Jan 21, 2025 7:54 PM
Southern California Fires Hit the Jazz Community
Roy McCurdy and his wife had just finished eating dinner and were relaxing over coffee in their Altadena home, when he…
Joshua Breakstone’s Jazz Guitar Dream Experience takes campers all the way to Japan.
(Photo: Courtesy of Joshua Breakstone)For musicians with a passion for globe-trotting who seek something new and different in a jazz camp experience, there are plenty of great international camps to choose from — some just north of the border, some across the pond. Here are a few highly recommended jazz camps that take place in distant locales and invite jazz travelers of all stripes.
International Music Camp Summer School of Fine Arts
International Peace Garden
Manitoba/North Dakota
July 13–19
Summer 2025 marks 68 years of inspiring music camps at the beautiful International Peace Garden located on the Canada/U.S. border between North Dakota and Manitoba. International Music Camp offers a full-week session of jazz studies, including big band or vocal jazz streams along with jazz theory, improvisation, combos, faculty master classes and optional private lessons with IMC’s acclaimed artist-teachers. This program is open to students in grades 7-12 with at least three years of playing experience.
Faculty: IMC’s jazz camp is directed by Dr. Greg Gatien, and includes some of the finest senior years and post-secondary instructors in both Canada and the USA as well as experienced professional musicians with a passion for jazz education.
Cost: $660 USD before May 1; $675 after May 1.
Contact: info@internationalmusiccamp.com; 204-269-8468 (Canada); 701-838-8472 (USA); internationalmusiccamp.com.
Jazz Improvisation Camp in Italy
June 8–14, June 15–21
An international camp created by the New York Jazz Workshop, Jazz Improvisation Camp in Italy is held in the scenic hills of Tuscany. It’s a week-long camp that combines intensive jazz study with cultural excursions. Open to musicians of all levels, participants engage in improvisation workshops, ensemble sessions and Italian dining. Ideal for those seeking inspiration in a unique setting.
Faculty: Visit newyorkjazzworkshop.com.
Cost: Starting Price: $2,900 ($100 discount for DownBeat readers)
Contact: email info@newyorkjazzworkshop.com; 212-287-5908; newyorkjazzworkshop.com.
Joshua Breakstone’s Jazz Guitar Dream Experience
Kyoto, Japan
May 27–June 6
A dream experience for guitarists of any age including 10 hotel nights with breakfast, seven intensive three-hour workshops, visits to Japanese jazz clubs, intros to Japanese jazz musicians, five dinners in amazing Kyoto restaurants with many of the musicians you’ll meet and two tours of Kyoto temples and gardens.
Faculty: Guitarist and educator Joshua Breakstone; Phillip Strange; Fukuro Kazuya; Morishita Kei; Ito Aiko; Ono Midori and more.
Cost: $3,150; $2,900 if paid in full by Feb. 15.
Contact: kyotoguitarexperience.com.
KoSA Italy – Catanzaro Jazz Fest Retreat
Catanzaro, Italy
A one-week musical, cultural, culinary retreat in Calabria (Southern Italy). Enjoy this all-inclusive cultural, musical culinary experience including daily classes in music, drumming, dance, archeology, seminars and deep dives, cultural context, local culinary classes, language classes, attend and perform concerts at important archeology sites, hidden villages, wineries and more. All instruments provided. Open to all including non-musicians.
Faculty: Hosted by Aldo Mazza; an international faculty to be announced.
Cost: $2,900.
Contact: info@kosamusic.com; 1-800-541-8401; italymusictour.com.
Langnau Jazz Nights, Junior Jazz Workshop
Langnau, Switzerland
July 21–26
The Junior Jazz Workshop for children and teenagers from 10 to 18 years of age is unique: Beside classes which take into consideration age and skill level, the participants also have the opportunity to join the instrumental classes of the Jazz Workshop and special workshops of the performing bands. As a result, participants get the chance to work with internationally acclaimed jazz musicians and teachers.
Faculty: Caroline Davis, faculty curator; Other faculty to be announced.
Cost: CHF 250 (includes festival pass).
Contact: workshops@jazz-nights.ch; jazz-nights.ch.
Samba Meets Jazz Workshops
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
January 2026
Samba Meets Jazz Workshops’ Brazilian musical/cultural immersion welcomes instrumentalists, vocalists and tap dancers of all music backgrounds from around the world seeking to unlock Brazilian rhythms, styles and phrasing from “the source.” In addition to 25 hours of instruction provided by a Who’s Who of Brazilian music, this week-long program includes sightseeing led by an English-speaking tour guide, optional group dinners and night-time music excursions. Participants can choose special packages for non-musicians who attend faculty presentations, sightseeing, lunches and dinners, night-time music excursions, student and faculty performances, as well as optional percussion classes.
Faculty: Nilson Matta, artistic/music director; other faculty to be announced. Past faculty includes Lula Galvão, Andre Tandeta, Alfredo Cardim, Erivelton Silva, Célia Vaz, Liz Rosa, with guest presentations by João Bosco, Ivan Lins, Chico Pinheiro, Nilze Carvalho and more.
Cost: To be announced.
Contact: alice@SambaMeetsJazz.com.
For a complete list of international camps, and all the camps, click HERE. DB
Gerald and John Clayton at the family home in Altadena during a photo shoot for the June 2022 cover of DownBeat. The house was lost during the Los Angeles fires.
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