My thoughts on IGC 2014
Posted: Tue Sep 23, 2014 2:57 am
Hey all -
Since Sunday afternoon, when I dropped off Bob and Andy at SF airport and picked up my wife Laura to start our post-camp vacation, she has been subjected to me going on and on about the amazing time I had at IGC 2014. I figure it’s time to give her a break and, instead, try to put some of my thoughts on paper. (Warning: I tend to follow the maxim of why use a few words when many will suffice).
Simply put, IGC 2014 was the most incredible musical experience I have ever had. It would be impossible to overstate the profound effect it had on me, and from the comments, posts and emails I have heard and seen, it appears that my opinion is shared by most, if not all, of the other attendees. While IGC 2013 was informative, entertaining, and enjoyable, IGC 2014 went beyond that, and bordered on life-changing.
I’ll leave it to others to describe the excellent educational sessions (both group and individual) with Doug Young and Dave Nachmanoff, as well as Neil and Vanessa. Suffice it to say that each session was incredibly useful, entertaining and informative. Instead, I prefer to focus on the aspects of camp that, I felt, made it a truly transformational experience.
Having open mic nights on all four nights of the camp was a great idea - and having the final night be reserved for duos or groups was a stroke of genius, in my opinion. What I really liked was that Neil and Vanessa simply informed us that the final night would be for collaborations, and left it at that. Rather than pairing people up or assigning partners, they let the whole thing develop organically, based on shared tastes, preferences, or whatever. I think this led to much more “buy-in” on the part of the participants, and it really showed on that final night. In fact, the time I spent with my band-mates Bill Leeson and Ron Blue planning, practicing and tweaking what started out as a song and turned into a set, was one of my favorite parts of camp. And seeing the development/transformation of my fellow campers over the four nights was both inspirational and humbling.
Also putting IGC 2014 over the top, for me, was the participation of Dave Nachmanoff. The man is a bona fide star in my book, but despite his success, is by far the most down-to-earth, friendly and accessible star that I have ever encountered. Here is a guy that has taken the stage at the Royal Albert Hall in London, standing up on the stage at the Quaker Center doing duets with us campers, making the differences in skill level and experience between he and us largely irrelevant, all in the name of making good music. Getting to play What’s Going On with Dave up on stage Friday night (not to mention the impromptu versions of Thunder Road, Famous Blue Raincoat and Layla while hanging out during the wee hours of Friday morning) was an experience I will always treasure. I get goosebumps thinking about it.
The most difficult thing to put into words about this year’s camp is the feeling of camaraderie and kinship that I had with all of the other campers. To me there were three reasons this closeness developed. First, the attendees are simply a really great group of people, who I feel very fortunate to have been able to spend time with, and who I will look to now as close, life-long friends. Second, there was the “we’re in this together” mindset of the group in dealing with the open mics, with everyone supporting each other and cheering each other on.
The third thing that, in my opinion, engendered such closeness and kinship was the way that Neil and Nani’s family participated in this event - it was almost like we were all being invited into the extended Hogan family. Those of you who weren’t there will have to take my word for it - this is one close, hospitable and very welcoming family, and I am truly honored and grateful to have been able to spend time with them.
My biggest takeaway from camp is that each of us has strengths and weaknesses, and those weaknesses (in my case, my woeful lack of theory knowledge being at the top of the list) are our where our biggest opportunities for improvement lie.
So, as we transition back to the real world, I will fondly play back in my head the many wonderful moments of this camp, and will eagerly await seeing Larry’s IGC 2014 video on the site (please hurry, Larry!) Meanwhile, when I hear the Grateful Dead, I’ll think of Bill; when I hear Jim Croce, I’ll think of Bart; when I hear the Beatles, I’ll think of Bob S.; when I play an F chord, I’ll think of Andy; and when I hear the song Mellow Yellow, I’ll think of indoor plumbing.
Take care all - see you next year!
