entry into the music scene was as a guitarist for the all-girl group The Runaways. Flanked by fellow guitarist Lita Ford, The Runaways created a following in the mid '70s as a Hard Rock/Punk band. Jett decided to branch off on her own to form Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. In 1981, The Blackhearts released the mega-hit “I Love Rock and Roll” and cemented their place in '80s rock culture. Pat Benatar's first major LP In The Heat Of The Night was released in 1979, and includes her breakthrough single “Heartbreaker” which reached the Billboard Top 25 in the US. Benatar continued to produce chart-topping hits in the '80s and inspired many female-fronted bands to become prominent in the music industry. This is a great show for up-and-coming players, but there are definitely challenges for advanced students here, particularly with some of Pat Benatar’s tricky song arrangements.
BEACH PARTY
THURSDAYS 5:30-7:30PM
Are you looking for fun in the sun while playing music this summer? Then look no further than the Beach Party show! This fun and eclectic show is guaranteed to set the summer vibes to the max. No summer playlist is complete without this set, and you can learn the importance of bringing the party to any beach that you go to! From Reggae to Summer themed Rock hits, this show is bound to provide fun challenges on all instruments. Sign up today!
MICHAEL JACKSON VS PRINCE
FRIDAYS 5:30-7:30
Michael Jackson and Prince - there were, arguably, no two bigger superstars in the '80s. MJ’s Thriller and Prince’s Purple Rain were perhaps the most iconic recordings of the entire decade, and cemented each artist’s place in music history. In 1982, MJ released one of the greatest albums of all time, Thriller. The album would bring unprecedented success for Michael, topping the Billboard 200 for an impressive 37 weeks and becoming the first album to ever contain seven top-10 singles. The “Thriller” video turned the music video medium into a serious art form and helped to break down the racial barrier on the network. Michael would not release another solo album for 5 years, returning in 1987 with the highly-anticipated album, Bad. Although his output in the 1980s was limited to just two solo albums, the unprecedented massive success of both Thriller and Bad earned Michael Jackson the title as the undisputed “King of Pop.” Prince is hailed as one of the greatest musicians of his generation. Not only was he a guitar virtuoso, but he was also a prodigal multi-instrumentalist who played every instrument on his early albums, including bass, drums, and keyboards. Prince scored his commercial breakthrough in 1982 with the album 1999. The album became Prince’s first top-10 album, and the title track was his first international mega hit. Prince exploded back onto the scene with the hit film and accompanying soundtrack, Purple Rain. The album became Prince’s first number-one album, holding the top spot for an impressive 6 consecutive months, and featured the number-one hits, “Purple Rain”, “Let’s Go Crazy”, and “When Doves Cry.” Known not only for his prolific musical output, his wild, energetic dancing and genre-bending music made a strong case for Prince as the top superstar of the 1980s. This show will have plenty of opportunities for students to contribute on a variety of instruments in a wide range of styles, and there will surely be challenging moments where students at all levels can learn something new.
AC/DC
SATURDAYS 12:00-2:00PM
Few rock bands have had the longevity and commercial success of AC/DC. Formed in Sydney, Australia, in the early '70s, the band - led by guitarist brothers Angus and Malcolm Young - quickly began their rise to Hard Rock’ superstardom with the release of their albums High Voltage, T.N.T., and Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap. With Bon Scott at the vocal helm, AC/DC gained world-wide fame. After Scott’s untimely passing in 1980, Brian Johnson took over as vocalist and recorded one of the greatest, most influential albums in modern rock: Back In Black, featuring classic songs like “Hells Bells”, “You Shook Me All Night Long”, “Shoot To Thrill”, and of course “Back In Black”. After almost 50 years, AC/DC continues to be a favorite band for generations of fans. This is a perfect show for budding lead guitarists and vocalists, and also provides valuable lessons for bassists and drummers on playing tight grooves in the service of the song. For beginner and intermediate students looking to take their playing to the next level, the AC/DC show is the one!
EMO
SATURDAYS 3:00-5:00PM
In the 1990s, artists such as Green Day, Offspring, and Blink-182 achieved success by blending punk attitudes and influences with a more polished, melodic, commercially appealing sound than their often raw predecessors. By the 2000s, Pop Punk and its Emo offshoot (featuring lyrics that touch on emotional and confessional topics) were fully entrenched in the mainstream music world, with bands such as Fall Out Boy, Paramore, My Chemical Romance, and Panic! At the Disco topping the charts and selling out arenas. Of course, this music is still incredibly popular and influential today. A fun show that can be musically challenging but also teaches solid fundamental skills, Emo is sure to appeal to all levels of students and will entertain any crowd!