Ukulele Band Camp – 13th Annual

March 27-31, 2023

Come enjoy four nights and three days of intense fun and learning in an exceptionally beautiful place with exceptionally talented instructors:

2023 Instructors

• Neal Chin
• Danielle Ate The Sandwich
• Larry Wyatt
• Avery Hill
• Matt Weiner
• Nova Devonie
• Artistic Directors: Aaron & Nicole Keim

Each instructor will teach 2 types of classes

"3-Day" Classes extend over 3 class periods alllowing for a more in-depth learning on the topic.

"Drop-in" Classes are 1 day classes on a topic explored during the hour and 15 minute class time.

 

Avery Hill

Ukulele by Ear: How To Play Without Music (3 day)

We forget that music isn't what's on the paper, it's what we actually play! This 3-day workshop will guide you through a series of exercises intended to help you internalize a song and play from memory in a meaningful way. A couple example songs will be provided, but feel free to bring a song from your own repertoire to work on over the course of the week. (All Levels)

Women of the Blues (Drop In)

Each day, we'll learn a song arrangement written and/or performed by blueswomen (think Bessie Smith, Alberta Hunter, Ma Rainey ...). Learn the basic chord patterns, add some Blues tricks and turn around, maybe even add your own verse! (Intermediate-Advanced)

Neal Chin

‘Ukulele Jazz (3 day)

In this class we’ll learn how to dig into the genre of jazz through the ‘ukulele. We’ll talk about the essential elements and where to set our sights to continue to grow. Tunes, theory, and improvisation are the names of the game here. Jamming sprinkled in for practical application. (Intermediate-Advanced)

Right Hand Techniques (Drop In)

One of the defining elements of an ‘ukulele player is how they use the right hand. Many different techniques have been developed over the years that have often elevated ‘ukulele artists to a unique sound of their own. Join us as we explore some of these techniques and some practical uses for them as well. (Beginner-Intermediate)

Danielle Ate the Sandwich

The Everyday Songwriter (3 Day)

Explore the craft of songwriting in a way that fits into your everyday life. Each class will cover a basic component of songwriting, with writing and musical exercises. We will use our daily lives, memories, stories, and our ukuleles to showcase the truth that we want to say, unlocking our individual artistry and developing a daily practice as songwriters. Please bring paper, a journal or notebook (and something hard to write on), and a writing utensil. (All Levels)

Soulful Singing and Playing on the Ukulele (Drop In)

Loosen up your body! Free your spirit! Let your voice be heard! This workshop focuses on relaxing the muscles and approaching your playing with a loose and soulful attitude. When we find the rhythm in music, the movement in our bodies and the soul in our voices, we can concentrate on giving better performances and achieve a higher level of playing. All levels of experience are welcome, but we will use basic chords and play standing up and moving around. (All Levels)

Larry Wyatt

Low G Fingerpicking (3 day)

If you’ve got a low G on your ukulele, put it to work for you. You’ll learn the techniques of Travis picking and add them to songs you already know. In addition to receiving tabs and charts, you’ll also learn how to arrange songs yourself. (Intermediate-Advanced)

Classic Country, Honkytonk and Western Swing Tunes (Drop In)

Learn songs from the treasure trove of American Country Music. We’ll also learn some classic Western Swing tunes for picking and singing. You’ll get charts for every tune we play, and we’ll dive into harmony singing as well. (All Levels)

What's the daily schedule?

There are 2 pages - one shows Monday and Friday

the other page shows the details for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

 

 

 

Orchestra + Ukulele = Ukestra!

Part of the Ukulele Band Camp experience is playing with the whole camp after lunch. This year, Aaron Keim will be leading all who would like to join in playing, "In The Bleak Midwinter" a beautiful piece by Gustav Holst, arranged for Ukulele by Kevin Carroll.

Can I choose any part to learn?

