Confidence Rocks

Nishi Temple

The logo of the rock and roll camp for girls

by Denise Reich

A camp about blazing guitar chords and cymbal crashes; about creating 'zines, writing lyrics and forming bands

School’s out for summer, to quote Alice Cooper. For a handful of girls between the ages of 8 and 17, however, the lessons are just beginning. Their summer camp experience won't be about swimming or kickball. It will be about blazing guitar chords and cymbal crashes; about creating ‘zines, writing lyrics and forming bands. It will be about learning to rock n’ roll…and more importantly, it will be about learning to rock self-esteem and confidence. At the end of July, these girls will be participating in the second season of Rock N’ Roll Camp for Girls Los Angeles.

The original Rock Camp for Girls was founded in Portland, Oregon in 2001. In the decade since, musicians and artists in cities across the USA and Canada have been moved to establish their own camps. All of the programs are independent, but they network and support each other through the Girls Rock Camp Alliance coalition. The Alliance has grown to include 29 programs in the United States, Canada, Sweden and Germany, and the movement has been covered in various media outlets. Participants from the original Portland camp were followed in the 2008 documentary film Girls Rock. Over the years, a number of promising bands and players have emerged from girls’ rock camps. They include Still Saffire, who have been playing out in notable New York City venues for the past two years and have recorded an EP, and The Jagged Tulips, who opened for Nina Hagen at Estrojam in Chicago. Musical success notwithstanding, the goal of the camps is not to produce the next Lita Ford, Cyndi Lauper or Kim Gordon. It is to foster confidence, independence and creativity.

“I hope that girls leave camp more empowered, and more sure of who they are,” says Becky Gebhardt, co-founder of Rock N’ Roll Camp for Girls Los Angeles. Gebhardt and Mona Tavakoli, bandmates in the folk-rock band Raining Jane, first became involved with rock camps for girls when they decided to volunteer in Portland in 2005. The experience motivated them to create a similar program in Los Angeles, but the dream would not be realized for several years. “We knew L.A. needed a camp, but our tour schedule was really intense for many years and we just were not available to make it happen," Gebhardt said. "When Raining Jane decided to take a break from touring in the fall of 2009, we realized it was a good opportunity to launch a rock camp for girls here in our home town. We were surprised it hadn’t happened yet.”

The Los Angeles camp welcomed its first group of 41 campers in the summer of 2010. The session culminated with a performance at the Troubadour in West Hollywood. In the spring of 2011, a Ladies Camp fundraiser allowed 24 women to have a rock camp experience, complete with a showcase at The Satellite. “They get to do basically what the girls do, only in a shorter amount of time,” Gebhardt said. “It was an amazing, transformative experience for both the participants and the instructors. And we raised a significant amount of money to help fund the summer camp.”

A typical day at camp includes instrument instruction and song-writing clinics, supplemental activities such as screen printing workshops and self-defense courses, and “punk aerobics”. During lunch, the girls are treated to performances and question and answer sessions with successful female musicians. At the 2010 session, lunchtime musical guests ran the gamut from rappers to bagpipe players. The goal for the week? To compose and perform an original song. “Many of the girls start the week of camp not really believing that they can play an instrument or write a song, but as the days go by, they come out of their shells and rise to the occasion,” said Gebhardt.

Rock N’ Roll Camp tries to offer financial aid for campers in need—the Ladies Camp also functions as a fundraiser for the girls’ programs. Gebhardt noted that given the urban sprawl of Los Angeles, simply getting to the camp location could be an insurmountable obstacle for some prospective participants. “Transportation and geography can be a problem. Because L.A. is so big and spread out, and because getting around can be difficult and there isn’t a lot of great public transit, there are some girls who would like to attend the program but cannot because of lack of transportation.”

The camp’s wish list is long; funds are limited. Gebhardt would eventually like to see the camp expand to include two summer sessions and a year-round after school program. Additional instruments are needed for the campers; storage space is needed to house them; rehearsal space is needed to play them. While the original rock camp in Portland has its own building, the nascent Los Angeles program sets up shop in a parochial school in Downtown L.A. All of the instructors and staff members volunteer their time.

Gebhardt and her team are aware of the challenges and remain dedicated to building Southern California's only rock camp for girls. The results--girls who believe in themselves--are worth more than any Grammy or gold record. “The girls are really challenged,” explained Gebhardt. “They have to work as a group, solve problems and make a lot of decisions. On top of it all, they have to perform on stage in front of a big audience. Every girl goes through this process at camp, and they all get through it. They end the week with a huge sense of accomplishment. I think any time a person faces a challenge or steps outside of their comfort zone, there’s a great opportunity for growth and building self-esteem.”

 

For information on Rock N’ Roll Camp for Girls Los Angeles, visit www.rockcampforgirlsla.org.

ADVERTISEMENT