, , , , , , , , Adult Recital Recap – Join a Band! We’ve got 7 Adult Ensembles at Guitar Shed – 1st rehearsal is FREE

Join a Band

What a weekend we had in January! Starting with our Adults Solo Recital at Bob and Harriet’s Home Bar on Friday and ending with our Adults Ensemble Recital at Aisle 5 on Sunday. We had several performers doing double duty, and lots of students out both nights to support each other. A packed house both nights, and everything from bluegrass to jazz, blues, R&B, and more.

Our solo recital had some great arrangements, original songs, and even a surprise set from some of our teachers. I like to keep our teachers on their toes, and we pulled together a 3-song bar band set at the end of the night. I forgot my earplugs that night, and my ears are still ringing.

On Sunday, we had some teachers fill key roles in two of the bands. Monica saved the day with R&B Ensemble and prepared 3 songs the day of with the band. She sat in, and it sounded like they’d been rehearsing together for months. Zach also filled in on drums, swinging with the Jazz Ensemble. Big thanks to our photographers, Akash Das and Addison Hill, for capturing both evenings! We still have a couple of spots in our ensembles, so please check out our ensemble page here and join a band!

Below is a list of all of our Adult Ensembles

Acoustic Ensemble – Wednesday Night Supper Club

Americana Ensemble – The Bullfrogs

Blues Ensemble – The Bobcats

Jam Ensemble

Jazz Ensemble

R&B Ensemble – We are One

Rock Ensemble – Cosmik Debris

Our bands rehearse Sunday-Friday nights in our brand new rehearsal space, Studio A. We have a full studio setup with 5 individual monitor mixes and a subwoofer. Mixes can be controlled via iPad or even from your phone, and we have top-of-the-line equipment for you to use. 2 drumsets, 2 guitar amps, bass amp, 2 keyboards, plenty of mics, and much more. Studio A is also set up for recording, so you can easily record your rehearsal by plugging in a computer to the mixer. There has never been a better time to join a band at Guitar Shed! Up until very recently, all of our bands crammed into the drum room, which is now the teacher’s lounge. Now, there is plenty of room to spread out and jam! Contact the front desk if you are interested in joining one of our bands. The first rehearsal/audition is free!

Joining a band can be intimidating at first, but we do our best to create a safe and comfortable environment for musicians of all different skill levels. If you have been thinking for a while about joining a group, this is the place for you. We are a non-competitive music school for students of all ages. In addition to our Adult Ensembles, we also have 4 teen/tween bands that rehearse in Studio A. Two of these bands are Teen Rock Bands, and we have 1 Tween Rock Band, and 1 Americana Tween Band (The Tadpoles) as well. These groups also have a few openings, which you can view here.

For teens and tweens who aren’t able to commit to a band that rehearses weekly, we have 4 sessions of our summer camp, Camp Woodshed, open in 2024. They are filling up quickly, so now is the time to register for your spot. The early bird discount ends at the end of January. At Camp Woodshed, you will have a lead instructor from Guitar Shed as well as learn from some of our other teachers during master classes each day. There is a pizza party at the end of the week with a live performance in Studio A! Guaranteed to be the best week of your summer! So, even if you can’t commit to weekly rehearsals, you can still join a band in 2024!

Join a band!

, , , It’s the most wonderful time of the year…Oakhurst Porchfest

Oakhurst Porchfest

Once October rolls around in Atlanta, there seems to be an endless amount of festivities packed into one month, all culminating in the biggest holiday of the year for our younger students… Halloween. We used to give out chocolate after each lesson at Guitar Shed. As we grew as a school, our chocolate bill grew, but we also began to take the chocolate for granted. Candy after a music lesson (or any activity for that matter) is a beautiful thing, but wouldn’t it be so much more special if we only had it for one month out of the year? Alas, we have candy at the front desk through the entire month of October. And to tide you over until next October, we’ll have some more candy around Valentine’s Day.

While you are deciding between fall festivals to attend, pumpkin patches to visit, and everything that Atlanta has to offer, I hope you mark your calendar for this Saturday, October 14th, Oakhurst Porchfest. Oakhurst is one neighborhood over from us, and we have several Oakhurstian(?) students offering up their porches this weekend. For those of you unfamiliar with the event, it is a gathering of over 200 bands playing 1 hr. sets throughout the day. There is a level playing field and a true sense of camaraderie between performers and attendees. Teenage garage bands, hipster dad bands, massive Pink Floyd tributes, energetic brass bands, first-time buskers. and seasoned veterans reuniting for a one-off show. Audiences are welcome and encouraging as sound permeates throughout the neighborhood. We have a few performances on our radar this year, but if you know anyone in the Guitar Shed family that is not listed please let us know, and we’ll be sure to spread the word. This is a completely volunteer-run event, with the coordinators, hosts, and musicians all donating their time and talents to one day of musical revelry. Most of all it serves as a reminder that music is alive and well in Atlanta. Check out the Oakhurst Porchfest website for addresses and set times!

Just like the candy, it won’t be here for long, so let’s enjoy it while it’s here.

Keep Shedding!
Parker

Guitar Shed Oakhurst Porchfest Schedule

Christo Case and the Porch Pirates – featuring teachers Chris and George

Max and Maggie – featuring teacher, Max

Cosmik Debris – Guitar Shed Rock Ensemble

In Cahoots – featuring teachers Chris, George, Will, and Parker

Riff Kats – featuring members of our Guitar Shed Blues Ensemble

Oakhurst Porchfest

, , , , Cosmik Debris Benefit Concert 4/30

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please join us as we celebrate the life of Anna McDaniel Sunday, April 30th at 2:00 pm at The Lost Druid. Anna’s band Cosmik Debris (Guitar Shed’s Rock Ensemble) will perform a benefit concert with all proceeds going to the Anna McDaniel Scholarship Fund – a fund established in her memory to award lesson scholarships to aspiring vocalists.

We’ve got a busy spring ahead at Guitar Shed with some great events, giveaways, and performance opportunities!

We are excited to return to City Winery (6/1) and Venkman’s (6/2) for our Summer Recitals. Please note that our Kids Recital is on a Saturday as opposed to previous recitals. Sign up begins on 4/1 for both recitals in our student portal. Space is limited, so mark your calendars and familiarize yourself with our student portal before 4/1. You can login on our website here and we are happy to resend your login info if you misplaced it. While you are in the student portal you can also register for our Student Showcase at The Pullman on 3/23. There are still some spots available!

Looking ahead, we’ve got our first ever Guitar Shed “Spring Concert” featuring 3 of our groups: Teen Band, Americana Ensemble and Rock Ensemble on 4/15. Also, CAMP WOODSHED is back this year and we have added a session for our younger shedders. Early bird sign up ends on 3/31. Take advantage of a $25 discount!