Yes. If you have a baritone or bass uke and will be bringing it, choose the appropriate part. You can choose from Uke 1, Uke 2, Chords, Baritone and Bass. See the email from March 10th for the links to the Dropbox for the music and the audio to hear the arrangement.

Will we perform this for anyone?

Yes - for ourselves and the pure enjoyment of making music together! We'll record a video so you can hear it from the listener's perspective afterwards.

Where's the music?

You can download the music from our Dropbox folder. Link is in the March 10 email.

TRAVEL

I'm flying in...anyone want to share a ride to Menucha?

Your reminder email from 3/14/2023 has a link to a Google Sheet which is self-serve and optional. If you can offer someone a ride, or are in need of one, put your contact info and what you need or can offer and get in touch with each other! Save a little gas, make a new friend!

Do Uber/Lyft/shuttle services... go to Menucha?

Yes, when you arrive at the airport they will bring you out here. However, going back to the airport is harder using Uber or Lyft -there are not many drivers in Corbett. But, I bet you can make a friend who can help you get to the airport on Friday.

What's the physical address of Menucha?

38711 E Historic Columbia River Highway, Corbett, OR 97019

Are there directions on your website?

You bet! Right here.

What about a map of the Menucha grounds?

Yes, you can find it here.

I might be arriving by Uber/Lyft/shuttle, where do I have them drop me off?

Have the driver come down the entry road, stay to the right at the fork, and let them drop you off in front of Wright Hall.

I'm driving, where do I go when I get there?

We have a lovely, winding, one-way entry road. Enjoy it. When you reach the signs at the fork in the road, stay to the right. You'll see the office building on your left, and Wright Hall will be straight ahead -it's big. Continue on past Wright Hall and down a small incline you'll see the gravel parking lot. Find a good spot and come up to Wright Hall to find out where you are staying

MEALS

How are meals served?

We serve "family style" bowls and plates of the main and side dishes are brought to the table and passed around so each person can fill their plates. Volunteer meal servers will bring the main dishes from the kitchen window to the table. If you submitted an Alternate Diet Request form, you'll pick up your meal from the kitchen window after the trays for tables have been given out.

Can we sit on the terrace?

Yes. There are small outside chairs tables with umbrellas (most of them). Just clear your table as you would inside.

We used to sign up to be Volunteer Meal Servers, are we doing that this year?

Yes, we will need folks to set the tables and bring the trays with main and side dishes to the tables. Volunteer Meal Servers report to the dining hall 10 minutes before the meal to receive instructions from the kitchen. They'll show you where things go, what to do, and so on.

Coffee, tea, water?

Yes! We'll have them at meals. Coffee stations in the buildings will be available for use. We have a fabulous collection of mugs (no, seriously, all the misfit mugs are loved here).

Do you still have the fancy coffee machine? Can you make me a latte?

Sadly no, but we have plenty of drip coffee, tea choices and hot water. And lots of good places to sit and share a cup in the between times.

WHAT TO PACK

What's the weather like?

It's the Pacific Northwest - so rain is likely. It might be sunny. Might also be windy, or not. Temps in daytime are running in the mid to upper 50's, the lower 60's are making an appearance. You'll be walking between buildings while you're here, so good walking shoes are helpful. It's not that far between and most of the paths are paved, but our parking lot is gravel.

What should I bring?

• Personal toiletries including shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, comb, hair dryer**Menucha has a few loaner hair dryers you can request in the office.

• Personal medications

• Comfortable clothes (layers)- the weather can change quickly in the gorge. It can get breezy! Don’t forget comfortable walking shoes and a jacket.

• Rain coat/hat/hood or umbrella

• Flashlight

• Alarm clock

• Camera…We have amazing views!

• Snacks and beverages…each building’s meeting room has a common refrigerator, microwave available for guest use.

• Instruments, tuners, portable music stand if you like having one and all those other things you like to have with you at music camp

• Print Outs of class handouts (we'll share the link to those in a couple of days) and Ukestra music

Please do not bring: pets, fireworks, illegal drugs, guns, or weapons of any kind. Please be aware Menucha operates a marijuana-free environment.

