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| Frequently
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Are Beginners Welcome? Yes! We have a thorough curriculum for Beginners. For women just learning to play (or who have never played), we teach basic chords, strumming, picking, music theory, and musicianship skills. We offer guided repertoire classes to help you apply your new skills as you play easy, well-known songs. We also offer opportunities for guided jamming, so that you can enjoy playing and singing with others. You will find the staff and campers supportive and enthusiastic about your playing and progress. Many women who first came to camp as Beginners, over years of studying with us, have become skillful players. The community of women players inspires and transforms all of us. Return to Top. |
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What should I bring to camp? Several weeks before camp, we will email you a letter listing what to bring to camp. The letter also includes a driving map, information about arrival and departure hours, and a few other logistical details. Here's a copy of the "To Bring" List: Sleeping Bag, plus extra blanket. (We provide, beds, sheets, pillows, and pillowcases, but not blankets.) Soap and shampoo. (We provide showers, washcloths, and towels.) Fingernail clippers/Nail file. Water bottle. Warm layers of clothing. (Camp is close to the Pacific coast; mornings and evenings can be foggy.) Flashlight. Camera. Video Camera. Personal Snacks. Electronic guitar tuner. (It's a good idea to stick an address label on this item.) Music stand. Guitar stand (optional). Small sound recorder. (It's a good idea to stick an address label on this item.) Notebook, pens, pencils. Sitting cushion (softens metal chairs). Your CD to sell or trade (if you have one). Your guitar! (Please bring your capo, and an extra set of strings). Return to Top. |
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Are there age limits for coming to camp? Women 16 and older are welcome. Mothers who want to bring their younger teen guitar-playing daughters, please email or phone 415/827-1513. We impose no upper age limit, and have hosted campers in their eighties. We love age diversity among our campers. Return to Top. |
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What's a typical day like at Guitar Camp? For an overview, visit this Sample Schedule. Early risers will find hot coffee and teas in the kitchen, and a blazing fire in the living room. We serve a home made, delectable breakfast from 8:00 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. We divide the morning into two class periods, with two or three class options during each period. Each class lasts an hour and fifteen minutes. When you see the beautiful lunch spread, you'll be glad you had the opportunity to work up an appetite! We serve a home made, wholesome, delicious lunch from noon to 1:00 p.m. After lunch we offer another class period, again, with two or three class options. Following the afternoon class, the All-Camp Guitar Ensemble rehearses for 45 minutes. Before camp, one of our camp directors arranges a beautiful song in four parts. A month before camp, she sends a part to each camper: simple parts for Beginners, more complex parts for experienced players. By the end of our last rehearsal, we sound great. During the later afternoons, we offer seminars on Song Writing, Music Theory, Physical Conditioning for Women Guitarists, Strategies for Developing Musical Memory, Guitar Maintenance and Purchasing, Effective Practice Strategies, and Performance Support. Enterprising campers find time to practice, jam, prepare acts for the evening show, or write songs. Some campers visit Mendocino, or hike to the nearby beach. We serve a delicious, nutritious, home made dinner at 6:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday evenings we produce an "Open No-Mic" in which everyone has the opportunity to perform. We get to hear and appreciate original songs, newly formed bands, brave Beginners and experienced players sharing the music that they love. We sweeten the evening programs with late night snacks. We end officially by 10:00 p.m. but night owls continue playing and singing in the late night jam space. We believe that some of the most valuable time for campers is spent in conversation and musical exchange with women guitar players from all over the country. You will find a lot of this information and more on our Sample Schedule page. Return to Top. |
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What classes do you offer? We offer classes for Beginning through Advanced players in a variety of styles including Accompaniment, FingerStyle, Blues, Folk, Swing/Jazz, Lead/Improv, Brazilian, Celtic, Jamming, Chord Melody, Finger Picking, and Ensemble Playing. We also offer classes in Music Theory, Arranging, Song Writing, Performance and a variety of technical aspects of playing. For a fuller description of our classes, please click here. We make every effort to "integrate" our curriculum so that, for example, the scale you learn in your Lead/Improv class will work with the progression your friend learned in the Blues class. Some classes meet on both days; others just once. All class periods last for one hour and fifteen minutes. Return to Top. |
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How hard are the classes? At From Women's Hearts and Hands Guitar Camp, we are devoted to guitar education. We hire experienced, professional guitar teachers who know how to help you learn, and who also are kind, courteous people. Our serious educational focus notwithstanding, classes are fun, instructors are patient and encouraging, and we keep sight of the fact that this is your vacation. Each class is oriented either to Beginners, Advanced Beginners, Intermediate, or Advanced players (although some classes span levels). Campers are welcome to attend any class that interests them, but should be aware that we teach the class at the level specified on the Schedule of Classes. On the first night of camp, we offer an orientation program during which teachers demonstrate the music and techniques they will teach in each class. This program enables you to make an informed decision about which classes best fit your interests and level of experience. Return to Top. |
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What lodging options do you offer?