Jeff
Since Sunday afternoon, when I dropped off Bob and Andy at SF airport and picked up my wife Laura to start our post-camp vacation, she has been subjected to me going on and on about the amazing time I had at IGC 2014. I figure it’s time to give her a break and, instead, try to put some of my thoughts on paper. (Warning: I tend to follow the maxim of why use a few words when many will suffice).
Simply put, IGC 2014 was the most incredible musical experience I have ever had. It would be impossible to overstate the profound effect it had on me, and from the comments, posts and emails I have heard and seen, it appears that my opinion is shared by most, if not all, of the other attendees. While IGC 2013 was informative, entertaining, and enjoyable, IGC 2014 went beyond that, and bordered on life-changing.
I’ll leave it to others to describe the excellent educational sessions (both group and individual) with Doug Young and Dave Nachmanoff, as well as Neil and Vanessa. Suffice it to say that each session was incredibly useful, entertaining and informative. Instead, I prefer to focus on the aspects of camp that, I felt, made it a truly transformational experience.
Having open mic nights on all four nights of the camp was a great idea - and having the final night be reserved for duos or groups was a stroke of genius, in my opinion. What I really liked was that Neil and Vanessa simply informed us that the final night would be for collaborations, and left it at that. Rather than pairing people up or assigning partners, they let the whole thing develop organically, based on shared tastes, preferences, or whatever. I think this led to much more “buy-in” on the part of the participants, and it really showed on that final night. In fact, the time I spent with my band-mates Bill Leeson and Ron Blue planning, practicing and tweaking what started out as a song and turned into a set, was one of my favorite parts of camp. And seeing the development/transformation of my fellow campers over the four nights was both inspirational and humbling.
Also putting IGC 2014 over the top, for me, was the participation of Dave Nachmanoff. The man is a bona fide star in my book, but despite his success, is by far the most down-to-earth, friendly and accessible star that I have ever encountered. Here is a guy that has taken the stage at the Royal Albert Hall in London, standing up on the stage at the Quaker Center doing duets with us campers, making the differences in skill level and experience between he and us largely irrelevant, all in the name of making good music. Getting to play What’s Going On with Dave up on stage Friday night (not to mention the impromptu versions of Thunder Road, Famous Blue Raincoat and Layla while hanging out during the wee hours of Friday morning) was an experience I will always treasure. I get goosebumps thinking about it.
The most difficult thing to put into words about this year’s camp is the feeling of camaraderie and kinship that I had with all of the other campers. To me there were three reasons this closeness developed. First, the attendees are simply a really great group of people, who I feel very fortunate to have been able to spend time with, and who I will look to now as close, life-long friends. Second, there was the “we’re in this together” mindset of the group in dealing with the open mics, with everyone supporting each other and cheering each other on.
The third thing that, in my opinion, engendered such closeness and kinship was the way that Neil and Nani’s family participated in this event - it was almost like we were all being invited into the extended Hogan family. Those of you who weren’t there will have to take my word for it - this is one close, hospitable and very welcoming family, and I am truly honored and grateful to have been able to spend time with them.
My biggest takeaway from camp is that each of us has strengths and weaknesses, and those weaknesses (in my case, my woeful lack of theory knowledge being at the top of the list) are our where our biggest opportunities for improvement lie.
So, as we transition back to the real world, I will fondly play back in my head the many wonderful moments of this camp, and will eagerly await seeing Larry’s IGC 2014 video on the site (please hurry, Larry!) Meanwhile, when I hear the Grateful Dead, I’ll think of Bill; when I hear Jim Croce, I’ll think of Bart; when I hear the Beatles, I’ll think of Bob S.; when I play an F chord, I’ll think of Andy; and when I hear the song Mellow Yellow, I’ll think of indoor plumbing.
Take care all - see you next year!
Jeff
... only kidding, Sandy you did great up there; you learned well from the four masters ... and the one bass player.