Ack, I don't have a printer? Will you have some copies?

Yes, we will. We also appreciate your help not having to make to many extra copies - we love trees too much to waste the paper.

Do I need to bring a sleeping bag/sheets/towels?

No, not unless you just want to. We provide all linens - sheets, blankets, towels, pillows. If you are, as my friend Gina says, "Pillow Picky" you might want to bring your own. We don't do daily towel changes, but if you need a replacement during the week, we'll get you fixed up.

Loving, Learning Attitude

The last few years have been all sorts of everything and we're still figuring ourselves out. I said last year "it's gonna be all the feels -- it is going to feel a little weird to some, a little scary to others, but also exhilarating, to be together again."  As we approach our time together please add an extra measure of patience, care and grace to the things you pack to bring with you. We'll all need to share a bit of each of those with each other at some point during the week.

"I've got an instrument/case that I'd like to sell or trade, can I bring it?"

Yes, you can. There will be an area upstairs in Wright Hall that will be designated for trading/selling instruments by participants. This is self-serve and not monitored.

is a performing artist, songwriter, storyteller, and music teacher. Her singular style of songwriting integrates intricate melodies with insightful, storytelling lyrics. Avery’s voice is at once both wise and curious, direct and searching, telling and investigating. Her latest album is Dreams & Ghosts: A Family Album (2015), featuring the award-winning single Hello & Goodbye. Since 2013, she has been teaching ukulele classes and workshops, leading jams, and instructing at camps and retreats. Whatever the classroom, Avery’s teaching philosophy is encompassed in three goals: to educate everyone’s inner musician, to elevate their self-knowledge and confidence, and to enchant them with insight, presence, and a handful of good jokes.

Learn more about Avery at www.averyhill.studio

is an award-winning artist and Maui native who has been both an ‘ukulele educator and performer over the course of his musical career of 20 years. His clear and direct enthusiasm for music has come to life in countless workshops, concerts, and private instruction. He's been nominated for the Nā Hōkū Hanohano Award for ‘Ukulele Album of the Year two years consecutively, for ‘Ukulele Paintings and The Spotless Mind, in 2017 and 2018. Neal has toured across the U.S. and currently lives, teaches, and performs in Seattle, WA.

Learn more about Neal at www.nealchin.com/

Danielle Ate the Sandwich is the stage name of folk/pop singer-songwriter and ukulele player, Danielle Anderson. Getting her start in Fort Collins, CO, now based in Kansas City, MO, Danielle has been touring nationally since 2009, after cultivating an online following from her homemade videos on Youtube. Danielle Ate the Sandwich has released seven albums of original music, made appearances internationally, opened for Mumford and Sons, Jake Shimabukuro, Suzanne Vega, Pomplamoose, and wrote the soundtrack to the Emmy nominated HBO documentary, “Packed in a Trunk: The Lost Art of Edith Lake Wilkinson.” Her newest project is an EP of original songs featured in the documentary “It’s Not a Burden: The Humor and Heartache of Raising Elderly Parents.”

Danielle Ate the Sandwich’s music has been compared to Joni Mitchell, Sara Bareilles, and Ingrid Michaelson. Her songs are lyrically driven, performed on ukulele and guitar, and find inspiration from her curiosity about death, science, religion, family dynamics, and her own emotions and experiences. Danielle Ate the Sandwich plays with the joy and sadness of the human experience, making you laugh one minute and cry the next. Her songs can be thoughtful and serious, but she’s known for her quirky lyrical twists, and delivering witty and honest stage banter in her live shows. With appearances at ukulele festivals and events around the world, Danielle has been able to share her creative and collaborative teaching style. Incorporating the same performance chops she uses to interact and play with her audiences during shows, Danielle leads with humor and honesty to help students feel at ease, and leave with a fresh take on a new skill.

