Thomas Goss's School of Rock

Thomas Goss's School of Rock is a rock music program, trialled in San Francisco, California in the early 1990s. It is now a nationwide organization in New Zealand, growing immensely since its formation in 2005. It helps children aged 11–17 learn about rock music, how to be part of a band, and how to successfully turn that "garage band" into a working, successful band.

The School of Rock is currently running in Wellington and there is also the Auckland School of Rock, a programme run by a team of professional musicians.

The school regularly accepts vocalists, guitarists, bassists, drummers and Keyboardists, while other instruments, such as saxophones, may be auditioned as necessary and contacts kept for needed circumstances.

Program

In most cases bands are created from individual sign-ups. In some cases entire or partial bands sign up, looking for instruction and help obtaining new members. Students are encouraged, and eventually expected, to begin or continue to have private tuition for their chosen instruments.

Quoted from the school's website: "The School of Rock teaches young musicians how to be in a band. Rockers-in-training learn important life skills - like how to work together, improvise, prepare new material, and perform in front of an audience - all while learning classic and modern rock that will make them better musicians. It's a great way to meet other young people interested in rock music, and to learn how to jam in a structured environment."

The term time program is intended to be taken over three years, with attempts to get the bands who are graduating their third year signed to established New Zealand music labels.

The Year One and Year Two term programmes feature

Wellington bands in the Year 2 stage go through "The Arc", a creation of Thomas's, where the involved band record a 6–8 song EP, designing, promoting, releasing and touring the CD themselves, assisted by Goss. In 2007, the bands who are about to graduate Year 2 are also recording and touring a compilation of singles, with airplay on New Zealand radio stations expected.

The Year 3 course is still in its final planning stages, with the first batch of bands ready to progress into Year 3 studies in April 2007.

Rock Camp

"Rock Camp" is the banner activity of the School of Rock, and an extension for those currently attending the term time program. The aim of the camp is to allow many teenage musicians from all around the country to come together and play rock music together, making friendships with like-minded people, and participate in workshops to help their instrumental skills, performance, and their songwriting. Also included as part of the camp was special talks from industry professionals on rock topics like promotion, booking, recording, getting signed, internet, and copyright.

105 musicians attended the 2006 camp, a huge increase from 60 at the 2005 (and first) camp. Students and mentors from all over New Zealand were present, with Warren Maxwell of Fat Freddy's Drop, The Mint Chicks and Ben Shepard of Sinate attending as special guests.

References

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