The Jazz Academy Annual Summer “JAM Camp” is a two-week program from 1:00pm – 5:00pm (with an extended day option from 9am) Monday through Friday.  The instrumental and vocal jazz music camp is located at the North Chevy Chase Christian Church just outside of Washington, DC in Chevy Chase, MD.  It is a great opportunity for young musicians’ ages 8 to 18 to learn to solo on their instrument and with their voices. The focus of the camp is on jazz improvisation. Students learn play and perform their own extemporaneously created solos. It is a fun way for musically inclined youth to spend time playing their instrument with the professionals and their peers. JAM Camp begins on June 19th, 2023 and concludes June 30th, 2023.
The JAM Camp works this way!
The focus of the JAM Camp is primarily on the development of improvisational skills. During the camp students are placed into groups based upon their skill level and introduced to various improvisational styles and techniques. Students apply what they learn to develop their own improvisational style and practice and perform with the instructors and with combos comprised of their peer musicians.

In addition, master classes are conducted by faculty and touring artists. Students play and sing right along with the faculty in the Jam Sessions. The camp culminates in a concert where students perform in large ensemble and combo formats.

Activity Descriptions

Combo – Students are grouped into small combos or groups to create and perform their self-developed repertoire of music.

Jazz Idiom – Students are provided an overview of the history of jazz from the early 1900’s to today. Also covered will be the Blues, Spiritual and Classical influences in Jazz Music.

Improvisation & Music Theory – Students learn the language of jazz and techniques for creating and playing extemporaneously created melodies over chord progressions on their instrument or through vocal scatting.

Sectionals – Students are group by instrument/vocal and skill level to work on the technical aspects of playing and performing certain musical passages and are given tips to improve their vocal or instrumental proficiency.

Master Class – During the course of the camp, various established recording/touring artists will be invited to work with the students and share their experiences as a recording artist.

Faculty and Student Concerts – At the end of each day faculty and any visiting artists perform for the students in concert.

The Best Instructors

There is nothing like playing and performing with professional musicians and your fellow students. At the JAM Camp you will be a part of sessions that include some of the top professional musicians in the Washington Metropolitan area and beyond. You will gain experience playing in combo settings. You will be in a professional atmosphere with various professional musicians in addition to the primary camp instructors who are also accomplished professionals.

Our Camp Director and Jazz Academy founder, Paul Carr, is one of the top Jazz Saxophonist and Educators in the country today. He has played, performed and recorded with some of the top names in jazz such as Mulgrew Miller, Randy Brecker, Bobby Broom, Branford Marsalis, Terrell Stafford, Lewis Nash, Kirk Whalum, and Wynton Marsalis to name a few. His newly released CDs, The Real Jazz Whisperer and Soulful Serenity (with Sharon Clark) have been doing exceptionally well.  And, his two previous CDs, Straight-Ahead Soul and Musically Yours, topped the radio charts and received critical acclaim from the jazz media including Jazz Times and Down Beat.  As an educator, there are very few in the industry that can claim the success that Paul has achieved. Many of his students are accepted to top conservatories and college music programs, including Julliard, Berkley, New England and The New School. Many of his students have also made their county and state Jazz Bands as well as the Grammy Band and have received other high-profiled scholarship awards. The Jazz Academy programs rank high amongst touring performing artist and many have participated in our camp and orchestra programs. The award winning Jazz Academy Orchestra is in high demand to perform at events in and around our nation’s capitol and is the three-time winner of the Silver Spring Jazz Festival cutting contest where Wynton Marsalis has been one of the judges.

Our faculty is equally impressive and have played and performed with Renowned artists and toured all over the world.