Learn more about Danielle at www.danielleatethesandwich.com

Larry Wyatt is a recently retired Elementary Music Specialist from Hood River, Oregon. He is also a Level 3 certified instructor of James Hill Ukulele initiative who has taught Ukulele at the JHUI in Vancouver B.C. He has also taught ukulele at many festivals including Eugene Uketoberfest, Denver Ukefest, and the Gorge Ukefest.

In addition to ukulele, he also is also a songwriter and performer playing guitar, bass, ukulele, and steel guitar in a variety of ensembles. Most importantly, he loves to play and sing with his friends.

Big tone and solid rhythm have made Matt Weiner one of the busiest bass players in the Northwest. Inspired by the “prebop” bass players and their music, he’s slapping out a syncopated jazz feel on one tune, on another bowing a folksy melody.

Frequently performing upward of 200 shows per year, Matt can be spotted around Seattle and other places plucking, bowing and slapping his gut-strung bass with Jacob Zimmerman, Ray Skjelbred, Del Rey, Barton Carroll, Bric-a-Brac Trio, Squirrel Butter, Wayne Horvitz, Eli Rosenblatt, Casey MacGill and many others. He has also recorded and performed with The Todalo Shakers, The Hot Club of Cowtown, The Asylum Street Spankers, Butch Thompson, Becky Kilgore, Danny Barnes, Matt Munisteri, Jon-Erik Kellso, Rani Arbo and James Hill.

He was a featured musician in the 2019 production of the Christmas Revels in Cambridge, MA. Less recently, he played the role of bass player Joe B. Mauldin in the 5th Avenue Theatre production of Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. At The Ukeshack #1, an album of bass and ukulele duets with Del Rey, was released in 2007.

2+ decades of experience has made Matt a highly sought-after teacher. Matt has taught at the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop, the Yukon Woodshed Acoustic Music Workshop, The Portland Ukulele Festival, The Menucha Ukulele Bandcamp, and 4 different Centrum music camps: the Ukulele Festival, the Country Blues Festival, Voiceworks and the Red Hot Strings Workshop. He teaches bass, electric bass, tenor guitar and beginning guitar private lessons and workshops at Dusty Strings in Seattle, and at his little home in White Center.

Learn more about Matt at www.weinerbass.space

Nova Karina Devonie is a busy Seattle musician who delights audiences with her sensitive accordion playing, sonorous singing style, and sideways fashion sense. Interested in the amazing connection and communication that music can provide, she loves adding accordion to many styles of music. Nova divides her time between performing in bands, teaching private music lessons, and composing music with David Miles Keenan for the duo Miles and Karina.

Learn more about Nova at www.milesandkarina.com

If you are wondering if this camp is for you, please read on. Menucha’s Ukulele Band Camp is offered for advanced-beginner, intermediate, and advanced players. The word “beginner” covers a lot of ground, and the faculty recognize that there will be a range of skills in class and usually provide different parts to accommodate the students. Most teachers expect that the students know more than a few chords and are capable of changing chords smoothly and in rhythm.

We have devised an exercise to help you evaluate what you might want to work on before camp so you get the most out of your musical experience. Try the following exercise in three different keys. Use a metronome!

At 60 beats per minute, play each chord four times (four beats per chord). Play the chords without diagrams, that is, by heart.

C – Am – F – G7 – C

It should take 20 seconds. Try it in this key as well:

G – Em – C – D7 – G

Extra Credit: F – Dm – Bb – C7 – F

If you can do this, then you will get the most out of your classroom experience! You might have difficulty making the chord sound beautiful, even though you know how to play it (B-flat anyone?). Not to worry – the teachers can help you with that.

If you need to look up any of the chords, then you know what you may want to work on before the camp starts.

 

 

Fun Article Featuring our Camp: Ukulele, a Four-Stringed Phenomenon

LIKE Menucha Ukulele Band Camp on Facebook 

Official Group Photo of Menucha's 2019 Ukulele Band Camp