Speciality Summer Camps;
More than just fun and games

Byline: Elizabeth Cornell
Date: November 8, 1989
Publication: Goodlife Magazine
Edition: Final
Section: Sizzling in song
Page: 9

Some kids already have the dream of stardom gleaming in their eyes. For those ages eight to eighteen, Natural Ear Music Camp may be the ticket they need to climb to the top of the rock star ladder.

Director Michele Murphy has developed a unique method of teaching young people how to play any instrument in a rock band; the method uses the idea of the sense of music, a concept that has certainly been explored in therapeutic terms. Murphy applies it to learning how to pick up instruments and play them. She states her philosophy on the Natural Ear web site; "Teaching from the printed page is like pointing to a shaded area on a map and expecting to conjure a vision of an alpine peak. The grandeur of the mountains and the thundering of the waterfalls can't be captured on paper...Kids can be taught to play the music that is important to them in small groups, by listening to the recordings of great blues, rock and roll, and country artists...Music can be passed hand to hand, ear to ear, heart to heart." And her philosophy has certainly been successful for some of the students who have participated in the Natural Ear program.

At the outset of the summer session, campers meet at a large professional rehearsal studio and are divided into smaller groups led by veteran musicians. They learn not only how to play in the style they want to emulate, but also showmanship and stage presence. At the end of the three weeks, there's a showcase of the newly formed acts. "Some people go in with their mind set on one instrument and the spotlight," says Daniel Madera, returning camper. "The majority (of groups) have kids (who) learn different instruments on different songs. For many campers, the three weeks of the rock star lifestyle is very fun, like eating pizza and jamming away between bites. That's all well and good, but for me, I'd have to say that the gig at the end is the coolest part, where I can show off my 'mad' skills." After eight years, Tracey Crosset is an old hand at Natural Ear Music Camps. "I'm just expanding the vareity of music I play," she says. "It's also just really fun to form a band for three weeks with people you don't know and then play a show with them."