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I'm a vegetarian/vegan/gluten-free. Will there be entrees that I can eat? We offer delicious vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free alternatives at every meal. Please note your dietary preferences in the space provided on the Registration Form. Our chef will note your requirements, and prepare special food for you. Return to Top. |
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Will I have cell reception at camp? Our camp is located between Mendocino and Fort Bragg, close to the town of Caspar. Most cell service providers cover Mendocino and Fort Bragg. But some offer only sparse coverage around Caspar. If you find yourself with no cell service at camp, and you need to make a phone call, you can drive a few minutes to Mendocino or Fort Bragg. Alternatively, you can connect to our Wi-Fi network. Return to Top. |
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Will I have access to a Wi-Fi network? We offer access to a Wi-Fi network. If you connect to our network, and if the network is functioning, you will have internet access. Return to Top. |
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Should I bring my good guitar or my funky one? You'll enjoy the musical aspects of camp more if you bring your favorite guitar, and some campers bring very fine guitars to camp. We have never had a problem with theft, loss, or damage at camp. We ask campers to refrain from touching each other's instruments without permission. But if worrying will keep you from enjoying yourself, we hope that you'll bring your funky guitar. Some campers bring two guitars. Both nylon and steel string guitars are suitable for camp. From Women's Hearts and Hands Guitar Camp emphasizes acoustic music. All classes and performances are unamplified. Return to Top. |
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I'm kind of shy. Will I have to play in front of people? No one is required to perform on a stage or play alone in classes. However, you will not find a safer, more supportive group for whom to perform. We offer a Performance Support Seminar that might help you feel more comfortable on stage. But if you choose not to perform, you will not be alone. Return to Top. |
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I love to play for people. How often can I perform? Those who enjoy performing will find a receptive, enthusiastic audience on both Saturday and Sunday evenings. Our community is open to many different styles of music. We love the variety of musical offerings, and are inspired by all who participate. Return to Top. |
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Do you offer scholarships? Work/Study discounts? Sometimes, we have a small fund with which we can help women in difficult financial circumstances. If you need financial assistance, please inquire via email. Return to Top. |
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What's the best way to pack a guitar for air travel? If you have the opportunity to carry your guitar on the plane and store it in the overhead compartment, please accept this option. However, most airlines will not let you carry on bags as big as a standard size guitar case. Please don't let this discourage you from flying with the guitar you love. If you follow the guidelines below, your guitar will very likely arrive in perfect condition. Many of these packing guidelines flow from the fact that the most vulnerable point on the guitar -- as it makes its way through the airline baggage system -- is the place where the head joins the neck. That is the narrowest point on the guitar, and it also bears much stress from string tension. Basic Packing Guidelines 1. Loosen the tension of all strings so that they are almost completely slack. This will make the guitar less vulnerable to breakage in the event that it falls and lands on its headstock. 2. Pack your guitar in a hardshell case. Neither a gig bag nor a soft case is adequate to protect your guitar from the stresses it will encounter en route. A hardshell case with an arched lid affords more protection than a flat lid case. A hardshell case with an arched lid and an arched bottom is better still. Fiberglass cases also provide good protection. Consider packing your clothes in your gig bag, so that you can use your gig bag once your guitar has arrived safely. 3. Before you close your hardshell case, immobilize your guitar's headstock by surrounding it with some soft clothing (e.g., T-shirts, sweaters) or newspapers. Pack the clothing or newspapers above and below the guitar's headstock, so that the headstock cannot move in any direction once the case is closed. If your guitar wobbles around in the case, pack some more soft clothing around the neck and body to immobilize it completely (but don't pack so tightly that you create unnecessary pressure on the guitar's top). 