Founded in 1997, Litchfield Jazz Camp serves about 300 residential and day students during a month-long program on the campus of the Frederick Gunn School in Washington, Connecticut. Run by Litchfield Performing Arts (est. 1981), a charitable organization dedicated to changing lives through music, the Camp’s philosophy is simple. They start with a faculty of amazing and inspiring jazz musicians who represent the best jazz players and educators on the scene today. To that, they add eager music students to a non-competitive, all-inclusive program. No audition is required; just a desire to attend and make music. Litchfield Jazz Camp embraces all learners: students aged 13 years and up – beginners, intermediate learners, advanced players, and students with learning disabilities.

Money is never a bar to participation. Last summer Litchfield Jazz Camp accepted 25% of its student body on need-based scholarships (distributing $50,000 in aid). Students are taught in skill-based combos and have extensive opportunities to perform for each other and the public at the end of each session and at the award-winning Litchfield Jazz Festival. They experience the music of their master teachers in the evenings and jam themselves each night.

Students enjoy lots of listening and performance opportunities at Litchfield Jazz Camp. They attend Faculty concerts and jams nightly, and student combo concerts wrap up each week. The world-renowned Litchfield Jazz Festival is at the end of week four. There, campers hear festival stars in a private concert just for them on Friday night, perform themselves at the free Outer Festival on Saturday, and meet artists in person during artist talks and master classes. This makes for a thrilling culmination of one of the most exciting music education experiences available anywhere. Understanding the whole person is the ultimate point of any right-thinking program, health and stamina are encouraged with optional sports in the afternoons. Most students are college-bound, and to support that the camp holds a college night each season with representatives of a wide array of university-level music programs. This group includes scouts who often offer scholarship students opportunities at their schools.

Many of the campers attend every summer throughout their teens, allowing for the camp to make a major impact on their skills and their emotional and personal development. The Residential Assistant and Teaching Assistant ranks are peopled by former campers. Many of these in the fullness of time have appeared on the Litchfield Jazz Festival mainstage as sidemen and even leaders. Surveys of former campers show that Litchfield’s participants continue their education at college and beyond. About half take academic degrees and half music. At least half garner scholarships. Many go on to win prestigious music awards (Monk and Downbeat Competition winners and more).

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