4. Close your guitar case. Secure all of the latches. Lock any locks for which you have a key. Tape over the lock and some of the latches with duct tape -- perhaps all the way around the case. Packing Guidelines for the Extremely Worried These extra precautions provide more physical protection for your guitar, and they also help hide the fact that your baggage is a guitar. Basically, the extra precautions amount to packing your already well-packed guitar case in a box. Here's how: 1. Pack your guitar as described in the Basic Packing Guidelines above. 2. Go to your local guitar store and ask for a shipping box. These are the boxes in which the store received the guitars it sells, and guitar stores usually recycle more of them than will fit in the recycling bin. Indeed, I have scored some great shipping boxes by going round the back of the store to the refuse area, and rummaging around until I find a box that fits my case. 3. Slide your carefully packed guitar and case into the box. Crumple up a bunch of newspapers, and wedge them all around your guitar case. Tape the box closed. Use a razor knife to cut a "hand hole" in the box. Cut the hole on one of the large faces of the box, about two inches from the long edge, and half way down the length of the box. The hole should be large enough to accommodate your four fingers. Using this hole, you can easily carry the box with one hand. As you carry your guitar through the airport, and as the baggage handlers shepherd it across the country, no one will know it's a guitar! Return to Top. |
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I need to fly to camp. What airport should I use? Most campers fly to San Francisco International Airport, or Oakland International Airport. You might also consider the smaller, closer Santa Rosa Airport. We help link air-traveler campers with others arriving the same day. This way, you can rent a car and drive to camp together. We can also give you the names and phone numbers of campers who have offered to drive others to camp from the San Francisco Bay area. These generous souls have sometimes been willing to stop at the airport and pick up flyers. Guitar Camp is located about 4.25 hours northwest of San Francisco International Airport, 3.75 hours from Oakland International Airport, and 2.75 hours from the Santa Rosa Airport. We ask that you arrive between 4:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., so it's a good idea to book an early flight. If you arrive later than 6:00 p.m., we can save dinner for you. But please make every effort to arrive in time for the orientation program that begins at 7:00 p.m. At that time, we'll demonstrate material from all of the classes to be offered on Saturday and Sunday, so that you can decide which classes best suit your interests and level of experience. Return to Top. |
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What's Guitar Camp culture like? We're on an edifying vacation, in one of the most gorgeous places on earth, pursuing an art that we love, far from our work and worries. We're surrounded by women who love to play guitar. From before dawn until after sunset, our caterer cooks for us, and serves us delicious, nutritious food. Our teachers are prepared, experienced, and committed to helping us advance our skills. Our directors are experienced in creating a safe, inclusive ethos. Our surroundings are rural, but comfortable. In short, we feel happy, relaxed, well-cared for, included, and uplifted. Campers are friendly. Nevertheless, we respect introverts. We encourage campers to participate in scheduled activities, but participation is not required. Usually, about half of our campers are straight and half are gay. But, sexual orientation is not a salient camp theme. Some campers enjoy wine with dinner, but we discourage rowdy drinking. Some campers have been participating for many years. Still, newcomers who love guitar, and want to learn, will quickly become part of the group. By the end of camp, we feel like good friends. After camp, some campers continue their friendships. All classes, meals, open no-mics, and Guitar Ensemble rehearsals are offered inside of the Farmhouse. On warm days, many campers eat lunch in the beautiful garden behind the Farmhouse. Very rarely, on a warm day, a class will convene outside. Return to Top. |
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Do I belong in this picture? If guitar is at the center of your life, If you are passionate about playing and learning guitar, If you want to learn to play, and can accept serious education, Then, YES! You belong in this picture. Return to Top. |
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